JP Jargon 2.0

What is wrong with "Truth, Justice, and the American Way...."???

2011-04-30T11:41:00.000-04:00

This past week something historic happened. I am not talking about Will and Kate getting married. Although, yeah it was historic and the hats were just spectacular.... But I digress... Political correctness changed the DC Universe. Not that you know or may even care, but if you've read my stuff before you know I am a HUGE fan of Superman. He is my hero. Always has been, always will be. I've said it before and I'll say it again, we need heroes in this world. They give us something to try to strive for. They provide a compass for right vs. wrong. They fight for people who cannot fight for themselves. Heroes are necessary. The world needs heroes. Superman is an American icon and has been largely integrated into our culture. Case in point, you cannot go to any mall without seeing the "S" in various clothing stores, on hats, in print at book stores, in music lyrics, on cups, etc. The "S" is recognizable everywhere and I think around the world in the same manner that Mickey Mouse is recognized, Superman is also well known. But this week, the writers at DC decided Superman renounce his US Citizenship:

NY Times: Superman Renounces his U.S. Citizenship

And so I ask the question. Why???? I get he is a fictional character, but I just feel that this is pure and total crap! I sort of saw it coming with the last Superman movie that came out, when they said, "Does he still stand for truth, justice, and all that other stuff?" "All that other stuff?" seriously??? The reason it bothers me is that it seems to say there's something wrong with being an American and identifying with the USA. The writers try to spin it that Superman's actions are not an off branch of U.S. policy, but encompass a broader purpose. Well, I would argue that you can still be a hero, still be American, and still have a broader purpose. One thing does not preclude the other. I think in the name of political correctness and not wanting to offend anyone, DC took their most recognized, most iconic character and made him the opposite of what he's always stood for. The stupid thing is, they never even had to take this story line. And the story line makes no sense. Why would a farm boy from Kansas renounce his citizenship (keeping in mind Superman was raised in Smallville on a farm)? It's absurd. From Superman #24, association with the USA was pretty..... apparent....

Comics allow an escape into a world where you could imagine, dream and be inspired. Now DC made this twist to make a statement. And as for me I think their statement sucks!

Trying to Learn Something New

2011-03-19T21:42:00.000-04:00

I woke up one day and felt like I needed to do something new. I wanted to try something creative, fun, and well just ...... different. The problem was not sure what that new something was. Now that Graduate school is over and golf is just five, maybe six months out of the year if the weather cooperates, I have a lot of free time. What to do? What to do? One day I got home, went out to get the mail and thumbed through the little booklet for adult night school classes and came across a beginner guitar class. I thought, hummmm.... it fits the bill, so why not give it a try? I went out and found a starter Yamaha guitar:

I had one class so far and I like it! I've been practicing every day to try to build some finger strength, dexterity and try to learn how to properly use this thing....

My hope is that by summer I can just sit out on my deck, strum my guitar and be able to play something that sounds similar to a song. Maybe eventually I can do some good, acoustic tunes as well that I listen to on Pandora. My goal is not to be in a band or play in front of people. This is just something I thought would be something fun to learn and help me to understand that music thing that Sharkey can do and tries to explain to me from time to time, while I blink a few times and blankly stare back at her. One of the other things I found is that there are some cool tech accessories you can get for this guitar thing. The starter guitar I bought came with this electronic tuner, but it is not that great (rather crappy in fact... and did I tell you I know how to replace a string because I snapped one while trying to tune it with this thing...). I came across a SNARK chromatic tuner. It is the bomb!!! Unlike the electronic tuner, it works off of vibrations, so you clip it to the head of the guitar, play a string and you can zero in on the right tone easily, even with a lot of background noise. And it was $10...

Who knows, with a few thousand hours of practice, a few sets of strings, and some quality lessons, maybe Sharkey and I can sing "Lucky" together! =)

Lucky - Jason Mraz & Colbie Caillat

Now that would be something!!

Come on Spring!

2011-02-14T21:48:00.000-05:00

I walked out to go to lunch today and felt that wonderful, warm breeze hit me in the face! I love that feeling! It made me outstretch both of my arms to give the warm air a hug back. As soon as that breeze hit me, my thoughts turned to golf, breaking out my polo shirts, getting rid of all that wretched snow and riding with my moon roof back and the music blasting! I am hoping that little groundhog was right and spring will arrive early. If the 50+ degree day today was any indication, I hope Spring is right around the corner!

Favorite, Special Place Closed!!!

2011-01-24T19:10:00.000-05:00

Do you have one of those "special occasion" places that you go to once in a blue moon? You know, it is not your "everyday" place where you'd go and have dinner, it is one of those special occasion places for when you have a special milestone birthday (30, 40, 50...) or you have a milestone anniversary (5, 10, 20,...). My special occasion place is Roy's Hawaiian Fusion. Sharkey and I first went to Roy's when we were vacationing in Hawaii on Kauai. It was in a word....WONDERFUL!!! They have Asian Fusion food. It is Asian with French influences, so funky Asian. And they have the most awesome dessert.

It is a molten chocolate souffle that is absolutely to die for!! We were happy to find that Philadelphia had a Roy's location. We went there a few times for our "special occasions." So this year my Mom is turning 75, so I thought it was the perfect time for Roy's so I went online to make a reservation only to find out they closed back in July 2010!! A big "OH NO!!!!" was heard for miles when I read about the location closing. I guess that means I will need to hoof it to Baltimore or Hawaii now for special occasions!!!!

Crazy Asian Ethics

2011-01-20T22:01:00.000-05:00

You may have recently seen this article floating around the internet. It's about the Tiger Mom:

Wall St. Journal - Why Chinese Mothers are Superior

The article talks about how she raised her daughters and if you read the comments there are a lot of critics on her techniques. Call them whatever you want, but I can totally see what she is saying and I think the reason why it is so foreign to people is because she raised her kids using an Eastern perspective and the people judging her are coming at her from a Western perspective.

Now do not get me wrong, I think she is hardcore Eastern (i.e. very hardcore Asian). And I think my being Japanese gives me the right to say this, because, well I lived it. I was raised in a similar fashion. I can remember my Mom drilling in my head that we need to do things "this way" not "that way" and these "things" would be repeated over and over and over and over again for years on end in the house, in the car, on the way to church, at the table, on vacation, etc. My brothers and I joke about it today as adults and call it the broken record parenting style. My Father would tell me on occasion that while people like to say we all are equal, we still need to be better, do better and drive to be the best at what we do to make sure everything is equal. These are the messages I heard growing up and when I read the Wall Street article I saw a lot of similarities to how I was raised.

I used to think part of it was my parents being raised during WWII and all of the prejudice and racial tensions they had to deal with. But reading the article made me realize their perspective on what was acceptable for their kids was not unique to them, because these standards were passed to them by their parents. So maybe WWII was not the real driver for their parenting style. If I were to sum it up, their goal was perfection. And that in and of itself is very Japanese. So even though I grew up in the United States of America all of my life, I hold that Japanese perspective of not being satisfied with just maintaining, but pursuing things with the goal of ultimate perfection. I think reading the Tiger Mom's article was very insightful to my own life because it made me realize I am who I am as the result of a culture thousands of years in the making. Right or wrong, good or bad, and however you think of it, it produces results and often times really good ones.

JP and Sharkey Day!

2011-01-06T22:21:00.000-05:00

From time to time Sharkey (my wife of 10 1/2 years) and I do a "JP and Sharkey" day! Usually it is on a Friday to extend the weekend and we try to do something fun that we normally do not do. Sometimes we go into Philly to Reading Terminal Market for lunch, we have taken day trips to Annapolis, MD, gone to NYC for a short weekend and walk around like "New Yorkers." So with the start of the new year we scheduled our first JP and Sharkey day. So what are we going to do? Well...and this is Sharkey's idea, we "may" be taking a little weekend trip to the Poconos to do some skiing. I used to be a skier in High School. I had my own skis (Dynastar 190cm downhill racing skis) and went about 3-5x a year and went on a yearly 3 day trip with my Church's youth group which is not too bad considering I grew up in the flat, farmlands of Southern New Jersey. But the last time I was skiing was about 15 years ago! And Sharkey, even though coming from the frozen tundra that is Minnesota has only been skiing 2x. This could make for an interesting JP and Sharkey day! I just hope in our "middle-age" we do not end up in traction or requiring some physical therapy after the day together!

Hi from Catherine!!!!

2010-12-25T14:21:00.000-05:00

This is "JP"'s niece.... Well idk how you would say that...5 but he's my uncle. hI

Merry Christmas: Want vs. Needs

2010-12-25T14:19:00.002-05:00

Merry Christmas all! It is the time for family, good will, and peace. Christmas has been and still is for my family the time of year that we celebrate the birth of Christ and redemption for God and man. So this post definitely has a Christian perspective to it, so if you are up for it, read on, and if not I still wish you the best of day for you and your family!

As I sat in church yesterday, I looked around and took in all the people. I thought about the things they were thinking about. Some were thinking about the gifts they were about to get, others were thinking about the gatherings they were going to, some focused on the joyful music, and others just were happy in the moment. It was at that point where a thought occurred to me that God does not give us everything we want, but he always gives us what we need. Let's face it, there are things that we wish we would never have had to deal with or situations that we never would have chosen for ourselves. But it is those things that shape us (both the good and bad situations)and give us the qualities that are lasting, that make us what we are supposed to be,that give us what we need in God's eyes. It is a matter of faith for sure, but a powerful, awesome thought that we are prepared for something greater both in this world and the next. And maybe, just maybe all of those unpleasant things we need to deal with, give us something unexpected, something actually good.

So that is my inspirational thought for today! May the reason of the season, Christ, be with you all and you all have a Merry Christmas!

Christmas Question: Best Gift You Gave, Best Gift You Got

2010-12-16T22:33:00.001-05:00

I was talking to ~~the wife~~ Sharkey the other night and she asked me an interesting question. "What is the best Christmas gift you ever gave and what is the best gift you ever got?"

So I thought about it, and hands down, the best gift I ever got, was when I was 12, and I got a Star Wars Millennium Falcon:

I played with that thing ALL the time! It was my #1 favorite toy. It was badass! It had working turrets, a radar dish, and of course the battery powered laser sounds...

So the best gift I ever gave? That's an easy one too. The keyboard/electric piano I bought ~~the~~ my wife Sharkey 8 years ago. She uses it multiple times a week and gets more enjoyment out of it than I ever expected.

A Deal is a Deal

2010-12-15T18:19:00.000-05:00

I saw my Doctor six months ago for my regular checkup. We talked about the normal stuff. He asked if I had anything to tell him, I said no. He asked if my wife had anything I wanted to tell him about me (because apparently our spouses want us to tell the Dr. things we would not say ourselves), I again said no. He listened to my heart, took my blood pressure, and went over my blood test results. I was good. So before I left, I had a brilliant idea and said, "Hey how about we make a deal. I will lose 5 pounds before I see you next." He said, " That's a great idea. I will put it in your chart and we'll see what happens in 6 months."

So I have been going to the gym since after Thanksgiving. I have been trying to take my lunch to work instead of eating out. And when I eat out I try to be "a little" careful about what I eat. I also started to drink more water and tea and less soft drinks.

So after a month I have to admit, "What the heck was I thinking!!!!" This sucks!! I was happier when I came home and slept on the couch and ate whatever I wanted whenever I wanted. I miss my lackadaisical lifestyle. I was like all Americans and I liked it and was happy. What was I thinking!!!

(K' so I am really just kidding. I am able to see my chin again, and I have a lot more energy and sleep a lot better, and I'm really not missing Coke & Pepsi that much. And the clothes are fitting better. But I have not weighed myself. I am just going to wait till my next appointment and see where I am. I just need to remember to clam up and keep my big mouth shut)

Nephews

2010-12-04T11:39:00.000-05:00

I do not have any kids. Not that I do not want kids, it just has not happened for me and my wife. So the closest thing I have to my own kids are my nieces and nephews. It has been a blast watching them grow up and see them become the individuals they are today. There are times when I look at them and the decisions they make that are similar to some of the things that I did growing up. Some of them good and some of them bad.

Take my oldest nephew for example, J. J was a superstar in High School. Everyone knew him, everyone knew of him, he was loved by all. He goes to college thinking he's going to rule the school... Can you see the foreshadowing coming? So he gets to college and he finds out, he's just one guy in a sea of lots and lots of superstars. He struggled, tanked his classes, he has changed his major and living arrangements 2-3x in 3 years and then there's J's girlfriend. He dated a girl who was 1 year behind him in high school. So his first year in college he came home every weekend to see her. Recently I found out they argue more than a married couple going through counseling. This is the point where you just want to tell him, "Dude!! Wake up!! What are you thinking!" I sort of went through a similar thing when I did my undergrad where I had so much freedom and did whatever I wanted and had the girlfriend who I spent every waking minute with, that I could not finish my undergrad in 4 years. I talk to J from time to time and I think he is sort of amazed how I understand him. Heck, in some ways I was him. So I share the things I experienced and thought about when I was going through my college years:

The friends you make in college are some of the ones you have your entire life

You define yourself in college. And if you are trying to find out who you really are, you are not going to find it out by going home to Mom and Dad all the time

College is not a right, it is a responsibility. It is the first "job" you take on as an adult, so you need to make sure you perform, grow, and learn.

Some people can handle school, the girlfriend, and the social stuff. If you cannot there is no shame in it, but your priority must be the school stuff. Everything else will fall into place in its own time

I am sure J will work it out. He's a smart kid and has a lot of potential. It is just being Uncle JP that makes me want to prevent him from doing a lot of the things I had to do to get where I am now. But I suppose that's how we learn, not just by success, but also by adversity and even failure.

Christmas Gifts

2010-11-27T21:39:00.000-05:00

Like everyone else I am shopping for Christmas gifts. But it is one of those tasks of the year I do not dread doing (at least for now since we are a few weeks away from Christmas). I like it. Christmas has always been one of my favorite holidays. I like getting gifts for my family and seeing their reactions when they open the gift more than receiving gifts. I especially like the kids reactions at seeing the things they receive. It is all about the feeling of holiday for me.

While it is not true for everyone, when I looked about the mall today with people running about and doing their shopping, for the most part everyone is happy and everyone is thinking of others more than themselves. You can feel the good energy around you, it is genuine, and it is contagious.

Could you imagine if this concept of "thinking of others more than yourself" carried forward into the workplace and your personal life on more than just November/December of every year? What kind of world would this be? This is not a new concept, but it is pretty powerful. Some have called it "pay it forward," the Christian faith refers to it as loving your neighbor as yourself, and others have even built marketing campaigns off of it like Liberty Mutual:

I think for the most part, people have the ability and demonstrate that they can do it, because if they could not, then Christmas would not come for anyone every year. I think this type of generosity and feeling is what the new, improved Ebeneezer Scrooge was described as having learned in Dickens, A Christmas Carol. The issue I think is that people lose the feeling and go back to the day to day and the same old, same old once the holiday is over. Also, when we encounter a bad situation, "jerkstore" person or negative energy a big, dark cloud forms over our heads that dampens our spirit. But if the Christmas feeling really is contagious and the energy perpetuates from one person to another, then why can it not happen throughout the year? Then what a world this would really be!

Back to Blogging? Can it be?

2010-11-26T11:17:00.000-05:00

Hello? Is anyone out there anymore? Is this thing on!?! No there is nothing wrong with your RSS feeds, this is a "NEW" post!

It has been well over a year since I wrote a post. I had some "issues" remembering how to even login to Blogger.com. But I overcame my technical issues and here I am again. I am at that familiar yet foreign place in front of the keyboard with a whole bunch of thoughts going through my head.

So why start up JP Jargon again? Why should I do it when Facebook and Twitter are so much more convenient to just put things out there. I think what it comes down to is that JP Jargon is more for me than for all of you. I know that may sound selfish, but I went back and read my posts from the past and it gives me insight to myself. What I was doing, what I was thinking, what I was feeling, and how I dealt with all kinds of things. And I think that is important. Self reflection is a good thing. Knowing where you have been helps you to also figure out where you are going.

So for the 2-3 readers that probably will see this post, I am back. I will again be posting the various random thoughts flying through my head again and we will see where this writing takes us.

Wecome to JP Jargon 2.0...

13 down 1 to go...

2009-12-20T15:46:00.003-05:00

I have not been updating this blog too regularly, because I finally gave in and joined Facebook. So I joined the dark side and update there pretty regularly. If you know my "real" name, friend me and you can read my updates and random thoughts there.

I finished my 13th graduate course last week. It was my last core course I was required to take. It was a great course. I really liked the professor. He is by far the most down to earth guy I have ever had and the amazing thing was he really respected the students' time and recognized we are working professionals going to school at night. We had lectures and I had to write a 6-10 page paper for my grade. The last class we went to a local watering hole for drinks and some food while we discussed our paper topics. It was a great end to a great course. I received my grade back today and I earned an "A" so he must have liked the research paper I did on the "Economics of Cloud Computing."

