Secrets

I have held this one in too long and I am not sure why I feel the need to divulge this info on here, but... I have been lying to a lot of people for about 3 months now. Twice a week when I tell my wife I am going to the bar for a couple of hours to watch a game, or hang out with Steve or Eric.. I am taking a Pilates class at the local YMCA. I even go as far as to have a beer outside the house before i come in so I smell like alcohol. The Pilates method makes me feel refreshed and very focused. I feel energized and less angry at the daily grind of a normal work week. I am one of two guys in the class, so atleast I' m not the only one. My body fat percent is at 5% and I have not felt this good health-wise ever. I am not sure how much longer this charade can go on, so I went out and bought myself a Pilates mat and several Pilates DVD's. It seems I may have to curtail my twice a week YMCA jaunts to one and practice this envigorating form of fitness in my own home. It will just be weird not having my exercise gear on at home, because I would be too embarassed if my wife came downstairs and saw me. I even have done some Feng Shui in the house and I do feel the rooms are more inviting and calming. Now I really need to curtail some of my poor eating habits and really listen to the nutritional consultant at the Y. More organic foods that have less hormones and additives. I am going to ask for a steamer for Christmas. I bet I can make a really healthy menu with one of those. None of this is true, but I wanted to try doing this a few times on here and see how far someone got before they knew I was not making any sense and saying ridiculous things. How did that go for you?

Why Does it Always Rain On Me?

I can't sleep tonight
Everybody saying everything's alright
Still I can't close my eyes
I'm seeing a tunnel at the end of all these lights

Sunny days
Where have you gone?
I get the strangest feeling you belong
Why does it always rain on me?
Is it because I lied when I was seventeen?
Why does it always rain on me?
Even when the sun is shining
I can't avoid the lightning

I can't stand myself
I'm being held up by an invisible man
Still life on a shelf when
I got my mind on something else

Sunny days
Where have you gone?
I get the strangest feeling you belong
Why does it always rain on me?
Is it because I lied when I was seventeen?
Why does it always rain on me?
Even when the sun is shining
I can't avoid the lightning

Oh, where did the blue skies go?
And why is it raining so?
It's so cold
I can't sleep tonight
Everybody's saying everything's all right
Still I can't close my eyes
I'm seeing a tunnel at the end of the lights

Sunny days
Where have you gone?
I get the strangest feeling you belong
Why does it always rain on me?
Is it because I lied when I was seventeen?
Even when the sun is shining
I can't avoid the lightning
Oh, where did the blue skies go?
And why is it raining so?
It's so cold
Why does it always rain on me?
Why does it always rain on....

Now I'm not real big on posting song lyrics and things of that sort, but I found myself singing this song the past week. It has rained every day for a week. It was like that scene from Forrest Gump..There was Big rain, small rain, wavy rain, rain that came from underneath, hard rain, soft rain...... Maybe it does rain because I lied when I was seventeen.

How Many Times Have You Watched....

Will there ever be a movie in your life from now on that you watch as many times as the movies you did as a child or young adult? I want to explore this question and maybe give it a definitve answer and reasoning. Now I do not know if I am an anomaly, but I wore out video tapes of certain movies in my youth. I will attempt to create a list of movies that come to mind as I write this to give you an idea and also see if any of my movies are your movies:
Stand by Me, Breakfast Club, Ferris Bueller's Day Off, Rad, Karate Kid, Star Wars, Empire Strikes Back, Return of the Jedi, Revenge of the Nerds, Summer School, One Crazy Summer, Christmas Story
Now did I watch these movies over a hundred times each because I had nothing better to do? Where they so good that I had so many unanswered questions that I had to see them so manu times? Or is it something kids do at that time in their lives? I contend that there will never be movies that I watch so much as the movies I did when I was in my teens. Now more current movies I have over-indulged in..yes that is true. Trainspotting and Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas have been consistently in my DVD player, but not to the extent of the above movies. I believe everyone has these types of movies they have watched in their teens that hold a special place in their heart. I also think that because of the lack of free time you have in your life as you get older, you will never watch a movie as many times as you did back in the day.
I can vividly recall my morning routine during the summer for a few years with my friend Rob. We would stay up late watching a bunch of movies, sometimes sleep over each other's houses, and then wake up have a bagel and a coffee and watch the sam movies over and over. Stand by Me was watched at my or Rob;s house so many times... We would be like old men that would meet at the diner each morning and talk about nothing. Except we would eat bagels, drink coffee, and recite every line to the movie and laugh just as hard as the first time we saw it. So what are your movies you watched over and over? Will it ever be the same as it was back in the day?
Ireland was knocked out of contention for the 2006 World Cup today and I am bitter. I had so much fun in 2002 when Ireland made a run at it. I will never forget the Irelnad versus Germany game where Ireland scored in the last minute to tie Germany and move on to the next round. As the equalizing goal was scored, I donned my large Irish flag and ran around on my front lawn ar 8 in the morning. The game began at 6 am our time, and I slept til 5 am and then me and my brother woke up to watch the match, and yes i did indulge in some beers. It was a quality time and I am very sad Ireland will not be a part of the upcoming Cup. I still have Poland, Czech Republic, and the US to root for however, but it won't be the same without Ireland.

The Day the Summer Died

Many people think about the beach, vacation, pools, and the hot sun. While all these cross my mind as well, when I think of summer, I think baseball. Today the summer has passed me by once again. The Phillies season ended today with a win, but they missed being in the playoffs by one game. One game out of a 162 game season. .6172839% of a season. I had already bought tickets to the one game playoff that would have been held on Monday versus the Astros and received them via email. I am going to print them out and put them in a frame to be put in my computer room. I want to look at them everyday. I want them to remind me how every little thing you do, or do not do can make a difference. The Phillies played bad baseball in April and May. That came back to haunt them. They may have lost focus, had bad luck, or just did not realize that how you play in the beginning makes all the difference in the end. The tickets will also remind me that there is hope for next year and the many memories of this year. The emergence of Howard and Utley, the 12-1 homestand, the 36 game hitting streak by Rollins, and the many come from behind victories at the end when every game was a must win. So farewell Summer of 2005 and next year I hope to experience Fall Baseball. The tough part now is who to root for in the playoffs. These are the teams I would never root for: Yankees, Braves, Cardinals. I am going to root for a Padres versus White Sox World Series. The picture I added to this post is my actual seat and my actual view of the field at Citizens Bank Park.