The Master's program I am in has a 6 course core requirement, 6 elective course requirement, 1 prerequisite programming class, and a capstone class to wrap everything up. I only have the capstone class remaining. That class starts in January and finishes the first week in March. Then I am done with my MIS degree! I am planning on putting the cap and gown on for the last time in May 2010. That should be it for me forever. That is unless my current employer wants me to get an MBA, then... well back to school I go...

Gobble, Gobble, Turkey Day Poll

2009-11-22T14:14:00.002-05:00

So as we approach the holiday, some questions popped into my head and I wondered what everyone's Turkey Day preferences are:

1. Turkey: white meat or dark meat?

2. Mashed potatoes or sweet potatoes?

3. Pumpkin Pie or Other pie?

4. Homemade gravy or McCormick's packet gravy?

5. Bakery rolls or Pillsbury Crescent Rolls?

6. Cranberry sauce must have the can lines or you look for the crushed, ground, fresh stuff?

7. Dinner prayer or round the table, "I'm thankful for..."

8. After dinner, unbutton the top button or "I wore the elastic fat pants."

Second Chance

2009-11-06T21:48:00.003-05:00

Three weeks ago a friend of mine called and asked if I'd meet him for a round of golf in NJ. I checked the weather and saw it was going to be 75 degrees and sunny, "WINNER!!! AWESOME!!!" I took the day off and went on my merry way leaving the house at 5:45am so I would make a 9:00am tee time at Neshanic Station, NJ. I was about three quarters from the course and nature suddenly came knocking. It was one of those, "Wow, I really need to stop and go" moments. Fortunately, I was near a shopping area and found a 24hr Shoprite to stop at and "figure things out." I bought a bottle of Gatorade and went to my car to continue my journey to the links. On my way out of my parking spot an older woman flagged me down. I stopped and she asked me if I could take her to "Golden Acres" or something close to that. I looked at my watch and it was 8:15am. There were other cars around, so I told her I wasn't going that way and apologized for not being able to give her a lift. I was not familiar with the area I was in, I didn't even know where she was talking about or how far away it was; I was worried about not making my tee time, and I figured with all the other people in the lot she would be OK. So I drove away, but when I pulled out of lot it bothered me. I felt like I passed up a chance to do "the right thing." It is almost like one of those situations where "if you do this for the least of my people you do it for me."

Last week I had another early tee time at 7:50am about 1/2 hour away from my house. I left at 6:00am to get something to eat along the way (McDonald's...ahem), fill the tank, and get to the course early to warm up and putt. Mind you this is my idea of a "perfect" day. I stopped and got my #1 extra value meal with a medium coffee, 2 cream/4 sugar and then stopped at Sunoco to fill up the car. When I was finishing the fill, a young guy came walking up to me from out of nowhere and asked if I would drive him to a local town about 3 miles away. I looked into his face and something "clicked" inside of me. There was a look of "lost" in his eyes and his disposition told me, "please help." So I told him to hop in and then took him to the next town. On the way I talked with him a bit. He did not have anywhere to go and was looking for a shelter. I asked where he had stayed and he told me he had slept outside of Walmart, but they had asked him to leave and go to the next town for a shelter. We got to the town and I drove through, but was not sure where the shelter was so I took him to the fire department, which was open, lit up like a beacon and manned. I was pretty sure they would be able to get him help. I dropped him there, gave him a little money and told him God bless and take care. He looked back and thanked me and the look on his face had changed to "relief." I went on my way to the golf course and I was thinking that this was my second chance. Now I know that reading this, you probably will point out that it is dangerous to pick up strangers and that I really took a risk in doing this. I agree. I also wouldn't want Sharkey doing what I did because of those same reasons, but that morning I found something genuine in this young guy's face and disposition that compelled me to act in this situation, where common sense dictated otherwise. I also felt because of my previous inaction a few weeks earlier, there were other things going on that morning that put another opportunity in front of me to do "the right thing." In a way, I felt this was a matter of faith. I said a prayer for him after dropping him off, hoping he would find his way and in some small way, my actions helped him a bit to know hope, kindness, and a little faith still exists in these difficult days.

Presentation Skills A Must

2009-10-13T22:32:00.004-04:00

I have been in pursuit of a Master's degree for four years. I both love and hate it at the same time. I love learning new things, I love being able to grow professionally, I love to listen to my classmates relate professional experiences, and I really love my student discount! I hate group projects, cause let's face it, you always draw at least one "DUD" in your group that is either not a team player, totally does not do any work, (aka...SLACKER), or has an agenda that is the direct opposite of the other 90% of the group; and I am more of an individual effort person. I hate the professors that do not understand you are a working professional, and assign asinine 20 page papers, 10 page take home tests, and 300 pages of reading for class discussion. And I REALLY, REALLY, REALLY hate student presentations; 80% of IT professionals cannot present in front of a group. It is true! It is a fact! They read every bullet point on a slide, take forever to get across their point (the presentation is 20 minutes people! Not 40, not 30, not 50 min!!) and in doing so lose the audience, and speak without any voice inflection whatsoever. Um, "knock, knock, hello people!!" That is not presenting. That is reading while feeding your audience Nyquil and Allergy Medicine (and it is not the non-drowsy kind either)!!

I am coming to the end of the road though. I have 2 more classes to take and I am "D-U-N" done! Then I can yell the battle cry of every educated student, "NO MORE SCHOOL, NO MORE BOOKS, NO MORE TEACHER'S DIRTY LOOKS!!!" And then, I can do what the average middle age man does. Come home from work, sit on the couch, have Sharkey fetch me my slippers and newspaper, present me with a hot dinner, while smiling at me wearing her freshly pressed flower print dress.... Cause, you know all us middle aged men got it like that....and my friends if you think I really do have it like that, then well, you are reading my blog for the first time, and really do not know me at all!!!!

40, 1/2 Life

2009-09-30T16:11:00.002-04:00

40 came & went. I feel no different than 39. Yesterday was a great day. We went to Disney Hollywood Studios. I signed up for the free admission for my b-day, but since we have admission included in our vacation package I was able to exchange the certificate for 6 FastPasses. We went on Tower of Terror, Rock'N Rollercoaster, Toy Story 2x. The birthday FastPass is awesome because you can get all 6 at once. See regular FastPasses require you to wait 60-90 minutes between each one. For dinner we ate at the 50's Prime Time Cafe. It is a great place if you have never been. They will insult you, ask you to set the table, keep your elbows off the table, and finish your vegetables. If you do not, this is what happens:

If you want to see more of our escapades, hop over to my Flickr page.

The first forty years have been wonderful. I think the next forty will be equally good, but different. I have learned a lot, experienced a lot, graduated from college, fell for the perfect woman, got married, moved to PA, changed jobs 2x, lost my father, helped my wife get through breast cancer, served on church council, and shaved 15 strokes off my golfing. So what is next? It seems that the first part of my life shaped me and put me in a place to share my experiences with another. So to that end Sharkey & I completed our application to adopt a child from China. So Lord willing we will get a referral to travel 1/2 way around the world to pick up a daughter. It has been a long process & looks to be a long wait with the international laws changing and the applications numerous, but we hope we will get our referral in time. Sharkey has not been quick to share because of the wait, but I feel some of my coworkers know and those of you who read my blog know me as well if not better than they do, so I made the call to put it out there! Praying for the change to come in good time!

Vacay Day 1

2009-09-28T15:46:00.003-04:00

I know I have not posted in a while. The evil demon "Golf-or" possessed me & I have made little time for everything else. But here I am one day shy of my 40th b-day and I am posting from Disneyworld. Sharkey & I just checked in & we are sitting at this cute little table having snacks & coffee. When we checked in, we went to the desk & the girl behind the counter said, "oooooh!! For your birthday you have been upgraded to concierge level!l". So we are on the top floor, looking down on all the other resort guests eating our complimentary snacks & sipping our free drinks. It is almost a bit surreal, but things like this nice touch make it like reason #5098 why I love the house of the mouse!!!

Cereal Poll

2009-09-04T22:25:00.002-04:00

Take yourself back to when you were a kid food shopping with Mom. When you hit the cereal aisle, what did you try to sneak into the cart hoping she did not notice?

Frankenberry....

Count Chocula....

Boo Berry....

Extra points to the person who can tell me the name of the cereal with the werewolf character, which was also a General Mills cereal. Finally, estimate the number of boxes of stale, nasty, sugary cereal that sat in the cupboard because you only wanted the toy at the bottom of the box!! Come on, we all did it, you know you did and you know what I am talking about!

Random Things

2009-08-31T21:11:00.002-04:00

4 Hour Woody, Seek Medical Attention

So you know those erectile dysfunction commercials on the tube? Am I the only one who finds....."For erections lasting more than 4 hours please contact a physician..." hysterically funny???? I mean don't you think you would be concerned after say....1 hour, possibly 2 hours.... "Uh, oh something's wrong...game over man....not good....not good..." I guess they have to give guys a time limit, so they do not over look the happenings south of the border, with the tent pitching and all.

Why Are Bad Things So Darn Tasty...

Sharkey was gone for a photo seminar in Utah over the weekend, so again I played the bachelor card. I played golf Thursday and decided to stop at Wegman's to get an apple Kuchen for breakfast Friday. The Kuchen is essentially a 6"x14" apple danish:

Sure 1/8 of this thing is 180 calories, but it is just to die for.

Turning 40!?!

29 more days until the big "four-ooooooohhhhh" Unreal that I have been on this big blue marble for that many years. In a lot of ways it is very surreal. Sharkey and I will be heading to Orlando to celebrate, barring any natural singularly named weather disturbances forming in the Caribbean or Gulf, but even if that should happen I purchased "vacay" insurance so all is not lost. We are staying at the house of the Mouse. I was wondering if their recent acquiring of Marvel means they'll really put the screws to Universal Studio Parks telling them that Spiderman, the Hulk, Fantastic 4, Iron Man, and X Men are all Disney owned and they'll need to cease using their likenesses on their rides. Hey it could happen. It also begs the question how those characters will be used in the future by M-I-C-K-E-Y M-O-U-S-E.

I had thought about spending this birthday in some other place that Sharkey and I had never been to together (like...Scottsdale/AZ, Bend/OR, Napa Valley/CA) but it came back to Disney. Not sure, but I think the Asian gene kicks in for the special place. There are a few reasons I think for choosing the destination. Disney is one of those companies I do not mind giving money to. I think you really do get what you pay for. But I think what clenched it was what was going on at EPCOT the week of my birthday. The Food and Wine festival is kicking off during that week, so you can sip different wines all around the world showcase and sample different foods. And one of the cooler things (well I think it is cool anyway) is that Richard Marx and Starship will be performing concerts while we are there. We are children of the 80's after all:

I was telling Sharkey one of my great ideas is that we should have an 80's party at our house. I'm thinking we have enough friends our age that we could pull it off. I think I could maybe dig up some period clothing and spike the hair for a night. Lord knows I have all the 80's music to partaaaayyyy.....

Login and Second Chances

2009-08-15T18:45:00.004-04:00

Login

I just returned from a trip out to the Midwest. It was nice to see Sharkey's family and spend some time with Character Builder's kids. The nieces like to play with my MacBook while we are there because they like the Photo Booth application. Photo Booth allows you to take and distort your picture with the Macbook's built in webcam. It is pretty good fun too! For Sharkey's 5 year cancer free party we setup the MacBook at the party and let the attendees take their pictures. It is pretty hysterical. So I arrived home and booted up my MacBook the other night. I have password protection set, so I need to enter the almighty password in order to start up my MacBook. Much to my surprise, my administrator icon was changed. See my administrator icon was set to Maggie:

Now when I log in, this is what I see:

Now I am not sure if Catherine (AKA Cath-O-Winn) did this on purpose or by accident somehow. But I thought it was funny that her distorted mug greets me when I boot up. I think I'll probably keep it for now, sorry Mags!

Second Chances...

The Philadelphia Eagles just gave me another reason to not be a fan, they signed Michael Vick. This is somewhat controversial in Philly. I know people for his playing think he paid his debt to society, he shows remorse, and can be a positive role model to show how someone can comeback from the brink and succeed. I do not totally agree with all of that. I do agree he paid for breaking the law and served his time, so he owes nothing there. But I do not agree with his reinstatement to the NFL. I would argue that if he did not get caught, he would still be running a dog fighting ring. But beyond the "what if's" my main reasons for him to not be reinstated by the NFL are because of what he contributed to and what his reinstatement says to the public and other players. Vick took part in twisting and destroying innocent life. People may disagree with me on this point, because it depends on how you view dogs, but to me dogs are innocent, just like human babies, and their temperament and disposition are totally influenced by man; and the twisting and training of these animals to fight each other to the death is despicable. Additionally, the way Vick inhumanely ended their lives is BEYOND reproach. I feel very strongly about this point. Even if you made the philosophical argument that dogs have no souls, and therefore do not matter in the big picture, no sentient form of life deserves the end Vick determined for eight of the canines. I would argue this act alone disqualifies him to be on the center stage and an example of professional sports excellence. Secondly, the NFL reinstating him sends the message to everyone (i.e. adults, kids, other pro athletes) that you can take part in violent, cruel, and inhumane acts and still play professional sports and still make millions of dollars. I think the NFL would have been better served by maintaining the ban on him playing and making his case the example of what the consequences are for abusing your rewards for playing in the NFL. Just like punitive damages are awarded in legal cases to deter illegal behavior, the NFL could have done the same and sent that message. NFL players are compared to warriors battling on the field for the win. Warriors battle with honor. There is absolutely no honor in any of this.

Summer Update

2009-07-28T19:30:00.003-04:00

Been away from the "Blog-isphere" for a while! Not sure why, but I have not felt the desire to post anything. So let's see what's new?

I have been taking a graduate law class. It has been interesting and a bit depressing at the same time. Let me explain. I like the foundations of what our society is built on. The Constitution, the Declaration of Independence, and Bill of Rights with all the other foundational ideals the USA is dependent on for the civilized and good life which we all enjoy is fundamental to everything, but this class is making me question where we are today. My fear is that we have become a society of as long as the laws do not affect us directly, it does not matter. We go along happy and content, because ignorance is bliss. But I think it does matter. Each of us has the responsibility to voice our views, stand up for what is right, and not take the side lines on issues or be afraid of what others think of us because of those views. Our responsibility to society does not end at the ballot box. Because if you knew all the crazy laws that get passed on both the State and Federal levels and why, it would make your head turn! Thomas Jefferson once said, "The price of freedom is eternal vigilance," and I do not think he meant vigilance to apply to only outside countries, but to also inside the USA itself.

Quite a bit to chew on is it not? So let me digress to things more JP worthy...

Sharkey has been traveling quite a bit. It's been just me and the Mags, who lately I have labeled "Mooch-opotamus." I have been the bachelor, watching all the DVD's as loud as I want, whenever I want, playing Guitar Hero (VERY LOUD!), golfing and doing all those things I cannot do when Sharkey is home. I am such the rebel! All I need to do is put on my white dress shirt w/ no pants, white socks and slide across the wood floor w/ my sunglasses on. =)

We are headed West soon to visit Sharkey's family and do another road trip. Maggie will be with us too. It's the quintessential family trip.

My 40th B-Day is fast approaching and my 30's are quickly coming to an end, so I have made preparations to head to the place where all life changes must take place. You know where I am talking about. It's Magical after all... More to come on that. That's about all for now. JP out...

Vote For the Flying Hawaiian!!

2009-07-08T22:16:00.001-04:00

Sweden's Contribution to the World, The Hex Screw

2009-06-22T22:22:00.002-04:00

The hex screw. If you ever have purchased furniture from Ikea, you have intimate knowledge of this fastener, and the Alan wrench that you get with each furniture purchase. Sure the hex screw is trendy, neat, and somewhat European, but you get over that after using that small, ridiculous Alan wrench after 2 screws. On our last trip to Ikea, I bought a utility tool that included the two standard sizes of hex heads. And looking back at that $5.95 impulse purchase, it is one of the best things I've ever bought:

See, my Sharkey had her heart set on new deck furniture this year. She wanted the wicker stuff with the all weather cushions (which I'm waiting to see if the cushions really are all weather). She purchased it, and the honking box came last week with the furniture ready to assemble. As luck would have it, it came with one of those nice little Alan wrench things for 32 hex screws. The locations of some of the holes were a little tricky, but my Ikea impulse purchase came in handy. It was way faster than using that cheap ass little wrench that came with the furniture. Two hours and a few colorful metaphors later, Sharkey's furniture (sans cushions, I'll let her do that) was finished!

Quick Poll...

2009-06-20T22:26:00.002-04:00

After attending a Phillies game recently and the US Open, it left me with a few questions. Here they are:

1. On a hot dog, do you use mustard or ketchup?

2. If you had the choice, Coke or Pepsi?

3. At a ball game, Budweiser metallic bottles or Tap beer?

4. Would you root for Tiger Woods or Phil Mickelson?

5. If you catch a foul ball and are sitting next to a 10 year old, do you keep the ball or give it to him?

6. If you had the choice, soft pretzel or Cracker Jacks?

7. Would you ever consider buying tickets from a scalper?

8. Cheesesteak or cheese fries?

9. If someone initiates the wave, do you participate or look around aimlessly like it never happened?

10. Would you use a Port-O-Potty 10 feet away or beat feet to a real bathroom 1000 yards away?

I Am Back!

2009-06-02T22:56:00.002-04:00

It has been a very long time since I posted. Whew!!! My monster projects are C-O-M-P-L-E-T-E! It is hard to believe, but I can now say I am done. It feels good!

The official score is:

JP: 2

Godzilla & Rodan: 0

I have basically been living at the office. Sharkey called me at 10pm one night and told me I needed to come home. Yeah, definitely not good. But now that those two projects are behind me I can get back to some normal life. It is amazing how the 40 hour week seems like nothing after working on these projects. I can take a breather and enjoy the summer!

Exhaustion Battling The Monster

2009-05-02T23:17:00.003-04:00

Have you ever battled a huge monster? You know what I'm talking about? The nasty, fierce kind of creature you look up at and shudder with fear in your inner most being? The campaign to battle the monster is long and full of sacrifice. You gain some ground some days and you lose some ground on other days. Then there are the evil people who sent the monster. They have their own agenda for unleashing this terror upon you.

I have been preparing for this campaign since November. And this past week was the showdown with the "monster." My monster is the project I have going on at work. It kicked off in November and it has been a nonstop roller coaster. It is without a doubt, the most complex thing I have ever worked on. I'm still wondering how I drew the short straw on this one. I admit I do have Superman syndrome, where I like to be the hero with the red cape flowing in the wind, but I have been pushing it all week long. I've been pulling 12 hour days for the past 4 days, I was in today, and I have to go in tomorrow. I keep thinking about that 5 For Fighting song, it's not easy...

And the other thing is the client. They are without a doubt the most difficult, demanding, inflexible, unreasonable, and finger pointing individuals I have ever worked with. I try to always stay professional, but I really do not like them at all. They want everything and they want to pay nothing and do nothing for it. Oh, did I also mention they want it to be 100% perfect. Most of my co-workers cave to them and are afraid of them. Sorry, I do not play that game. I believe in equality in business partnerships and that clients need to give a bit to get a bit. It makes it difficult, and I would rather not deal with them at all truth be told. But as with anything I give it everything I have. And this project has taken everything I've got. I just hope it is enough.

I have 2 more things to do and I can put this "monster" down. Unfortunately, "monster-2" is only three weeks away. Yes they have two monsters. If you want a rubber Japanese monster analogy, it's like fighting Rodan this week and Godzilla three weeks later. And the next one is worse than the current monster I am battling. But I have two weeks to recoup and regroup. I also have some "lessons learned" I can apply, so like every good hero I learn, adapt, and throw care to the wind and head into battle.

I will not be defeated. I will prevail. I will fight and I will win. Yeah, I need some sleep in the worst way...

Anger

2009-04-19T00:43:00.003-04:00

I played my first 18 hole round yesterday. Yes I "was" still in the western suburbs of Shanksville. But I did have some shots of brilliance, so I feel like I'm slowly moving out of Shanksville. It is a work in progress. That's just how golf is.

Yesterday was beautiful. It was a perfect day. One of the best things about playing golf is walking the course and just being outside. I think that's the most relaxing thing about it. So even though I was not at mid-season form, I was still having a great time, until...

We crossed the 8th hole and went to the 9th. It was at that time an "older" guy and his group on the #7 hole told my group we needed to pick it up and that we were holding everyone up on the course. My reaction was one of absolute surprise and disbelief. He totally caught me off guard. I said to him, "Are you serious?" He was. He kept saying "You are holding everyone up, and you need to speed up" and was saying it pretty angrily. Now, yesterday being the perfect day it was, meant the course was crowded more than usual. I was playing with my partner and we were practicing for our upcoming Thursday league. We were paired up with two other guys who do not play all that much and they were a bit slow, but they were in a golf cart and were keeping up OK. And we were always on the tee box when the group in front of us were on the green, so we were moving along just fine.

So after Mr. Crabbypants and his foursome yelled at us I just could not let it go. I was ticked off. I mean I was really angry. You need to realize that it takes a LOT for me to get to that point because I am pretty even keel all the time and I hardly ever lose it. I'm still a little hot thinking about it while I'm writing this post. I think I was/am mad because he treated us like we were all hacks who did not know what we were doing and was extremely rude. He and his ignorant friends talked down to us like they were better than us. I think I handled the situation fine by shaking my head, laughing at him, walking away and not saying anything else, but I am rethinking that I should have told him to shove his driver where the sun doesn't shine instead of silently dissenting (which is what my parents programmed into us growing up; you know, Japanese Americans are the strong/silent people). I also think I was miffed because it was a gorgeous day. It was one of those "great to be alive in God's world" days, and this hockey puck, jerkstore just ruined it for me.

I suppose I could have kicked him in the throat, and then broken all his golf clubs and walked away. But I will let karma do its thing. Still, I hope he drove at least a dozen of his ProV1's into the lake or the woods and had the worst scoring day ever. Yeah, I know, I know, "vengeance is mine says the Lord"

Shanksville

2009-04-16T21:34:00.003-04:00

I entered the town of "Shanksville" recently. It is a very crappy, sucky town. It has no paved streets, no tall buildings, no lights, no bright colors, everyday is rainy with high winds, and everyday you spend there feels most unnatural. I think the population is large but I can only perceive my presence in the town, so it feels really like a population of one. Me. Or that's how it feels anyway. You do not enter "Shanksville" by choice. It is not a desirable destination to get to. And it is almost impossible to leave "Shanksville" no matter how much you want to.

The "shank" is one of those goofy things that happens totally out of the blue. There is no rhyme, no reason, it is tough to figure out. And it looks something like this:

Yes, this is another JP golf post.

I have a flaw in my swing. It causes the ball to shoot off to the right. No distance, totally off line, and it feels like my arms want to shake off my body when I hit the ball. And the most annoying part of it all is it is very, very repeatable. I cannot stop from doing it. It sucks rocks! I am just hoping I can figure something out so I can leave the awful town of "Shanksville"

Vacation, All I Ever Wanted...

2009-04-10T03:11:00.007-04:00

Sharkey and I recently returned from 10 days of "vacation-y" bliss. We did the old fashioned drive and see the country trip. We got in the car, I put on my iTunes Playlist entitled "70's Leaning on the Backseat" and we were off to the south serenaded by some retro driving music:

We made stops in Reston (Virginia), Raleigh (North Carolina), Hilton Head Island (South Carolina), Savannah (Georgia), and St. Augustine (Florida) before reaching our final destination, Clearwater (Florida).

Here are some photo snippets of some of the things we did and saw:

Hilton Head:

This is the first Original Pancake House I have seen since I lived in Bend, Oregon. They have super yummy food. So we went there for breakfast. If you never tried one and have one nearby, go for it. I highly recommend it.

St. Augustine:

Clearwater:

Our main destination was to see the Phillies play a preseason game in Clearwater. We watched them trounce the Houston Astros 13-3. It was awesome!

We had breakfast at the same place the Phillies get their food from the next morning, Lenny's:

Orlando:

For her birthday, Sharkey wanted to indoor skydive. I am typically up for anything, but I had to overcome a bit to get myself to do it. Especially after seeing the warning sign on the 2nd floor:

Riiight.... I have dislocated my right shoulder 3x and had a titanium/stainless steel screw inserted into it to keep it from going out. So this sign really did apply to me. But I felt like I'd regret it if I didn't try, and hey getting injured while indoor sky diving is "manly" high testosterone acceptable, so I did it. It was a blast...

Afterward we went to Downtown Disney for a lovely dinner at McDonald's and had one of these babies for dessert at Girardelli's Ice Cream Shoppe:

We went to Disney Hollywood studios the 2nd day we were in Orlando. We went there 45 minutes before the park opened so we could be the first in line for the new ride, Toy Story: Midway Mania.

We were able to ride it 3x for the day. It was great!!

Hollywood Studios was very relaxing and we had an afternoon cupcake / rice krispy treat break, which produced this euphoric look on my wife's face:

We both shared sort of the same look. And while we did a lot of driving and had a lot of stops, it was a great trip!

Monkeys In Oz

2009-03-21T16:15:00.002-04:00

Remember watching the Wizard of Oz? Well unless you are my wife Sharkey, who has never seen the movie, you probably do. My two older brothers and I would always watch the movie when we were growing up. Mom & Dad really liked Judy Garland, so whenever it came on we'd all gather around the glowing console set and get transported to Oz. There was one part of the movie that I do not like still to this day, cause, well, it freaks me out. It's the part with those creepy flying monkeys. I hated those things. I'd have dreams when I was a kid I was being chased by those damn things.

So a week ago we were in a Hallmark store getting some birthday cards and came across this snow globe:

As soon as I saw it, the only thing I could think of was those scary ass monkeys from the Wizard of Oz.

Sweet dreams all!!

I Hate Thai Food

2009-03-11T21:30:00.004-04:00

I eat almost everything. It is true. There are very few foods I will not eat. There is however one exception. Thai food. I hate it. It is not, "I prefer to not eat it." It is not, "I really do not care for it." It is not, "That just doesn't sound good to me." It is an absolute, unequivocal hatred of the food. I think it may have to do with my first job out of college.

When I graduated from college I wanted to see the world. I had always lived in Southern New Jersey my entire life. I wanted to see what was out there. I took a job with IBM and they sent me to Bend, Oregon for six months. It was weird and surreal in a way. One moment I was in farm town USA, and six hours later I was in a corporate apartment 3000 miles away.

I felt like I needed to push myself. Not be "safe" near family and friends. I wanted to experience a different geography and meet new people. I think all of my "life" in Bend is worth another post, so let me get back to the Thai food. When I was in Bend, I shared a car with another Big Blue employee for the first couple months. He was a unique individual from India. He loved Thai food. And as luck would have it, there was a Thai restaurant in town. At the time I was open minded, wanted to try new things, had the $50 per Diem, and so I would go to lunch there with him so he wouldn't have to eat alone. We went there so many times, and I went through everything on the menu. I came to my first realization. I really hate Thai food. I think it's the spices, the presentation, and flavors. I really do not like it. I mean I really hate it quite passionately.

Last Friday the guy I sit next to at work wanted to go to lunch. So I said I'd go with him where ever he wanted to go. And what did he pick? You guessed it. Thai food. I went there and I figured enough time had passed and maybe I really didn't give Thai food a chance....

On Saturday, after having a really "difficult" sleepless night "gastronomically" I was working things out and then went to sit through a movie I had planned on seeing in a little bit of distress. And the one thought I had 1/2 through Watchmen when my lower intestine started announcing its displeasure in my food choice from the previous day was..."I HATE THAI FOOD...."

Who Watches the Watchmen? I do...

2009-03-07T23:33:00.004-05:00

Sharkey had a photo shoot this morning. Last night I decided to make my Saturday plans, so I went to Fandango.com and purchased a ticket for Watchmen in iMax.

The movie was A-W-E-S-O-M-E!!! Watchmen is based off of a comic book series that ran in 1987. Those were the years I fondly referred to a few posts back. So for years, fans of the series waited for it to be turned into a movie. The wait is over.

I arrived at the iMax for the 9am show this morning. The place was packed. But the crowd was very mixed. Sure there were some kids with their parents there, but there were a lot of people my age in the theater. They were former comic book junkies like I used to be I guess. The movie did not disappoint. It had the essential story line, the characters were spot on (unlike that 3rd X-Men piece of crap that was produced), and it was a good ride.

I give Watchmen the JP two thumbs up. It has a great 80's soundtrack. You know you are in for a good time when the beginning of the movie has 99 Luftballons and the first major fight scene is to Nat King Cole's Unforgettable. One tip, if you are going to see it is definitely go to the bathroom prior to the movie, because it is a whopping 2 hours and 43 minutes long. And watch how much you drink during the movie. You don't want to miss anything by having to go to the restroom. The entire movie is one wild ride from start to finish. One thing I was very surprised at was people even at 9am buy the popcorn, pretzel bites, huge bucket sized sodas, and candy. I mean come on people, chips, candy, pretzels at 9am!?!?! What are you thinking?

March Madness...

2009-03-04T21:48:00.004-05:00

Guitar Hero....

Not sure why, but the guitar from our Guitar Hero World Tour was messed up. Maybe Sharkey and I used star power too much. If we were playing, we wouldn't even strum and the thing would register a bad note. I opened up a return with RedOctane.com (the makers of Guitar Hero) and sent back the guitar. They turned around the return pretty quick and this showed up the other day....

So now it's time to rock it out again!

Phillies in Clearwater....

Gearing up for preseason with the Fightin' Phils! My spring training duds should arrive shortly:

Top Chef....

Stephan lost!!! You go Hosea!!!! The universe balances itself once again!

Singing

2009-03-02T22:32:00.002-05:00

I sing. I am a church cantor. Sharkey also sings and plays the clarinet. We are a musical family. Maggie also sings...

I was kicking around YouTube tonight and found this video. It is "give you a cavity sweet..."

It Is Coming...

2009-03-01T12:14:00.005-05:00

March is here. God is teasing us with the warm weather we've been having in South East Pennsylvania (I say tease because we are supposed to get like 3-5 inches of snow tonight). My adrenaline is pumping. I can feel it coming. I can smell it when I walk outside. Golf season is approaching. From around mid March until October I play, practice, and I am in my "zone" my "happy place." I have been getting the golf catalogs in the mail, I have bought a couple of new shirts for the season and I have a new thunderstick to put into play this year,

and I have been contemplating an on course GPS (cause Sharkey peaked my interest in them the other day):

One of my life goals is to one day have country club membership somewhere. I want to be able to play whenever I want. That would be awesome. It would be nice to also have my own wooden locker with my name engraved on it to store my clubs, shoes, some clothes, etc. I realize it is a dream. It probably won't happen until I am retired if ever, cause, well club membership is what my Sharkey calls, "chaaaa---ching!"

I have been watching the first PGA tournaments of the year on TV. Looking at the guys in short sleeves playing on the beautiful greens and fairways. I was glued to the set watching Tiger Woods return this week, but he was knocked out in the 2nd round,

as well as Phil Mickelson,

and my current favorite player Camillo Villegas:

So I lost a lot of interest in the main tournament after the above three were eliminated, but here I am on a Sunday afternoon still watching to see who wins.

Yesterday I went to the driving range to get some "hitting" in. That's my code word for driving range practice. Before I leave the house, I kiss Sharkey goodbye, and tell her "I'm going to go hit, be back in an hour." It was pretty crowded yesterday too. I guess a bunch of guys have the same addiction as me. Only the guys there yesterday were beginners. Balls and clubs were flying all over the place and they were giving each other armchair golf pro tips. "Keep your head down, don't twist so much, grip your club like a live bird, hit down on the ball like an axe..." The one guy I was next to was way scary. The stalls at the range have 3 foot high walls that separate them. Good thing too. This guy was hitting the side walls (thank God those walls were there or he'd have hit me a few times), the ceiling (which I'm not sure how he was able to do) and was burning balls to about 100 yards. He asked me how to tell how far his balls were going (the ones that actually did leave the stall anyway), so I showed him the sign in his stall that listed the yardages of the different range targets. And I was hitting pretty well yesterday, so he was trying to get some tips from me. I think my best tip was, "If you are going to take the game up for real, take lessons as soon as you can." =)

Remember the 80s?

2009-02-23T22:21:00.002-05:00

At work today I went a couple aisles down from my cube to my old cube. My old cube is located where my old team sits. Even though I am not on their team anymore, I still feel like I am still one of them so I go for a visit now and then. One of the women brought in her old CD's she was cleaning out of her house. So everyone was talking about what they used to listen to back in the day when they were in high school. One of the girls said she listened to Debbie Gibson. The rest of my team said, "Who's that? I've never heard of her. What did she sing?" I was like, are you kidding? She was awesome! She sang "Only in My Dreams" and "Shake Your Love." I saw her in concert. OK, I just totally dated and outed myself as a former teen pop star fan... But still, Debbie Gibson brings back great memories... The 80's!

After that little conversation I went back to my desk, took out my iPhone and queued up Pandora. Pandora is a sweet little application that streams music based on an artist you key in (Oh, BTW apps for the iPhone like Pandora makes reason #1369 for getting one). It selects genres of songs based on who you pick. So I keyed in "Debbie Gibson" and I spent the rest of my work day with background music of some old friends:

Lisa Lisa & Cult Jam
Roxette
Richard Marx
The Bangles
Belinda Carlisle
Heart
Tiffany
Naked Eyes
The Motels
A-Ha

It is pretty amazing how listening to all of that just takes you back to another time.

Wasabi, A Little Goes a Long Way

2009-02-17T21:01:00.003-05:00

I went out to lunch with my team today. We were celebrating a woman's birthday on my team. She initially wanted Thai food, but fortunately the Thai restaurant was closed for a private party today. Yeah, I really do not like Thai food. I have never craved Thai food or even thought, "Hey you know what sounds good, a nice Pad Thai!" Nah, no, not... Fortunately for me, my favorite Japanese restaurant is right next to the Thai restaurant, and everyone (yes, I used the Jedi mind trick on all of them) thought Japanese sounded good.

We went in, I said a big "Hi!" to the owner and received the warm, happy greeting (favorite restaurant means JP frequents the place quite a bit). We all ordered lunch. I sat next to the Birthday girl who ordered sushi for the first time ever. Brave girl. Of course, she was sitting next to the master... I was explaining all the in's and out's of the different types of sushi you can get. She went with a raw, spicy salmon roll and the "standard" California roll. I went with my standard selection of spicy tuna roll and an Alaskan roll. The sushi came, and she asked me what the green stuff was. I told her it was the "heat," the stuff of legends, and the main reason why a lot of people eat sushi -- WASABI!! I told her some people mix it with soy sauce, while purists like myself take it straight up on the sushi. She picked a little wasabi with her chopsticks and before I could warn her, stuck it in her mouth...

So after the paramedics left after having revived her, and her normal facial color returned, she said she could not believe how hot it was. I told her she should be one of the soy mixing people to start her sushi eating adventures. That worked out pretty well and she was lovin' the raw fish and was looking forward to trying it again. She said she really liked the colors of the food and was almost disappointed to eat it, because it was so pretty. Another satisfied customer.

Today's incident reminded me of $10 I spent in high school. My friend and I were at a sushi bar and he kept saying that the wasabi wasn't that hot. I bet him $10 he couldn't take the 1x1 inch of wasabi and down it all at once. He took the bet. He just about died. He turned bright, bright red, his eyes shot out of his head and he pounded his fists on the table and afterwards chased after his sinuses which unmercifully shot out of his head and went screaming away into the night. It was the best $10 I had ever spent!!! Yeah, that's right. That's how JP ROLLS!!

Clearwater Here We Come

2009-02-14T12:25:00.005-05:00

Sharkey and I are putting together our vacation plans for the end of March. We determined we are headed south. We are going to road trip it. We were batting around the ideas of Las Vegas, the Caribbean, a cruise, and Florida for vacation and to celebrate Sharkey's:

Birthday.

Well, with all the planes going down all over the world and more frequently in the North East, the statistics of safely flying is becoming a bit troubling. And even though the "spendulous" package passed through congress this week and is going to give us a whopping $15 more dollars a week, we thought we'd try to conserve a bit, while still having fun. So here's what we are looking at:

Day 1: Reston, VA

There's a restaurant there called Big Bowl.

Sharkey and I used to frequent Big Bowl in Minneapolis, and this is the closest one and on the way south to our final destination.

Day 2: The Carolina's

Lunch in Raleigh, NC to meet with friends, possibly a nephew and then on to Charleston, SC.

Day 3: Florida Land of Oranges and Mickey

On to Florida. Cross the border, drink some fresh orange juice and then explore some coastal towns. We could use some help with this leg of the trip. I wonder if someone who lived in Florida has any ideas (cough, William, cough, cough) for us?

Days 4-6 : Clearwater, Phillies vs. Astros, beach / umbrella drink time

Clearwater, Florida. We are taking in a preseason game for the 2008 World Series Champions, Philadelphia Phillies:

We also thought we could hang out in Clearwater for a few nights and do some days at the beach and just relax.

Day 7: On the road again

Back up the coast to the Carolina's

Day 8: The Keystone State

Home sweet home in PA

Day 9: Recuperation, it's not just for breakfast anymore...

Crash out at home from the trip

We are hoping to see more of the things you would typically miss when you fly over them in an airplane. I'm sure Sharkey will take lots and lots of pictures and I'm hoping we can find some off the path places and little food places. This trip reminds us both when we were kids on vacation with our families in the car on the road. Do you remember? Let me take you there. It was the time when the cars on the road were all metal, no one wore seat belts, and you would hang on the front seat from the back, cause front seats were not separate, but were like couches. And you'd hear some familiar tunes on the AM/FM radio while Dad drove all over the place with the window down and his left arm out the window.

Yeah, those times. Great times...

Mac N' Cheese

2009-02-03T20:30:00.002-05:00

I have been on a quest for the past two days. I have been trying to make homemade Mac N' Cheese. And I am trying to find a "great" recipe. I am talking about something better than the Kraft box kind. I am talking something like S'MAC in NYC:

I was driving home from work the other night and it was cold, blustery and overcast. It was one of those nights you want to curl up by the fire and have some "comfort" type food. You know what I mean? Something like a great soup with some crusty bread, or meatloaf with mashed potatoes and gravy, or some really good mac n' cheese. That's when something inside my head clicked. Mind you this is a different type of clicking from when JP has a revelation. There's less smoke, bells, and lights flashing...

So last night I tried to reproduce the S'MAC gooey goodness. I tried to make their Napoletana dish. It was pretty good, but it fell short of what I had in mind. Sharkey liked it too, but said I needed to tweak it a bit.

Tonight was round 2. I felt that the mozzarella cheese really wasn't a good cheese for mac n' cheese, so I went to the traditional sharp cheddar. I have used recipes of Alton Brown before, so I figured I would give another one of his creations a try. So I made the Stove top Mac & Cheese. This dish was picture perfect. I thought it had the right texture and it looked yummy. Unfortunately, the dry mustard gave it a weird taste and Sharkey thought it was a bit salty. GGGGGGGGRRRRRRR... Alton you let me down brother!!!! I also felt really unsatisfied after eating it, so I filed it under "T."

My next attempt with be to modify the S'MAC recipe and replace the mozzarella and muenster with other cheeses. Maybe American/Cheddar? Or perhaps a Gruyere? I will get it right. I need to get it right. Anyone have a good recipe I can try?

Snow Day

2009-01-28T19:02:00.002-05:00

Last night a wonderful winter storm went through. We received about 3" of snow, followed by sleet, followed by ice. I woke up, looked out the window, then picked up the phone and left a message for my manager that I wouldn't be in. See, I don't mind the snow and we do have an all wheel drive Subaru that I'd take, but the ice is an issue. On TV and the radio I saw/heard the accidents this morning and after processing that information, I was like, "Um, I don't think so."

So I had a wonderfully productive day. Well sort of... I used the snow blower to clear out my driveway and the neighbor's. I caught up on some movies, I watched 21 followed by Ocean's 11. It made me want to go to Las Vegas. "Winner Winner Chicken Dinner!" Plus the goat / car problem in 21 is classic mathematics:

Also, I like the last line Clooney says to Brad Pitt in Ocean's 11, "Ted Nugent called, he wants his shirt back..."

One Ball

2009-01-16T21:08:00.003-05:00

I went to NJ today to help my Mom shop for a new refrigerator. Her current one is a byproduct of the 80's. It was definitely time for it to go. It is on its last leg. It is also a wonderful color, like a brown mustard (whoever thought that was a good color, I dunno...). She found a nice, white Frigidaire which will be delivered tomorrow. I had lunch with her, took her back home and then headed back to PA. Whenever I go see my Mom in NJ, I also try to go visit my Dad's spot at the cemetery.

I go to say "Hi" and to tell him what's new with me, Sharkey, and Maggie. It is funny, but I'm not exactly sure why I even talk at the place. I mean, it is not like I really believe he is really there to talk to and that place is the only place where I think he can hear me. See I know his ashes are there, but I know his spirit is elsewhere. He is somewhere better, somewhere perfect, and somewhere where I will be someday as well. But still, maybe it is because I am still flesh and blood that makes me need a physical "place" to talk with my Dad.

When I was there, I told him that I couldn't wait for the weather to warm up so I could golf again. Then that made me think a bit and reflect for a few minutes. I took up golf just to spend time with my Dad and get him out for some physical activity. Now golf is a huge part of my life. It is definitely something he passed on to me and I may have mentioned this before, but when I am playing out on the greens and on the fairways I feel like he's there with me watching and smiling.

I went to my car, unzipped my golf bag and took out a ball. I then went over to his stone and placed it into a spot in front. I suppose it is my way to thank him for passing on his love of the game to me and giving me a way to always be close to him. One ball with three red dots to symbolize so much...

Now I just need to wait for my Mom to call so I can explain to her where the golf ball came from by Dad's stone.... =)

New Years Activities

2009-01-05T22:25:00.002-05:00

New Year's Eve...

Came home from work around 4:30. The head cold finally was subsiding a bit and my voice was starting to come back as well. One of my female co-workers had commented I sounded less manly and like my old self. (Come to think of it, that could be kind of insulting taken the wrong way, so it is a good thing I am very manly and do many masculine, testosterone filled activities...) Anyway, Sharkey and I didn't have any set plans because she knew I was under the weather and we had just come back from the frozen Midwest, but it's New Years Eve, so we just couldn't stay home. I went to OpenTable.com and was able to get a table at the Cedar Hollow Inn for 7:00pm. If it weren't for the last minute, nothing would ever get done right?

Watched the ball drop on ABC. Always watch the ball drop and I do admire Dick Clark for doing the show post stroke, but um...I totally did not need to see him lock lips with his wife with the Judy Jetson hairdo. Yeah, totally did not need that image going into 2009!

New Year's Day...

Cooked Japanese food most of the day. New Year is a big deal for Asians. Trust me, it even applies to us bananas (banana=yellow on the outside, white on the inside). So I made some Japanese Lo Mein. It is sort of a misnomer, because as everyone knows, Lo Mein is a Chinese and not Japanese dish. But this dish is a family dish which is only made at certain times of the year and my Mom was kind enough to pass the recipe to me, so I have taken up the mantle. It's pretty good. It requires lots and lots of prep work (mainly chopping) and relatively short cooking time, and it is always better the next day. Since Sharkey and I were in MN for Christmas, we had not gotten together with my family, so I was making the food for Friday.

First Monday Thoughts for the New Year...

Back to work...

When's the next holiday?

Crap, graduate school starts up next week again. Man I cannot wait to finish that Master's degree

Where should Sharkey and I try to get away to for a vacation during the winter?

Oh Memphis Belle is on. That's one of my all time favorite movies.

Golf league starts in 3 months, whooo hooo!!

Watching "Diner's Drive In's and Dives." Geeze Guy, this show is going to kill you. How can you eat all that fat and grease all the time?

No Voice, No Problem

2008-12-30T18:54:00.002-05:00

Christmas came and went. Sharkey and I came and went to Minnesota. You know, you do not truly understand how cold, cold is until you step outside into a -8 degree climate with gusting wind. Yes it is true. It was frigid. First day we were there, -8 was the high. Second day we were there 0 was the high. The next day the temperature shot to 22 degrees. That felt like summer! The even more insane thing was that when we hit Pennsylvania on our way back this past Saturday, it was 73 degrees!! Think about that. From the time we arrived at MN to the time we hit the PA border we had an 81 degree temperature shift!

I have to admit. Minnesota is sort of a blur to me. We got there and it was go, go, go... The time just flew by. Wrapped presents, went shopping, thawed out windshield wiper fluid reservoir, wrapped more presents, cooked food, ate food, went to visit grandma, unwrapped presents, played with kids, played with dogs, ate more food, played guitar hero world tour w/ Sharkey, Character Builder, and CB's Husband (now that was fun!!!!), drove home... This description is my recollection of this past Christmas.

So from Minnesota to PA I received my last "present" for the holidays. Between Wisconsin and Ohio I picked up "the head cold." You know what I mean? It's the "Barbara are you up, Barbara are you up....I'm up now....I can't sleep, my throat's all scratchy...I'll get the aspirin and Sucrets...aspirin and Sucrets?" I'm on stage three at this point. No more sore throat. Just the dry, choking cough and lack of voice. I cannot talk w/o sounding like either James Earl Jones or Peter Brady in that "Time to Change" episode...

It is going to make this weekend interesting. I am supposed to cantor this weekend. I may have to get a sub....

I know I need to man up, but the truth is, I am the biggest Mamma's boy when I get sick. I want to just go to sleep and not get up until I am better. Sharkey on the other hand is the total opposite. She gets sick, she moves around, and still does stuff. This is a total foreign concept to me. I shut down like the East coast does when snow falls... I have gotten a bit better in the 8 years we've been married, but I still like the sleep, read book, watch movie, play video game method of recuperating. I do hate not being able to talk though. It is very limiting, but then I remembered, I have a blog, I still have a voice....

On the Road Again

2008-12-20T19:02:00.004-05:00

Sharkey and I are off to the Midwest for Christmas. Yesterday, I shut down my PC after putting my out of office on and setting my phone to voice mail only. IT FEELS GOOD! We had decided months ago to road trip it from PA to MN because gas was at like $4.50/gallon and it would've cost us like $1500/plane ticket to fly, plus board Maggie, plus rent a car, plus pay for gas when we got there... Fortunately, Sharkey and I both love road trips. And since we are driving, Maggie can come with us. She is a great traveling dog too, we are sooo lucky she is... I grew up w/ multiple road trips for family vacations. My Dad loved to drive, and drive we did, all over the USA and a bit into Canada as well.

We actually got off to a good start today. Usually we do not make it out of the house until 11am-12pm, but this morning we were up and out by 8:30am. What you need to understand is that neither of us are great morning people. We would like to be, but it is just not in the cards. Sleep always wins. The funny part is that this morning, all of us, including the Maggie-Moo were nestled all snug in our bed. So I am surprised we were able to get going so early. But here we are in a nice, warm hotel room in glorious Toledo, Ohio. We made good time and we can unwind for a few hours before we all hit the hay and then get up and do part 2 tomorrow.

You may think Toledo is a weird place to stop, but it is about 1/2 way between where we live and Sharkey's parents, and more importantly there is a Texas Roadhouse restaurant next door. So driving all day I am thinking about a salad, loaded baked potato, and medium filet with warm cinnamon buttered rolls. You know, driving long distances requires incentives!

How Do These Songs Get Passed On?

2008-12-17T18:36:00.002-05:00

Sharkey and I have the most stimulating conversations. We solve earth shattering issues. We discuss ethical dilemmas currently facing our country. We plan strategies to solve many of the common man's problems. Our last topic was especially stimulating. For this session we discussed the way certain songs are passed from generation to generation from geographic location to location. Case in point, the Jingle Bells, Batman smells song:

Jingle Bells, Batman Smells, Robin laid an egg...

Batmobile lost its wheel so the Joker got away...

The Jingle Bells, Batman smells songs transcends gender, generations, and geographic location. You could go from East to West coast, north to south, and find someone who knows this song by heart and can sing the entire thing back to you. So how does this phenomenon happen? I know the song has been featured on The Simpsons, Family guy, and on various TV shows, but the interesting thing is that even before those shows, back in the 70's (yes we were little kids of the bell bottom, long hair, bad clothing era), Sharkey and I both knew that song. How does that happen? I lived in NJ. Sharkey is from MN. That's like 1000 miles. So would you like to join our deep, insightful conversation and lend your theories? =)

Nubs and Stressin...

2008-12-11T23:20:00.003-05:00

Nubs...

Maggie Moo had a grooming session yesterday. She is now all nice, soft, and pretty smelling. She is a girl after all, so she should smell good, right? She decided last night while we were watching Top Chef NYC that Mom looked comfy.

Those are my girls. Aren't they both Sweet!

Sharkey didn't even reposition her for the pictures. Maggie totally put herself into her relaxation poses.

Stressin...

Today was "one of those days." It started so well too. I got up on time, was productive, and reasonably happy, well until I received the phone call at 11am. "JP, you know that thing you helped us with? We think it caused a major problem with..." Yeah, those calls SUCK!!! And then my day went totally downhill from there. I spent the next 5 hours fixing things, verifying other things, and then explaining things to the person who called me. I got everything straightened out, but it was exhausting and I could feel the tension in my shoulders and neck. I had to sit back in my chair, close my eyes and take some deep, relaxing breaths. That calmed me down a bit and then I was able to refocus. I'm hoping for a quiet Friday at work!!

Public Speaking Tip #1

2008-12-10T21:37:00.003-05:00

I just finished a Graduate course. In this course, all the students were required to do two presentations in front of the class. A lot of people in the class, including me, used Power Point slides for their presentation. Now, I am not new to public speaking. I have taught classes which ranged in sizes of 50-80 people at national conferences. I have delivered a speech to about 200 Japanese American people. So giving a presentation to a group of 26 people for a graduate course is no big deal. You learn a few things the more and more you public speak. You learn what works and what does not. You learn how to read your audience to see if "they get it" or "if they don't get it" and if you are losing them or if you have their interest and attention. But most importantly, you learn to use your presentation tools properly. So here's a tip for you all who do not public speak very often or have something coming up where you're thinking about using Power Point. When you have to speak in front of a lot of people and use Power Point, use your slides as speaking points. They should not have everything you are saying on them!! To illustrate my point...

You cannot believe how many people write every word of every sentence into the Power Point. Then they get up and say exactly what's on the slide. Less is definitely more! And I have news for you people that's not presenting, that's reading!!! Microsoft named the software Power Point, because you are only supposed to show major POINTS and specific IDEAS. I think after listening to each of the 26 presentations 2x, there were only like 3-4 that were decent. The rest were akin to chewing on tinfoil and made you want to stick a pencil in your eye.

In the name of the Father, Son, and Holy Cow I'm on FIRE!

2008-12-07T15:59:00.003-05:00

Every 1st weekend of every month I get to do the liturgy at church. It is not a big deal. I do the cantor part. So I sing (yes JP sings) this part, the congregation responds, I sing another part, they respond, etc. I also do the readings from time to time and help out with communion as well. This morning I helped with communion. The Pastor does the bread, I do the wine. The people come up and circle the altar and he gives them a little bread from a loaf and I hand them a little plastic cup of wine. And we go around until everyone has each of the elements. Well, we are now in advent and someone had the bright idea of putting the advent candles on the altar. Two of them are lit right now. As I go around, I pass really close to the candles, and the robe I am wearing is my choir robe and it's made out of a poly blend, the absolute best combustible fabric you could possibly wear. You can sort of see where I am going. Sharkey comes up to the altar and looks me straight in the eyes and tells me, "Be careful of those flames." I get through, just fine, but I still have this picture in mind of how it could have turned out....

UPDATE... I am really shocked by the lack of comments on this post. COME ON PEOPLE?!?! JP almost catching on fire is hilarious!! Do you think you could really offend me or you do not want to say anything because this post has...gasp...Christian tones to it!! =)

The Hunt Takes a Twist

2008-11-28T19:20:00.003-05:00

Thanksgiving came and went. I went to bed around 10:30pm so I could grab 6 hours of sleep before beginning my yearly quest. To my surprise, Sharkey was not in bed when my eyes opened at 4:30am. She came walking into the bedroom and asked me when I was leaving. This is monumental as I have always gone on the hunt on my own. Sharkey usually stays behind in our warm bed. We went to Target around 4:45am to stand in line for the 6am store opening. After combing through the ads, the only thing I really wanted to score was Guitar Hero World Tour for the Nintendo Wii. Sharkey and I play Guitar Hero III quite often and we were looking forward to getting a new set of songs to rock out. So there we were in line. It was about 37 degrees and there was a slight breeze. The first 30 min were OK, but the last 30 minutes were a bit uncomfortable. And mind you we had our parkas on w/ gloves and ear muffs.

The doors opened at 6:00am and we went fast walking in with the masses. By the time the doors opened, there were about 600 people in line. We shop at Target quite often for the essentials so we know the layout of the store. We went back to the video games to find an empty shelf of Guitar Hero games. They had plenty of XBox 360, but none for Wii. I pulled a red shirt guy aside and asked him if he had anymore, because Sharkey and I were like 50th in line and lots of the people in front of us were there for the cheap LCD TV, so I thought maybe they didn't put the games in the right place. The red shirt scanned the barcode and said he had more in the back and he'd come back to the aisle with them. GREAT, way to stock door busting items Target!!! By this time, Target had about 4 people per square foot in the store. I waited by the aisle as told and answered other people's questions about the Wii game and that the red shirt was bringing more out. The red shirt came back and got within 5 feet of where I was and he was mobbed. People were rushing up to him, taking the games right out of the trolley cart he had. He was yelling at people to stop, but the mob ruled. One of the guys who I answered a question for earlier saw I did not get one and he did, so he gave me his to be fair, which was totally cool of him. The hunt was complete! A lady next to me then said she had wanted one for a child and that's when Sharkey came walking up. Sharkey asked her if it was a gift for her child and she said yes. So Sharkey looked at me, and I looked at her and nodded. I gave the woman the Guitar Hero game. The season after all is about God's love, redemption, and reconciliation, so if we could show just a bit of that love to someone else it was worth it. So we left empty handed, but we felt we did the right thing. Besides, like I said before, the thrill of the hunt is always better than the end. JP out...

Closing Time, The Hunt, Doors

2008-11-27T00:25:00.003-05:00

Closing Time...

Sharkey and I managed to close down two places tonight. Our church has a tradition where after the Thanksgiving Eve service we all go have pie in the fellowship hall. We're Lutherans, so you know there is always food a plenty around the services and especially around the holidays. =) We ended up talking with our Pastor and his wife until we were the last ones in the hall. Shortly after that, we went to Max & Erma's for a quick bite to eat and before we knew it we were the last two in the restaurant. We managed to close two places in one night.

The Hunt....

As you all know or maybe do not know, I am a hunter of hard to get items and bargains, cause let's face it, retail is for suckers! I try to get things for the family for Christmas, and well, eer, umm, I manage to sneak a little something in there for me too... Also, if you are like me you also know the thrill of the hunt is more fun than once you have said item in hand. But I digress... At this time of year, we come to one of the most prime hunting seasons and additionally the greatest of all days for "The Hunt," Black Friday. So today I received all the advertisements of who has what for sale at what time on Friday. So I am plotting my strategy to get the things everyone else is trying to score. So I may lose a little sleep, wait in a line for a couple hours with other crazed shoppers like myself, but if I can acquire the target(s), it's totally worth it. Oh, and I don't fall for the stores' strategy of getting you to buy other stuff by luring you in for the door buster items. I am all about getting "the item" and getting out. Yeah, I admit I can be a bit crazy, but I think it is somewhat fun. Besides, I'm helping the local economy! Watch out people, man on a mission. Adrenaline rising.

Doors...

My door issues continue. To recap I have issues with doors. I don't know whether or not to push or pull. I am not sure what side hinges are on, so I end up pushing on the wrong side of the door. You think automatic doors are no issue? Well that would only be the case if you happened to choose the right side to be on when the door slides open. Remember this?

So my newest difficulty is the automatic, revolving door. At work, the door I use to go in and out of the building is an automatic, revolving door. You scan your badge to get in and it automatically revolves you into the building. You hit the button next to the door once you are inside and it revolves around to let you out. My issue is the out. I hit the button and the door revolves 2x, every single time. For everyone else it revolves 1x. I have been able to get out, but so far the door has smacked me in the butt, clipped my heels and everyone in back of me is afraid to follow me out the door. So far I think I am the only one this happens to. Doors are out to get me. I think it may be a portal conspiracy. I just need more evidence. Oh, and I am not exaggerating. These things really do happen to me. And if I didn't think it were so funny, which I totally do, I think I could perhaps be mental about my struggles with doors. JP out...

Holiday Special Presentation

2008-11-25T20:03:00.002-05:00

For those of you who can relate, remember this???

Thanks to YouTube I found this snippet. So to get back into character remember the era. Here's your inspiration. It's the 70's. You are in the living room with your parents. They are on the scratchy green twill couch and you are lying on the shag rug on your stomach with your head on your hands watching the console television set. Mom reminds you not to sit too close to the TV because of the radiation it gives off. The TV Guide listed that "A Charlie Brown Thanksgiving" was going to be on tonight, so you made sure you setup the time with the parents to watch it, because there are hardly any cartoons on TV and Charlie Brown with Snoopy is only on for the holidays and it's one of your absolute favorites. And if you miss it, you'll have to wait until next Thanksgiving for your chance to see it again. So 1 minute before 8:00pm CBS flashes the special logo, your heart races a little, and you think how great your life is at that moment. It is all you need to be happy.

That's the Way the Cookie Crumbles

2008-11-22T00:08:00.004-05:00

Sharkey made me some chocolate chip cookies. She has been promising me these cookies for about a month. Yesterday I came home from work and when I opened the door I was greeted by the smell of fresh baked cookies.

Maggie turned 4 today. That's 28 in human years. Tonight she performed the canine Jedi Mind trick on me to get a bite of cookie:

Yeah, it worked! My little girl is growing up. Hard to believe she started at our home like this:

And who can forget dog skateboarding, the new Olympic sport:

And now she's crashed out on my lap. It's tough being Maggie you know. =)

Volume Control...Need It? Got it? Can It Be Taught?

2008-11-18T21:41:00.004-05:00

There is a skill most of us are taught by our parents. It is called volume control. You know what I mean right? Small kids totally do not have it, but parents try their hardest to teach them to whisper or speak in their soft, quiet voice. Recently at work I was moved to another team and that meant I had to relocate my cube to another aisle. The aisle for the most part is not too bad. I am very easy going and I get along with pretty much everyone so no problem there. However.... I have this woman in my aisle who talks really loud. I mean I can hear every conversation from 3 cubes away. And to make matters worse I catch snippets of what she says and I find myself saying, "Are you kidding me? That totally is not true...." Like this:

It's like listening to Cliffy on Cheers explain the expansion of the universe or the mating habits of the New Zealand humpback whales. Needless to say I have a hard time blocking her out. I have to admit, some of the things she says amuses me at times and I think she's in her own little world, but I just wish I had a remote control to turn her down. Until that device becomes available, I guess I'll just have to rely on the good old iPhone and my headphones...

The Fit Is Go

2008-10-30T21:12:00.002-04:00

Sharkey and I are sitting her watching "The Office" like we always do on a Thursday. The Honda commercial comes on plugging "30 Rock" and their slogan comes up...

The Fit Is Go

I think we are not the target market for the vehicle, because we cannot figure out what the hell this marketing means. Sharkey thinks it is something to do with velocity, like "The Fit really goes." Now I am of the mindset that maybe this deals with like the old Thunderbirds slogan, "Thunderbirds are GO!"

Bottom line is neither one of us knows what this slogan means. Can anyone explain to us what the heck this means?????

Time2

2008-10-29T22:05:00.002-04:00

The Philadelphia Phillies Win the World Series --- 9:58PM

WHOOOOOOO HOOOOOOO!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!WHOOOOOOO HOOOOOOO!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!WHOOOOOOO HOOOOOOO!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!WHOOOOOOO HOOOOOOO!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!WHOOOOOOO HOOOOOOO!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!WHOOOOOOO HOOOOOOO!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!WHOOOOOOO HOOOOOOO!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!WHOOOOOOO HOOOOOOO!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!WHOOOOOOO HOOOOOOO!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!WHOOOOOOO HOOOOOOO!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!WHOOOOOOO HOOOOOOO!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!WHOOOOOOO HOOOOOOO!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!WHOOOOOOO HOOOOOOO!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!WHOOOOOOO HOOOOOOO!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!WHOOOOOOO HOOOOOOO!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!WHOOOOOOO HOOOOOOO!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!WHOOOOOOO HOOOOOOO!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!WHOOOOOOO HOOOOOOO!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!WHOOOOOOO HOOOOOOO!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!WHOOOOOOO HOOOOOOO!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!WHOOOOOOO HOOOOOOO!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!WHOOOOOOO HOOOOOOO!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Time

2008-10-29T20:37:00.002-04:00

Time out of Graduate Class -- 8:00PM

Time to stop at Wawa for a hoagie -- 8:15PM

Time to get home and take out the trash and let Maggie out -- 8:25PM

Time to change out of shirt & tie into #8 Victorino Phillies Jersey -- 8:27PM

Time for inning 6: 8:35PM

GO PHILLIES!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

It's Beginning to Look A Lot Like Scary Christmas

2008-10-25T22:50:00.003-04:00

Every year King of Prussia mall puts up their "ginormous" Christmas tree. It is pretty impressive and well, um, sort of scary. Let me explain. First the impressive part. It is about 4 stories tall, has animated toys all over it and is at the center of the mall. I have never been there when they've been putting it up, but I happened to go there this morning right when the mall opened. So here's a picture of the structure.

So what do you notice first? Can you see all the surge protectors all plugged into each other winding all the way up the tree? Can you say, "Fireman Bob we have a problem?" I am thinking this setup is not UL approved.

If that were the only thing with the tree, I could stop there. But, nooooooo. There are the ornaments they put on. First the Jack in the Box Clowns. Now I don't know about you, but I think clowns are scary. Besides that, who the heck puts this many Jack in the Boxes on a tree?

I think that the fire hazard and scary clowns both pale in comparison to the dolls though. For as long as I can remember, they always put these dolls on the tree. They all look like the Chucky "I am going to kill you" dolls. They are very creepy.

So in short there's nothing like taking your kid to the mall to sit on Santa's lap in front of a large incendiary tree with scary clowns and creepy dolls hung on it. Maybe they're just trying to combine the holidays and make it a "Hallo-Mas" tree?

Class Over, Time for Some Mac & Cheese

2008-10-24T21:52:00.004-04:00

My Statistics class from hell is over!! Yes I received an "A." I mean come on, I graduated Summa Cum Laude with a degree in Applied Mathematics. I better be able to get an "A" in a statistics class or something's dreadfully wrong!

I took today and Monday off from work. Sharkey's Mom is in town so I thought I could use some down time and some family time. See, not only have I been dealing with the class from hell, but I have also been dealing with the project from hell at work. So I need down time and away time from work.

Today we went to the PDN Photo Expo in NYC. It was a lot of fun. My goal was to get as much free stuff as I could from all the vendors there. Yeah, I know that sounds lame, but it's what I have fun doing! It also cracks me up that all of them talk to me like I am Ansel Adams and have a huge photographic background. It must be the Asian carrying the Nikon stereotype. Truth be told I couldn't tell you anything of worth about taking photos, and I went along to be a pack mule for Sharkey. Heee Haaaawww.... But I like the convention thing and the expo was awesome! It was huge!!

Afterward, we took a cab to the Village for a bite to eat at S'Macs. Sharkey and her Mom shared the mac sampler and I had the Alpine mac & cheese which is gruyere with slab bacon...

Yes everyone, bask in the cheesy, gooey goodness of it all. And can you believe this photo was taken with my iPhone? Damn I love that thing. It's a good thing we don't have a place like this nearby or Sharkey and I would probably weigh like 300 lbs each!! Yes it is TOTALLY that good...

Halloween Candy

2008-10-07T23:03:00.003-04:00

It's that time again. The air is colder, the kids are picking out costumes and it's time to stock up on candy. Sharkey and I make sure to always pick up candy that we wouldn't mind eating. I think we overdid it a bit last year because I ended up taking a ziplock bag to work filled with leftover candy. So here's the JP/Sharkey fundamental list of required Halloween Candy:

Snickers
Kit Kat
Crunch
Hershey's Almond
Hershey's Plain

What candy do you stock at this S~P~O~O~K~Y time of year?

Did Newton Have Days Like This?

2008-09-25T00:19:00.004-04:00

You know that there aren't many Mathematics majors out there when you are in graduate class and the professor asks who has a degree in Mathematics and you are the only one in the room to raise your hand. It was like this....

This situation also poses a problem if you are the only Mathematics major in a graduate statistics class full of MBA majors and you look around and it looks like someone shot them with a tranq gun... Um, yeah... Math guy,....Math guy ova here!!!

Dancing Stormtrooper

2008-09-16T22:52:00.004-04:00

Today LucasArts released a new game, Star Wars: The Force Unleashed. Being the Star Wars fan boy I am, I of course could not wait to get my hands on it. I went to Circuit City at lunch to get it. Here's how this trip to Circuity City went:

JP: Do you have the new Star Wars game for the Wii?

Teenage Store Clerk: Uh, did that come out today or yesterday?

JP: I'm pretty sure it released today.

Teenage Store Clerk: Did you check Gamestop? I don't think we have any (Teenage Store Clerk guy doesn't even look at his computer or ask anyone else)

JP: Um, Gamespot? (JP starts laughing!) This is Circuity City right, don't you want me to buy it from you?

Teenage Store Clerk: (shrugging shoulders in a, "I don't know what the hell I'm doing" posture) sorry sir if you want to check back later, maybe we'll have some...

JP: OK, I'll just head to Best Buy after work.

I go to Best Buy on my way home, they have the game and I check out and because I bought the game on release day, YES CIRCUIT CITY TODAY IS RELEASE DAY, I received a free T-shirt. I get home, Sharkey takes it out of the plastic to see what geeky clothing I'll be sporting around the house. She starts laughing. She turns the shirt around and says, "Honey, what kind of flaming dance is the Storm Trooper doing?"

OK, so if the Stormtrooper had a top hat and cane, I could totally picture the "Hello my baby, hello my honey, hello my ragtime girl" song playing in the background. And well, yeah it does look sort of gay, but it's free people...

Addition... Found this on YouTube... Hee heee....

The Win...And the Universe Balances Itself

2008-09-07T20:58:00.005-04:00

So a few weeks ago, my partner and I lost the golf playoff. Nothing new there right? My back was gimpy and while I said I did my best, it was fine, no regrets, etc.,... it still sucked rocks to lose. Well, the universe tends to balance itself out and redemption lay right around the corner.

At the end of each season we have a final afternoon of golf and a closing season dinner. The final night we do one more competition using a little different format. Instead of playing against another men's team, we are paired with a women's team and we play a scramble format. No handicaps are used, no points given, just straight up golf the way the good Lord above intended it. Our team against 20 other teams. We played very well. My back is all good and one of the things I love to do the most is smash the ball down the fairway, and smash I did. The ladies we were paired with were really nice and my partner and I showed them a good time. They were a bit "older" than we were, but they were a lot of fun and made some decent shots/putts. They said, "youth has its advantages and that we were really nice men." Funny how we never get paired with the young, hot women's teams, but I digress... Anyhow... We finished -4 for 9 holes of play. So what that means is that if the par for 9 holes is 36, at -4 we scored 32.

We finished our round, turned in our scorecards, then hit the bar for a couple beers and enjoyed the closing dinner. We were sitting there after dinner and they started the awards. My partner and I were sitting there and they announced "the runner up for the scramble at -3 was..." I turned to my partner and said, "Dude, I think we won." He was bewildered and said, "No way." We watch the runners up get their awards and walk off, and my partner is still sitting there saying "no, way, no, way...." Then they announced, "the winners of the season ending scramble at -4 is JP, Bri, Char, and Nan." We went up and accepted our awards and went back to our seats (um, the ladies were eccstatic, they hugged us in front of everyone and were jumping up and down...it was cute). We're sitting there and my partner is still saying "no way, no way." I took a look at our award, and what we won was equal to what we would've gotten if we had won the playoff match. I then turned to my partner, Bri, (who is still in shock that we won, still saying, "no way, no way") and said, "WAY!!! SCORE!!!!" Once again, equilibrium has been attained in JP's life...

See the Resemblance

2008-08-27T19:59:00.003-04:00

So remember that 1956 yearbook picture of me?

Here's my Dad with his sisters and niece. This picture was taken after he and his family relocated to Seabrook, NJ after the war. There was a photographer who was cataloging the events of World War II and the treatment of the Japanese Americans after being placed in internment camps. He took pictures of my Dad's family and their "together" time.

So notice the resemblance? Oh, and an interesting fact about this photo. My Dad could not play the piano. This picture was totally staged. Nice to catalog accurate, historical events, right? =)

What Would You Tell Your Kid?

2008-08-26T21:11:00.003-04:00

Today was beautiful. Perfect in fact. There are few days that compare to blue sky, sunshine, clear air, and high pressure. And the back is all better. I still don't go full at the ball, but that is also a good thing. But this post is not about my golfing, not about my back, not about the perfect day. It's about something that happened at the driving range when I was enjoying this day.

The place where I hit balls has a go kart track and miniature golf course. Where I practice sits in front of the path leading to the go kart track. Lots of times, families walk by and I overhear them as they go to the karts. Today, I overheard a family walking to the track and one of their sons thought it was great fun to make ethnic remarks at the Asian guy hitting golf balls. Yeah, me. So I heard things I've become somewhat, mind you only somewhat, accustomed to growing up: "Aaaa-soooo, ching-chong, chink, chung, wok-socky, chop-chop, hitty ball..." I think the thing that bothered me more than what the kid said was his parents reaction. Absolutely nothing. They did not bat an eye or say a word. The kid said this stuff all the way to the go kart track and after they were done, he said the same crap going past me. So this behavior was acceptable and normal for them I guess.

Now growing up, my parents helped us deal with all of that stuff as well. They learned from their parents all about the way people judge you on your looks more than what's in your heart. They probably had it worse because they lived through World War II and the Japanese internment camps. They taught my brothers and me to ignore ignorance and to transcend others by our actions and accomplishments. I have to admit what they instilled in us works well most of the time, but still after all this time, there are times I do not feel like being the silent American.

In time if Sharkey and I are blessed with a child, I will pass on the same things my parents taught me. The content of one's character matters more than their physical appearance. There will always be ignorance, but you will need to be better and take the higher road. And while you may encounter such individuals, there are more good people in this world who do what is right and have honor in their hearts.

So my question to you is what would you tell your kid?

Dad, That You?

2008-08-19T23:43:00.002-04:00

Sharkey told me to try this site tonight. So I went there and uploaded a photo. I scrolled through the pictures and 1956 really caught my eye. Here's what I "look" like in 1956:

The crazy thing is, I totally look like my DAD!!!

Now if I could just (sigh...) be that thin again. =)

Lost, But Intact

2008-08-16T12:25:00.003-04:00

Thursday the back was about 80% good from when I injured it on Tuesday, but I didn't want to forfeit to the jerkstore, so I downed 4 Advil and went out to go at it. In short I lost, but the loss wasn't until the last hole. The final score was 5-4. So even at 80% we were tied going into the last hole, and I was able to make some decent shots to tie the match on the 8th and go into the 9th feeling pretty good. Most importantly, I didn't make my back injury any worse by playing. So it wasn't the outcome I wanted, but at least I gave it my all and did not get crippled in the process. In my book, it's a win!

Karma Is A Bitch

2008-08-12T20:54:00.002-04:00

I am invincible. I can do anything. I am stronger than I've ever been. I am smarter now and can think my way out of any problem.

These are the statements of youth. I have said recently to people that you're as young as you think you are. I have always thought that. Until today. See I have a playoff match on Thursday. It is against one of the most obnoxious men ever. When we last met, I stuffed him. It was one of my finest moments. 9th hole, 6 foot putt to win the match and I hole it out. All he could do was watch. I loved it. But that was 3 weeks ago. That was then. This is now.

I had a bad day. I had a series of things go wrong. I walked out of work 1 1/2 hours late. I was wound tight. I went to the driving range to practice and let off some steam. On my 5 ball out of 75, hitting my approach wedge, my back did something funny. After this "funny" thing happened, I couldn't move too well without pain. Right now I'm sitting, chewing Advil like Tic Tac's and thinking about how I got to this state.

I have a match Thursday. I'm definitely questionable. I am vulnerable. I may not be able to play. I feel quite weak. I'm thinking how stupid it was to get myself into this spot. What did I do to invoke such bad karma?

These are the statements of a middle aged man (sigh...).

This Grinds My Gears...

2008-08-04T21:38:00.002-04:00

I have seen a phenomenon lately that is quite disturbing. I am not sure if this unexplained action is widespread across the United States, or if it is just limited to the north east. The frequency I see this weirdness has been increasing to more than a few times a week. What have I witnessed do you ask? Well simply, I have seen people driving these:

Wearing these.....

Call me old fashioned, but my Dad taught me that driving is a full time job and it just seems so wrong to see people with earbuds in while they are driving. I realize that people listen to the radio or stereo loud in the car, but total sound block out just seems like an accident waiting to happen. Is it just me or does anyone else see a problem with this?

ABBA Anyone?

2008-07-26T21:50:00.004-04:00

Tomorrow Sharkey and I are taking my Mom to see Mamma Mia at the Academy of Music. The real Mamma Mia. Not that movie that just came out with James Bond belting, screaming, um, yelling, um, sort of singing ABBA. Hopefully the weather will hold up for us. They are calling for possible thunderstorms in the city. We saw Mamma Mia already, but my Mom has been wanting to see it for a while, so for her birthday I purchased tickets. I do admit I love live Broadway shows, and I am comfortable enough in my masculinity to admit it. I have seen Phantom (2x), Les Miserables (3x), Miss Saigon, Mamma Mia, Singing In the Rain, and The Boy From Oz. So tomorrow we'll be basking in the ABBA goodness:

iCommitted, iCrazy, iWaited

2008-07-16T21:41:00.003-04:00

For those of you who wondered, did JP and Sharkey get iPhones or didn't they? Here's the answer:

I "convinced" Sharkey to go with me last Friday to get an iPhone. Granted she wanted one too, but she's less committed to the hunt than I am. But as you know I am all about the hunt. I prepare. I read. I plan. I research the product. I make sure all my ducks are lined up in order. I am the Tech Hunter. We woke up at 6AM last Friday to go to the local AT&T store to wait in line for the 8am store opening and subsequent launch of the iPhone. We arrived in line at about 6:50am. We were about the 45th in line. So the store opened at 8am and the nice AT&T people came out and announced they were all out of iPhones by the 40th person in line.

So I wanted to go to King of Prussia to "see" how the line was there. I again "convinced" Sharkey to go with me. OK, I pretty much kidnapped her, held her hostage, but she loves me and she allows me a great deal of lattitude from time to time. So we get to the Apple store around 8:20am and we waited in this line (blue "x" is the start, green "x" is the finish):

The wait was long. We didn't get into the Apple store until about 1:00pm. If you didn't know, Apple and AT&T had major issues on iPhone launch day. These issues caused us to have the long wait. But that's just part of it. It seems both companies didn't really fully test the upgrade process for current AT&T clients so once we hit the store at 1PM we were at the Genius Bar until about 3:50pm. They use these handheld devices to look up your AT&T account and activate the iPhone. Unfortunately because of the system issues, they could not locate our account and therefore we were not permitted to purchase the two iPhones that were a mere 6inches away from us on the counter. The Genius Bar guy, John who was working with us was awesome. He was working our issue every way he could and he found a resolution and called AT&T to implement it. After it was done, AT&T told him it would take 24 hours to take effect. UGH!! At the end of that time, we were still iPhone-less and we were tired, hungry, and a bit ticked off. The wonderful Store Manager at the Apple store had a really pissy attitude and he had the customer service skills of a 5 year old playground bully. He told us if we were not able to activate by midnight the iPhones would go back into circulation (actually he said any iPhone not activated by 12AM which they scanned for us would have to go back to the warehouse for reprocessing, which I think is BS) and he was not willing to bypass his handheld billing things or give us anything for waiting all that time. I was getting ready to bag the entire thing, but the Assistant Manager at the Apple store stopped us on our way out of the store, listened to our whole ordeal and really took the time to do everything he could to accomodate us. He gave us the option to try again later that night or come back the next morning and we could go to the front of the line. But he couldn't guarantee that they'd have iPhones the next day.

So we left there at 3:50pm and I had an Apple pass that the Assistant Manager signed to let us back in the store without waiting. I had to take Sharkey home because she was going out with her friend to dinner. I was beat. I got home. Took a little nap, grabbed a bite to eat and by then it was 9PM. The Apple store was open until 11pm that night for launch, so I decided to head back and see if we could get those Apple handheld's to look up our account. I got to the store, the Assistant Manager was there (thank God he was and not the jerkoff Store Manager who I wanted to back slap and verbally berate), thanked me for coming back, and immediately hooked me up with a Genius Bar person. The line outside the store even at 9:30PM was still insane. The accounts worked and I walked out with 2 iPhones at 10:00pm. I was beat, but mission accomplished!

PS. I know you think nothing is worth that hassle, and I do totally agree. I would do it different next time. But that being said, the iPhone is AWESOME!! It is a great all in one device. I haven't seen anything that really comes close to it. And now that I have it, well, I'm lovin' my technology something fierce!

Rock On!

2008-07-06T22:13:00.002-04:00

While Sharkey was in Minnesota staying with Character Builder and family she played Guitar Hero. She told me on the phone how much fun it was. So we were at Best Buy yesterday and Sharkey was showing me the game in the store. It looked like so much fun, we bought it. Yesterday and today we were rockin' it out! Sharkey was jammin to some Stevie Ray Vaughn, Pride and Joy. Notice the similarities?

And look at the finger work:

Her parents would be happy to know that the 30 years of clarinet come into good use playing Guitar Hero. Seriously you should see her play. She's money on that game and kicks my ASS!! I am still playing the EASY mode with 3 frets and she moved on to the INTERMEDIATE mode with 4 frets and faster notes. My hands feel like I'm mashing the frets sometimes and she's moving along like it's a walk in the park. I need to step up a bit I think! Rock ON!!!

Tension and Wound Too Tight

2008-07-03T23:32:00.004-04:00

Plates on sticks spinning. Don't let them fall. Keep them spinning. Keep an eye on all of them and focus. Don't lose your focus or one of those plates will fall and break. Everyone's watching. Everyone wants to see the show, see your skill. Don't let them down. This show has been going on for 2 weeks straight. It's exhausting. I'm getting tired. But I only have to keep the plates spinning for the act and the show must go on.

That's exactly how I feel. It's what I've been living at work. Sharkey tells me tonight I'm too intense and I'm hanging on too tight and quickly heading to burnout city. Sharkey's right. God what would I do without her? Hope I never find out. But I pour everything I got into what I'm doing. It's what I do. It's what I've always done. But I think I need to back off a bit, take the edge off and find a pace that's more balanced.

I realized just how tightly wound I've been when I went to Sharkey's concert at Longwood Gardens tonight. She had to go warm up with the band, so I walked around the grounds. It did me a world of good. Lush gardens, fountains, and rolling meadows as far as the eye can see. And in one of the gardens I sat down at an elevated patio in a rocking chair. At that moment I took a huge, deep breath and the spinning plates were all gone. Relaxation is good.

PC's Humble the Wise

2008-06-24T22:09:00.002-04:00

I work with computers. I convert large quantities of data for a living. I am also a problem solver. And most importantly, I do not give up. EVER. I give every issue I encounter 100% every single time. And I cannot let things go. These qualities are good, but it gets me into some really great predicaments. Tonight was no exception. You see, I am our church's resident IT person. I give input on hardware, software, and I have networked all the PC's in the church and setup the building with secure wireless. So last night I received a phone call from the treasurer saying Excel was not working. I decided I could fix the problem in a few minutes, so today I went to the church. I had Excel back up in about 15 minutes, and the treasurer walked in and was excited I fixed Excel. Then he asked me if I could take a look at another issue he had with another software package. As soon as he showed me the message I knew what it was right away and immediately I knew what it would take to fix it. And here's how I felt:

See the problem is I installed software for my Stewardship committee on the church's computer to track member assignments and it conflicted with the treasurer's program. Essentially, the computer flipped me the bird. So I had to "revert" to my software support persona and figure out the software conflict. So 2 hours later, I resolved it and then went to On the Border with my brother for a 20oz Dos Equis

A World Without Sharkey

2008-06-22T20:01:00.002-04:00

So Sharkey is currently in Minnesota helping out CharacterBuilder's family while Catherine is recuperating from her brain surgery. I had to come home last Sunday because I have some time sensitive projects going on and being that I am the "new" guy I have to be at work to show my Japanese work ethic off. It has been 7 days all by myself. I drove Sharkey and Maggie to MN last Friday and now I have the house all by myself. This span of time has been the longest that Sharkey and I have been apart since we've been married. You think I'd be golfing, watching loud movies, staying out at all hours of the night, and just enjoying the bachelor life. Well, yes I have been doing all of those things, but at this point, I want Sharkey back! We talk every night on the phone, but you just cannot replace the "together" time you know. Also, being all by myself with no wife and no dog, just.... SUCKS!!! This Friday I fly back to MN to drive Sharkey and Maggie back home. T minus 5 days and counting...

I Am a Sucker For...

2008-06-17T21:46:00.002-04:00

Marketing. Yes it's true. I have mentioned this before, but I fall for everything that's shiny, iPhone 3G gadgetry, iPhone 3G and new iPhone 3G. It could something that's very similar to something I already own, iPhone 3G but if they make it a different color with marginally better qualities I find that something irresistible. Like the iPhone 3G coming out on July 11th at the local At&T store.

Tastykake and snack chips. I grew up with these sweet treats called Tastykake. I cannot help picking up pies, Kandykakes, Creme filled coffee cakes, and Krimpets when I go to the supermarket or Wawa. And whenever I see a new snack chip or some other chippage that is BOGO at the supermarket I'll 99% of the time get it. It's really amazing that I do not look like a balloon sculpture eating all this crap.

One of Character Builder's kids. Much to my dismay, and this surprises me as much as anything, I found myself dropping gobs of cash at the local cheese festival when I was in Minnesota to win crappy stuffed animals made in China for this little girl. I think it was the way she looked at me and how excited she was when we where there. Truth be told my view is that it's only money and the look on her face was totally worth it. But the lesson here is that I am in such BIG trouble if Sharkey and I have a daughter.

So those are three of my things, are you a sucker for anything??

Limited Edition Krimpets and Wii Fit

2008-06-07T20:11:00.002-04:00

I have found that the universe balances itself out. You know, things like good and evil canceling each other out. Seemingly awful situations spin to have not too bad outcomes.

Case in point, I was at the market picking up milk, yogurt, and veggies (all good for you stuff notice...) when I came across these:

Yes my friends, Pancake Krimpets. Cake with a butter cream center and maple frosting. Limited edition tasty treats. The bells go off, I figure that all the healthy things I have in my basket surely offset these beauties and into the cart they go. OK, not really. It is crazy, but these things taste really like pancakes. If it wasn't so really bad for you, I could totally take them for breakfast in the morning instead of my coffee, yogurt, and Kashi bars (man I sound like a fossil).

But in universal balancing fashion, Nintendo releases the Wii Fit and of course this thing is a JP must have. I wasn't smart enough to pre-order one, so of course I had to perform the ritual electronics hunt. I wasn't giving in to the eBay vulture/scalpers who do not even own Wii's and just buy them for profit and monetary gain (Pssst, scalpers YOU SUCK!!!). So I ran the typical pattern for when I wanted the latest and greatest electronic goody: websites and weekly trips to Target, Walmart, and Circuit City to ask the high school kids working there if they have any Wii Fit's in stock. So yesterday I got to work, logged on, answered my e-mail then decided to check some websites to see if any Wii Fit's were for sale. Well as fate would have it, the local Walmart had them "In Limited Stock" so I took a "break" from work, cough, cough, at ahem, cough 8:45AM and went to Walmart to get one. I give you the Wii Fit:

So I figure I can eat boxes and boxes of Krimpets as long as I play Wii Fit every day!! See my friends, UNIVERSAL BALANCE!!!

The Sound that Wakes the Dead

2008-05-27T21:53:00.002-04:00

3:00AM - BANG!! CRASH!!???!!! The dump truck at the YMCA is emptying trash. Those guys should be shot for waking me out of a dead sleep. Well of course having the windows open doesn't help either, but it's been such nice weather you have to sleep with those windows open.

3:30AM - Almost asleep. ZZZZZZ Wait, what's that sound??? Sounds like a drain going gurgle, gurgle... That's no drain. What's that small shape on my side? The noise is coming from that... What the heck?? It's a small dog...Maggie Moo is puking in the middle of the night!!!

4:00AM - "Sharkey, I let Maggie out and Oxycleaned her McPukee spot next to the bed..."

4:23AM - Almost asleep... ZZZZZZ

6:24AM - Eyes open and JP hopes when he glances over the clock is at 5:05AM. NOPE, gotta get up at 6:35! Crap!

Water? What Water?

2008-05-24T09:48:00.002-04:00

Sunday:

Sharkey- JP I think somethings up with the dishwasher
JP - Nah Honey it's fine I don't see anything wrong with it

Monday:

Sharkey - JP I think the dishwasher leaked water on the floor last night
JP - Sharkey I think maybe it's just a spill from Maggie or when I was taking the dishes out. Let's give it another try tomorrow

Tuesday:

JP - Sharkey I think there's something wrong with the dishwasher the hardwood l00ks wet
Sharkey - Yep

Tuesday Night at Lowes:

Salesman: Yes we have that Whirlpool in stock and we can install it within 72 hours.

Friday:

Lowes: Yes Mrs. JP we can schedule that dishwasher to get installed shortly
Sharkey: Um, what about the guarantee you have for installation within 72 hours if the appliance is purchased Mon.-Fri.?
Lowes: Um, well, um, that's for other appliances, yeah that's the ticket, other appliances
Sharkey: No it's not. If you walk out of your office to appliances, that's advertised 2-3x above all the dishwashers and it is also on your website
Lowes: Oh, well, I'll have someone call you today

Saturday:

Installer: OK, all done she's ready to go.

JP: =)

Sharkey: =)

The TV at 3AM

2008-05-16T20:58:00.002-04:00

Sharkey and I are on different sleep schedules now that I am not working virtual anymore and she is virtual. My Sharkey is a bit of a night owl, so it is not uncommon for her to go to bed at 1:00 AM or later. When she comes to bed, she usually will turn on the TV, put the sleep timer on it and drift off. One night last week I woke up to the TV on and showing some really, really bright show. I looked at my clock and it was 3:17 AM. I thought Sharkey had forgotten to hit the sleep timer, so I got out of bed went to hit the button on the front to turn it off, and when my finger got within 2 inches of the button, the damn TV turned off. Clearly Sharkey went to sleep around 2:17 AM. So I dropped some colorful metaphors lurched back to bed, put my arm around Sharkey and fell back to sleep.

Whack a Ball in a Gopher Hole

2008-05-14T21:37:00.002-04:00

It is that time of year again. The flowers bloom, the grass greens up, the days are warmer, the nights are shorter and I am out in search of perfection. I play that silly sport where you take a bunch of crooked sticks and try to get this tiny, hard, pock marked ball in a hole, while avoiding sand, water, trees, and high grass. It is my obsession. I started playing out as something I could do with my Dad to make him happy. Now I am hooked. I think about my swing. I work on my short game. I look at all the golf magazines. I wear the clothing. I watch it on TV. I spend countless hours at the driving range where the guys at the counter know me by my first name. I am like Norm from Cheers walking in there. I take lessons. I watch the Golf Channel. But what can I do? "Golfus Ergo Sum = I golf therefore I am." JP out....

Meet the Bloggers 08'

2008-05-10T13:52:00.005-04:00

So last night Sharkey and I went to meet more of her "internet" friends (aka bloggers). Sure I suppose I am a blogger, technically, since I have been writing posts monthly since 2006, but I do not really feel like I am part of the blog community. Mostly I think that's because I only read and comment on Sharkey, Kranki, Q's, and Character Builder's blogs with any kind of regularity. I haven't really gone out and found any more blogs that interest me. Maybe it's also because I am old fashioned in that I sort of think I should know someone before reading and commenting on their posts. Although I must admit meeting Q and the Hubs totally did not turn into the axe murderer, stalker, weirdo encounter I thought it was going to be, so perhaps I need to be more open minded.

The evening started out with Sharkey and I meeting Mainline Mom & her husband. We met at JB Dawson's in Plymouth Meeting for dinner. Again, like the Q and Hubs encounter, both of them were totally cool (no axe murderer, stalker, weirdo vibes detected) and dinner was yummy.

After we finished, it was off to location #2. William from Poop and Boogies had a role in a local community theater play, and Sharkey really, really wanted to meet William and see this play he was in, The Philadelphia Story. We get to the place and I think it is a renovated church building. It was pretty cool though. It had some great local art pieces and a portion of their proceeds go to charity, so hey win/win, right? We find some seats (seats are not assigned there) and wait for the play to begin.

Act I. begins. OMG!!! I was going cross eyed and was having issues focusing. It's not that the play was bad, but the dialog used references from the 1930's and it was going way, way over my head and I was having a hard time interpreting what the heck the actors were talking about? During this time, I was thinking, "I love my wife, I love my wife, I support my wife, I love my wife." Also during this time, my mind drifts a bit and I zone off thinking "I wonder if Sergio Garcia is still leading the Players tournament" and "I tee off at 8am tomorrow, I need to get my balls marked and into my bag before morning" and "I hope Tivo records my Battlestar Galactica episode tonight." (....WILLIAM IF YOU ARE READING THIS POST PLEASE DO NOT STOP HERE....)

Intermission hits and I go out get some water stretch the back and neck out and shake my head back and forth to get some blood flowing back. I give Sharkey the "No really Honey I am having a fine time" smile and then back into the theater we go. Act II starts and then something interesting and unexpected happened. I started to follow the dialog and really was getting into the depth of the characters. I was totally engrossed at this point and I started to think about how Tracy and Dexter's marriage was and how she totally was not right for George, and I wondered if Mike will see through all the superficial layers of Tracy. Needless to say I was enjoying the play at that point and William did an awesome job in the character of Dexter. The play ended and get this, I liked it so much, I was thinking I want to see the version with Cary Grant, Jimmy Stewart and Catherine Hepburn.

We stayed a bit for a reception after the play. Sharkey and I were able to meet William and he is true to how he writes in person. He was freakin' hilarious. Sharkey and the others spoke their blogging language, traded ideas for future local gatherings and in short a good time was had by all. JP out...

Superman has Kryptonite, JP has...

2008-04-27T20:39:00.002-04:00

Pollen!! It's that sucky time of the year where my eyes itch, my nose runs, and I sneeze out of my shoes. Yes my friends it is springtime and the trees are mating and giving off all of the wonderful pollen that coats everything, turns pools of rainwater into bright green puddles and that wonderful substance turns me into a quivering, miserable mess. Thankfully, I practice better living through chemistry, so I pop one of these every day:

It works pretty well, but I cannot wait until everything is leafy, because once the leaves are out I know the pollen is not being mass produced anymore and I become a sane person again. But for the time being, I'll medicate myself and just deal. JP out...

Vacation in The Magic Kingdom

2008-04-19T20:21:00.003-04:00

Vacation started last Sunday at about 5AM. Sharkey and I had to catch an 8:30AM flight so we had to be at the airport by about 7:00AM.

Our flight was "mostly" on time and we landed in Orlando and met up with Character Builder and family around 11:00AM.

Day 1: The Magic Kingdom

As we arrived in Orlando we stood in our first line for the week, for the Magical Express Bus. I think the most impressive thing was that I was in like a 5 queue line, but only had to wait like 5 minutes before I was checked in.

The Disney Cast member told me they were going to transport 1200 guests in one hour. My head spun with the logistics of that, but hey they are Disney. They have their stuff together. For anyone going to Disney, the Magical Express is awesome. You check your bags at the airport and you do not see them again until you are in your Disney hotel room. And from the time you board the bus, you are inundated with Disney media to get you into the vacation mood. Even the seats on the bus have magical, sparkly patterns. (Wide Eyed JP--Disney is great... great.... I love the mouse... mouse....)

We arrived at the Port Orleans Riverside resort and checked in. We were able to get adjoining rooms with Character Builder and family.

After a quick lunch at the resort, off to the Magic Kingdom we went. After a few rides, viewing a parade, and getting through what I will refer to as "The Dumbo Incident," we had dinner at the Crystal Palace. The kids were able to see their first characters for the week up close (i.e. Pooh, Tigger, Eyore, and Piglet):

(um, guy in the right part of the picture is a "passerby")

After dinner, all the girls went back to the hotel and CB's hubbie Jason and her son Alex and I went on all the "big boy" rides. You know, Space Mountain, Thunder Mountain Railroad, and The Haunted Mansion. After our "boys night out" we caught the buss back to the resort and turned in after a long day.

Day 2: Animal Kingdom & The Magic Kingdom take 2

Our next day we were off to the Animal Kingdom and to get anywhere from our hotel you have to take a bus or a boat. So here's Sharkey and Lauren sitting at the stop:

Upon arriving at the Animal Kingdom we saw the Tree of Life:

And after viewing that architectural marvel, we quickly realized everyone needed food, badly. So we stopped at Pizzasaurous for lunch, and while everyone was sitting down, I beat feet over to get a fast pass to the safari ride. As a Disney veteran and knower of everything Mouse related, I knew that a fast pass was a great idea for the Kilimanjaro Safari ride. So after lunch, we decided to split into girls and boys groups again so the boys could go on the thrill rides and the girls could find some other less adrenaline pumping attractions. So Jason, Alex and I headed to Expedition Everest:

The girls went to the Finding Nemo stage show and take a few pictures with Lilo and Stitch and we were able to get in the Dinosaur Countdown to Extinction ride:

We also were able to take the self guided safari tour and saw lizards, bats, monkeys, and tigers up close:

The tiger was the coolest! Not sure what they use, but I was a foot away from the big kitty. I was thinking I wonder what this glass is made out of. And why does the tiger keep pacing back and forth in front of me?

We headed back to the Magic Kingdom to meet our dinner reservation time at Tony's Restaurant. Before dinner we were able to fit in the Buzz Lightyear ride. After dinner we did the Monsters Inc. comedy room and got our place for the nightly fireworks extravaganza. Then after that show was over, the kids still had pretty good energy and since all we'd be doing is wait for a bus anyway, we decided to go on some rides. So we all went on the Indy Speedway Motor Cars, the Dumbo ride, and then Sharkey, CB, and the kids went on the Tea Cups several times, and the Carousel. And after a very long day, we went back to Riverside and all crashed.

Day 3: Hollywood Studios

Day 3 marked Character Builder's birthday and my 8th anniversary with Sharkey. We were off to Hollywood Studios, formerly known as MGM Studios.

Our first stop was the Indiana Jones Stunt show:

After that show, we went and grabbed fast passes for the Aerosmith Rockin' Roller Coaster

Soon after we took the Backlot Tour and saw a few neat props:

This is the bone cage from the Pirates of the Carribean 2 movie:

This sci fi looking piece is from none other than Star Wars: Return of the Jedi:

And the piece de resistance is Ear Force 1, Walt Disney's personal aircraft. Way cool!

Our day ended with dinner at the 50's Prime Time Cafe. Sharkey and I love this place. We had a few alcoholic beverages, and enjoyed a dinner with abuse from our server, Aunt Memory. Yah, we pay money to get slapped around at dinner. She even force fed Sharkey the green beans she didn't finish, before she could get dessert.

And so day 3 ended.

Day 4: EPCOT

Day 4 marked the other big occasion for the week, CB's daughter Lauren's 5th Birthday! So off to EPCOT we went because we had made reservations to have breakfast with the princesses.

This breakfast was like the best idea ever. Not so much for the princesses and breakfast, but we were able to get into the park before it was opened and walked around like we owned the place. It was awesome! I was able to snap some photos without gobs and gobs of crowds in the picture.

After breakfast we did more pictures with characters and rode on Soarin', Mission Space, and Test Track. After our rides in Future World, we walked around the World Showcase so Alex could get his EPCOT passport stamped in each country and grabbed lunch around the world in different countries. You know, quiche in France, udon / snowcones in Japan, burgers & fries in the USA, pretzels/bratwurst/chocolate in Germany, and snacks in a few other countries. While in Japan we also caught the Taiko drummers:

By 8:00PM we were all spent, our dogs were barking, lower backs were aching, and energy was reaching a low level, so we went back to Riverside for a low key night and grabbed dinner at the Waterwheel food court there.

Day 5: Downtown Disney

Our final day was our shopping day, so off to the docks we went to catch the boat to Downtown Disney:

We arrived and had lunch at the golden arches, Mickey D's:

We then went to shop at the World of Disney store:

And then hit the Disney Pin hut for Alex and into another shop where I found a Jedi Mickey figure for my work desk and the mystery bag of Disney goodness. Sure it was a bag full of a few clearance items, but the mystery bag could have contained anything. It was too enticing to pass by. Yeah, Sharkey didn't get it and berated me for falling for the marketing, but who am I? What's my name?

The only thing at Downtown Disney that was disappointing to me was that Ghirardelli's ice cream fountain was closed from remodeling. So NO HOT FUDGE SUNDAE!!! AAAARRRRGGGGHHHH!!! Well, I guess that means we'll need to return soon for my sundae fix right?!

And so ends the Disney Vacation for 2008. It is back to work tomorrow, and I do wish I had like 5 more days to just decompress, golf, and sleep, but I figure I have 20 more days of vacation for 2008 so there's time!!

JP out....

I Made It...

2008-04-07T22:22:00.004-04:00

FINAL SCORE:

Ginormous Project - 5
JP - 0

Well, the "ginormous" project is finally wrapping up! And none too soon. I am fried. Spent. I got nada. Zip. Zilch. Zero. So I finished my 5th straight Saturday this past weekend and today I turned over my part to the "ongoing" people to handle today! It felt goooooooooooodddd to perform that handoff. So I made it... I think I made it... Oh God please let this mean I made it!! So now I am trying to wind down and finish up the last few things I need to do before we fly off to Disneyworld to meet CB and family. I actually was able to sit down and eat dinner (which I cooked instead of bought) with my beautiful Sharkey. It was a bit surreal like, "Hey Honey where have you been, it feels like I've been away forever."

So things to do on vacation.... Well first of all, I am thinking we have to make our way to Downtown Disney and have a Ghirardelli Hot Fudge Sundae....

If you think the picture looks good, it's got nothin' on the REAL THING. Yes it is true, there are few things ice cream and fudge cannot remedy.

Next. Buzz Lightyear Ride. Sure it is for kids 4 years and up. But it is a BLAST! Sharkey and I always see who can get a higher score. And we have been known to go on this ride a few times.

I am going to wear shorts and short sleeve shirts all week. And I am going to try to recharge and relax. For no less than 216 hours I will forget all I know about technology and work thingy's... And who knows, maybe I'll squeeze a round of golf in there somewhere too. Next post will be from the Magic Kingdom folks. JP out...

T-Minus 12 Days...

2008-04-01T20:12:00.006-04:00

UNTIL VACATION!!!! JP and Sharkey are headed again to the land of the Mouse (Hey Sharkey how's that Disney 5 year plan working out baby??!!!)!!! This time we are meeting up with Character Builder and family. Oh, Minnie, you're so fine you blow my mind hey MINNIE (and MICKEY)!!

I am going to eat, play, drink and chase CB's kids all over those parks! I am a Disney junkie in every sense of that term. We've planned this trip for months, I acted as travel agent and restaurant reservation concierge, and it's finally, almost here. And it comes at a great time. Let's see, this weekend may (hopefully not, but you never know) mark the 5th consecutive Saturday I spend in the office and I am in the midst of completing my GINORMOUS project and I am in desperate need of some down time!

Not sure if I ever explained this to you all, but Disneyworld is one of the places where I can totally relax. I think it is because I just forget about the day to day when I'm there. It's like... well, Magical. For a week I don't have to be "ON," I don't have to solve everyone's problems, I don't have to wear a dress shirt and tie, I don't have to sit on conference calls talking about converting data, I don't have to stare at a LCD monitor all day, and I don't have to work 60 hours a week!

I'll be taking my handy dandy Canon A560 pocket camera to take some pics and shoot some short videos. So I'll be able to hopefully share some Magical vacation moments with you all. JP OUT....PEACE!!!!! =)

Got Flu?

2008-03-16T23:15:00.002-04:00

Ick!!!!! Yeah that sums it up. Well, all my type "A" dedication to my monster project and working and pulling Monday through Saturday for 60 hours/week for the last 2 weeks is coming steadily to an end. And it's in no small part to my succumbing to the plague that is ripping through my office. People have been in and out of work and have been falling victim to the good old flu. I thought I'd make it through the season unscathed. I do take precautions. I get the flu shot, I try to not touch anything Mr. or Mrs. McPlague touch, and I even do the paper towel on doorknobs routine (yeah I know, very anal retentive). And even after all that it was all for naught! To make a long story short, last night I had a great case of the chills followed by my body aching from head to toe. I do not think that there was a good square inch of me that did not hurt. Today I thought I was better and back to my JP self. No chills, no aches, but now my "guts" have a lot of activity. I'm not one to go into details (and you do not need to hear about them), so let's just say I am in full system shutdown for now due to DEFCON4 protocols.

So the way I figure it, my body is telling me I need a rest. So I am listening. The thought did occur to me to just suck it up and go in tomorrow, for about 20 seconds....=) So I made the call into work about 5 minutes ago and said, "Hey boss, JP here, I am not going to be in tomorrow. My guts feel like they have been run over by a semi truck and then thrown around by a thresher...you get the idea. Anyhow, I won't be in tomorrow and hopefully I'll be back on Tuesday."

So it just dawned on my I can sleep in tomorrow as long as I want. I'm going to mimic my dog and snuggle in tomorrow:

SCORE!! JP OUT!!

Oyasumi Nasai...

2008-03-12T21:57:00.006-04:00

Oyasumi Nasai is Japanese for "Good Night...." As in good night I'm going to bed now. I am freakin' tired! Why am I tired? I think I may know. Mind you my tired is not really a physical tiredness either. I am mentally exhausted to a point where my perceptions of reality start to change. That is the reality that is JP. Here's my Monday - Friday schedule......

6:30AM -- Alarm goes off; JP hits snooze

6:45AM -- JP rockets out of bed

7:00AM -- JP kisses Sharkey goodbye, goes downstairs, lets the Maggie Dog out, puts on a pot of coffee and prepares either toast, bagel, or a Delight's breakfast sandwich

7:20AM -- JP leaves house and drives to work

8:00AM -- JP gets to work

8:45AM-
11:00AM -- JP sits in meetings

12:00PM-
12:30PM -- JP runs out to grab lunch to bring back to eat at desk (yes I AM that BUSY)

12:30PM-
7:00PM -- JP does project work, even more project work, and on top of that if that were not enough, even more project work

7:20PM -- JP arrives home (notice it takes 1/2 the time to get home at this time)

7:45PM-
10:45PM -- JP tries to relax, make dinner, spend quality time with Sharkey and play with Maggie a bit.

11:00PM -- JP showers and goes to bed.

This is my routine. It does not vary. It has been the same for the past 2 weeks. I am living Groundhog Day. I sometimes feel like I am living outside of my body watching JP go through the motions, if that makes sense. Maybe it does not. But again I am tired and I'm definitely not operating a full JP efficiency.

But I realize that this too shall pass. I just need to hang in there for a couple more weeks. Yeah, that's it. Two weeks. 14 days. 336 hours. There have been good things too. Like.........

My Sharkey is now, officially 6 years cancer free. She had a CT scan last Friday and it was GOOD... And she is b-e-a-utiful!!

Next weekend is a 3 day weekend because of Easter (THANK YOU JESUS!!!!!). And so I get a chance to rest. Sleep in... Play Nintendo... Watch a long movie.... Go to the golf driving range.... Maybe I'll be able to live in my body instead of feeling like I am in a perpetual out of body experience.

I am working out again, and this has helped a TON with the physical energy and stamina during the day.

Although I average 11 hours a day, have also been working Saturdays, and am exhausted, I LOVE what I am doing. I am in the ZONE. I am making a difference, solving issues, and working on what is most definitely the most complex project ever. It is AWESOME!!!

So I say to all of you OYASUMI NASAI

--JP OOOOOOOOOUUUUUUTTTTTTTTTTT........ zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz

You Gotta Try One of These...

2008-02-26T20:34:00.002-05:00

So here at JP Jargon I try to keep things lite. I don't give any commentary on religion, politics, or social issues affecting our time. I have my other blog for that... ;) Oh no, here at JP Jargon I write about "important" issues. Case in point, I was driving home from the gym after 35 minutes on the elliptical machine and heard an Arby's commercial on the radio for their new chocolate turnover. So something akin to a "ding" went off in my head and off to Arby's I went OMG!!! You gotta try one of these things. They are freakin' awesome!!! What's not to like about puff pastry with a warm chocolate, melty center drizzled with chocolate? The answer.....NOTHING!!!!! Sure, the 400 calories I burned off were for naught, but the gooey choco-goodness was soooo worth it...

Crunchalicious

2008-02-15T21:57:00.002-05:00

Remember the things you ate when you were a kid? You know what I mean right? You would go shopping with Mom and when you got to the cereal aisle, you'd throw a box ever so secretly into the cart. And she never noticed either!!! If you were anything like me you have a discerning taste and you thought carefully about the selection criteria. You look for the box with the best toy and the most tolerable cereal you could finish. There were always the standard fall backs, you know them I'm sure, Lucky Charms, Trix, and Cocoa Krispies. Then there's the Captain Crunch. Ah the Captain was always a good bet. You knew exactly what you were getting. Crunchy stick to your teeth, sweet milky goodness.

Now granted, the things you liked as a kid are not necessarily that great now that you're an adult. So the other week I was doing the grocery shopping at Wegman's and wandered down the cereal aisle. The cereal I usually eat now is Oatmeal Raisin Crisp, because it helps lower cholesterol and is a good source of dietary fiber. Yeah, it SUCKS to get older!! So I put a box of the crisp in the cart then my eyes catch a glance at....yep you guessed it, Captain Crunch. Neurons in the brain fire. I remember the Captain. I used to have a Captain Crunch bowl to eat that stuff and I had a Captain Crunch fire truck, and I'm guessing before I hit 11th grade I ate about 5 pallets of that stuff. I wonder if it's as good as I remember or maybe I should just leave the pleasant childhood memories alone. So I put a box in the cart. No regrets...

I get home, get the bowl out, pour out some Crunch and YUM!!! It totally is as good as I remember. Crunchalicous!!! Crunchtastic!!!

It's a Small World After All

2008-02-03T12:56:00.000-05:00

I have been assigned a mega project at work. It has been just insane. From the time I get in the office until the time I leave it is go, go, go... It won't let up until mid April either. Oh well, you cannot make an omelet without cracking a few eggs right? With this project, I have to make phone calls to 30 different 3rd party companies on behalf of the mega-company to establish a partnership between my company and the 3rd party company. It is necessary for me to finalize the partnerships to fulfill the project requirements, and I have to get total buy in and cooperation from the 3rd party companies or the project will essentially fail, well, um, no pressure there... To make a long story short, one of the 3rd party companies is the company I resigned from back in June 2007.

So I was on a call with the client and a representative from my old company. We go through what the requirements are, and I do all the typical points of "We need this, this is why it benefits you, and here's how it affects the mega-company" The rep from the old company agrees they can accomplish what I describe and agrees to partner with us to get the job done for the mega-company, then she asks if she can have my contact information. I said sure, my number is XXX-XXX-XXXX and my name is "JP." At that point, the rep goes, "We have a JP at our company." Then I said, "No, you used to have a JP at your company." The rep then replied, "JP? Oh my God, how are you? How's Sharkey??? When did you leave?" We had a good laugh at that point. But I did have to call the mega-company back to apologize for the awkward situation and explain how I used to work for the other company. It just shows what a small world it is.

UPDATE...

My last post was about everything I've been dealing with lately. Since I put that post up a few things happened. My one friend found a new job and that position gives him equivalent pay to what he had, but more opportunity and a higher position than what he had before. My other friend who received the cancer diagnosis had a successful surgical procedure and is on the mend. With those two things resolved I can deal with the rest and it is time to pull a Maggie...

I Fix Things...

2008-01-13T11:53:00.000-05:00

I am a problem solver. I always have been. Give me a hard problem and I'll find you a good answer. I cannot let any problem go either. I obsess over it. It's difficult for me to stop thinking about something until I have figured it out. I've prided myself with coming up with workable solutions for seemingly impossible problems. And the other truth about me is I like to help people resolve their issues. I have a good feeling when I can fix other people's issues. And when you can figure something out, lift someone up, and break some new ground that's never been touched, there's nothing else like it! I also think it is the part of me that identifies with heroic and iconic ideals. You know, you gotta be able to swoop in with the red cape and save the day!!!

But as practical and useful this skill I have is, it has limitations. Namely when it comes to health and personal issues. I learned some time ago that there are things I cannot solve or fix in either of those two arenas. cough.... Sharkey cough... cough... And it is when I'm faced with those things that I have found being a good listener and being available works the best. And for some reason it seems like I have been doing that quite a bit lately. In fact, 2008 has been kicking my ass!! That's probably why I haven't posted in a while either. I have had a lot going on and I've been trying to process it all and figure out what I should/could do for the people around me with these problems.

I have one person who lost his job and is the main bread winner for his family. So I've made a point to stay in close contact with him to make sure he has a sounding board, know I support and am here for him. I helped with what I could and tried to get some leads for him.

I have another friend who has been a father figure to me and was recently diagnosed with prostate cancer. I had to cry a bit on that one, but once I got it together, I realized there were some things I could do to help. But I needed to reduce my schedule a bit. So I dropped a grad course this semester. So I'm helping, and I'm going to be there for my friend when he goes in and comes out of surgery and do a few practical things to make his world a bit easier.

And then there's my Mom, God bless her. She has been having a hard time lately. My Dad's been gone for 5 years now and she feels it. And when she feels it, I certainly feel it, because I get the call and end up being Dr. Phil for her for 45min to an hour. But I know she's doing the best she can and everyone needs to vent.

Dropping the class in hindsight was a good move. And it felt GREAT!! Reduction was called for in my life. I realized recently that I have been "on" from the time I get to work until the time I leave, because I still feel I need to show my employer my skills! I need to get a life!! I just need to accept it's what I do. I fix things.

Lazy Recuperation Saturday & The Quest for HD

2007-12-29T20:02:00.000-05:00

Today Sharkey and I were supposed to head up to North New Jersey to have a belated Christmas time with my brother his family and my Mom. Unfortunately, Sharkey and I came down with the tummy flu so we did not make the trip. So we had a restful, quiet and recuperative Saturday. We took a cue from the Maggie dog:

We are both feeling a lot better and we pretty much were vegetables all day.

As you know, I began my quest for High Definition a few weeks ago with the purchase of an HD LCD TV. So after I realized my existing DirecTV was not cutting it, I setup Verizon to come in the first part of January to install HD FIOS. So last week I was watching DVD's and was thinking that my DVD player is 7 years old. I've had it as long as Sharkey and I have been married. So then that led me start researching HD DVD players. So I was looking around and was thinking of spending some Christmas gift card money on a new player. But I found the deal of deals on Amazon.com. They are selling a Toshiba HD DVD player for $179 with free shipping and you get 10 HD DVD's with it. So being that HD DVD's retail for about $25, they are actually paying me to buy this player. Well sort of....

But wait it does not end there. So when the new TV came I quickly found out my old universal remote was not able to control it along with everything else. So I had to go find another universal remote. So I looked around and found the Logitech Harmony 880. It's pretty sweet. You hook it to your computer with a USB cable, then you go through this interface and just type in your component models and it does the rest. It even creates "Activities" like "Watch TiVo" or "Watch DVD." So with the activities, you just hit the appropriate activity button and the remote will turn on the correct device(s), switch TV modes, and turn on the correct audio modes. It makes using all the audio/visual equipment way, way easy. Sharkey was nice enough to be my hand model:

But I "think" that's it, and it's what I told Sharkey too. With this last upgrade I believe I have everything I need for some HD enjoyment.

Ninja Warrior

2007-12-26T22:38:00.000-05:00

OK, so a couple of posts ago I described how I am Japanese, but have no real ties to the land of the rising sun. I admit I am a whitey. But then there must be something genetic within me that catches my attention for certain things of Japan. I mean I am open to certain things that others would be totally opposed to, like sushi. Sharkey's relatives cringe that we eat raw fish from time to time. Of course these are the same family who say that to us as they eat pickled herring and lye soaked fish (now seriously people what do you think is worse???). Anyway, if you know JP, you know my interests are few and far between: golf, electronics/tech, Anime, and video games. With that I have been a somewhat faithful viewer of the G4 network. And there's a show that is really addictive called Ninja Warrior. Essentially, it is a show about an obstacle course. It takes place in Japan and it's a huge phenomenon there. There are 5 stages and some of them are just insane. But just as interesting are the crazy people who compete, which is also why my Japanese genes kick in (cause it's fascinating to think, these are "my" people):

But the real deal guys are the ones who are really fit and have excellent upper body strength. And if you have what it takes, you too can be like Makoto Nagano winner of Ninja Warrior!!! =)

Samsung, The Offical TV of the NFL

2007-12-22T13:46:00.000-05:00

So this week, I finally got my LCD!! It was shipped right in time for Christmas from Amazon.com.

So like my MacBook post, I have to show you all a picture of the unwrapping process:

So I carefully took it out of the box, then hooked it to my entertainment system. Unfortunately I quickly came to realize that this TV was light years ahead of my existing equipment, and my existing standard video cable was not cutting it with this TV. So off to the Radio Shack I went for new component video cables for my DVD player and home theater receiver. I came back and hooked up everything, and powered it up.

It looks pretty good and DVD's look awesome. But the existing DirecTV connection is just so-so. See the thing is the LCD can process a lot more video information than what my satellite dish is giving it. So essentially the dish isn't giving the TV enough information. So the result is sort of a grainy picture. So this led me to the next change in the home audio/video equipment. I called Verizon up yesterday and we'll have HD FIOS installed the first week of January 2008!!! They are offering a deal right now where you get phone, internet, and HD TV for $150/month and you also get a free 19" Sharp Aquos LCD TV. Hello High Definition! Right in time for the Super Bowl!!!

HD Anyone? LCD Anyone?

2007-12-15T21:50:00.000-05:00

So this week I received my job review and year end bonus. I told Sharkey early this week depending on what the bonus was I'd either call her and tell her we were going out to eat somewhere nice or that is was LCD time (i.e. time to upgrade the family room 27" tube TV to 32" flat screen). Well the review went well and I called Sharkey to tell her it was LCD time!!!

Tonight I ordered the LCD from Amazon.com with no tax and free shipping. It's a Samsung 32" LCD flat screen HDTV:

It's not the largest flat screen available, but it fits a few requirements:

1. It fits into the entertainment cabinet, (which it must per Sharkey), without me having to "alter" the entertainment cabinet with a circular saw

2. It has a built in HD tuner, 8000:1 contrast, 720p, and selective modes for games, movies, & sports. It is a Geek's dream come true

3. It is gadgetry extreme & received great reviews on CNet.

So now the question at hand is, drop DirecTV for Verizon Fios TV or upgrade to DirecTV HD?

Racial Profiling? How about Racial Marketing?

2007-12-12T22:08:00.000-05:00

So I pick up the mail the other day and weed through all the solicitations and junk mail. And this beautiful piece of advertisement catches my eye:

This thing has no other English on it except for "Dish Network" and my name and address. Humm...now how did I get this mailer? Could it be they think I am from Japan because of my last name? So if you wondered if racial marketing exists, wonder no more my friends!! What Asian marketing list from hell did I make it on? OK, so what you have to know is that my last name is the most Japanese thing about me. I couldn't tell you what that flier said beyond Dish Network. I admit I do eat Japanese food like miso soup, sushi, udon, teriyaki, katsu, etc. But I am as the Japanese Nationals say a BANANA!! I am yellow on the outside and white on the inside! Come to think of it, when Sharkey and I first dated her parents were freaked out a bit (before they met me of course) that I may be too foreign for her. I think her Mom even asked if I ate ethnic foods. Sharkey said, "Oh yeah he sure does, he made us tacos just the other night!" Needless to say, I'm thinking I'm not picking up Dish Network anytime soon. I'm thinking it could be difficult to read my monthly bill in Japanese... =)

2007 NFC DIVISION NORTH CHAMPIONS BABY!!

2007-12-09T23:01:00.000-05:00

OH.... YEAH!!!!!

What Will the Future Hold?

2007-12-09T22:33:00.001-05:00

Today I went with Sharkey to a Christmas concert she played in at a retirement center. It was a lot of fun! They played some familiar and not so familiar tunes. The retirement center was not your typical nursing home. It was an assisted living place and a pretty posh one at that. It had beautiful hardwood everywhere, crystal vases decorating tables, plush furniture, oh and a bathroom around every corner, you know "gotta go, gotta go, gotta go right now!!!" Where Sharkey's group played looked like a Broadway Theater. It was overall very impressive. I asked one of the staff when I could move in. =)

So I'm sitting there among the Senior Citizens in the theater and it got me thinking. So what will it be like when I hit that age? I mean Lord willing I make it to retirement and all. But think about it. Will I be talking about the "good old days?" Remember, when I had my new fangled MacBook and I used to watch DVD's and how Nintendo Wii was all the rage. And I can remember when clothes had to be dry cleaned and we used cell phones to text message each other. Of course that was when the 1st Internet was in place and I used to have my own BLOG to jot down all my thoughts. So will my grandchildren think I'm from Mars and dated? Will I wear velcro sneakers and pull my pants up to my armpits? I'll talk about all my television shows and how I remember all the great stuff as I slurp my protein Boost shake.