TV Stand Shopping (update)

Amanda and I have to give props to my mom for suggesting shopping @ J.C. Penny's for the television stand.  We finally found one that met all of our parameters including price.  That was way to complicated.

My Niners are terrible... 1-5, that makes me so sad.  I looked forward to being a season ticket holder, I am still die hard, I am still going to have 100% attendance, but I am not really excited anymore.  I hope they can bring me back with a strong conference schedule.  We have Cal State Fullerton, @ Southern Illinois, @ Mississippi State.... its going to be a long year.

Things I am thankful for (but probably shouldn't be)

A reoccuring theme in my blog is ripping crap off of Allison's blog, changing the words, and submitting them as my own.  I always try to give credit where credit is due.  I thought hers was awesome, my should be mediocre.  

... and I quote.

Okay, I could do a schmaltzy post about my extreme gratefulness for my family and friends but I don't want to. Just know that I am super thankful for my wonderful family and my awesome friends. But there are some things I'm thankful for that should probably be shared.

1. A girl working in my office.  I am a pretty girly dude, this trait is intensified when working in the automotive industry.  I am glad I can talk about my disdain for people wearing khakis and tennis shoes, mismatched belts and shoes, and my hatred for our work uniforms and the lack of professionalism they communicate.

2. Soft shell jackets.  They are a bit warmer than fleece jackets, not as hot as full coats.  They are water resistant, they block the wind, they are the utility infielder of jackets and the ONLY winter wear you need in Charlotte.

3. MINI Coopers.  It is dumb, isn't that the point of this post, but I love these little cars.  I really enjoy the community I have been surrounded with in two towns and I have a lot of fun commuting to work, who does that?

4. Chucks... f-n-cool. 'nuff said.

5.  The $5, $7.50, & $10 DVD racks at Target and Walmart.  I think about 75% of our movies come from there, and I love some movies!!!

"... turkey lurkey loo and turkey lurkey lickle, I wish turkey only cost a nickel..."

TV Stand Shopping

I never thought finding a piece of furniture would be so damn difficult.  I used to make fun of people who would leave a room empty for years waiting for the "right" piece.  To me I always thought it was just something you went and got when the time was right.  I was clearly misguided.

I remember in our big house on the prairie growing up we always had the formal living room empty.  As long as we lived there, we never had furniture in the room except for the console television that was replaced by a 21 inch Sony Triniton.  Keep in mind, in those days, that TV was the STUFF!  I remember asking mom why we didn't have furniture and I only remember walking away wondering what the right furniture for that room was.

Fast forward to today, I am looking for a television stand.  I walked to Target, I found one I liked, I started loading it into the cart.  Then some three-little-bears-syndrome hit my like a truck.  The stand was not wide or deep enough for me, I want something deep and sturdy, and since the TV is large, I don't want the sides to hang off, in fact, I would like to have 3-6 inches off each side so there can be some margin of error if someone bumps it.  

Then there is the color, it has to be black because our coffee and end tables are, and not that I feel married to them, they are cheap IKEA numbers but I don't want to have to replace them anytime soon.  I don't want shiny black, I want that wood-stained-black look.  

Now the shape, it has to be squared off with very clean lines.  I do not want fancy crowns or arches, our living room tables are very simple and I would love to the TV stand to blend in with them.  Furthermore, I do not want brass or oil rubbed hardware, stainless steel or brushed nickel only.  

Height, oh the height.  The matching one at IKEA is only 13 inches tall.  That is practically sitting on the floor (where the TV is now for free) and too low with animals and kids in the future.  I want it to be a minimum of 22 inches tall (coffee table height) but I would prefer even a touch taller than that.  The reason is that I want to sit in my chair with my feet up and not have to look over my toes or the laptop monitor to see the TV.  It should be above both obstacles when I am enjoying Palladia, a music channel I just discovered and am watching John Mayer in HD perform.  That guy is always on the tube.  

Okay, so, I guess I now have complete empathy for the crazy "perfect piece of furniture" people. The kicker has got to be that we do not want to spend a lot of money on it... ha, I found one Broyhill model that is a thousand bucks... that will NOT be coming home with me.  I should dent the crap out of the floor model and offer them a hundred bucks.  There a few on Target's website that I love but I think I can find them cheaper, not 400 bucks.  Someday, someday, I will find the perfect value packed TV stand.

I need to get that catalogue I left at the Malady's house at Halloween... see you Thursday!

Does anyone know when the IKEA opens here?

I love irrelevant statements at the bottom of my blog posts

Amanda and I are going to try to get NCDL's tomorrow

We have to register her car too.

Auto Show 2008

I used this title before, that was to cover the Chicago show... this is Charlotte.  I got to be a technical representative this year for MINI at the Charlotte show.  This was a neat experience I stumbled into with a Cooper club I just joined.  I got to talk to a ton of people about MINIs which I loved.  I ran into Eli and Colleen as well as Russ and his wife.  The most disappointing part of the entire day were the cars.  There was nothing new there, a few concepts from Ford, but who cares about Fords?  

Top 5 recent vehicles there:

5. Mazda6

4. Volkswagen CC

3. Jaguar XF

2. Pontiac G8

1.  MINI Cooper Clubman 

Worst in Show:

5. Hummer H3T (who needs a $40k mid sized truck?)

4. Toyota (the entire lineup has less personality than Suzuki)

3. Subaru Impreza WRX (edgy becomes dull)

2. Honda Accord (U-L-G-Y you ain't got no alibi)

1. Volkswagen Routan (the audacity of hope applied to Chrysler... really? A $43k Grand Caravan?)

I thought this was adorable... if I got promoted to Santa, I would "right size*" the reindeer team to a fleet of high power, great handling, and fuel efficient MINIs.

*right size is the corporate term for down sizing.

Sad News: ABC has decided to cancel Pushing Daisies... this show is so underrated. I feel sorry for all those who missed out.

The Steelers won!!! Too bad my Charlotte 49ers suck this year... oh well.

We have cable and internet, life is good. I dig it.

I do not have to go to Atlanta for a long while, I found out I am done going there effective two weeks ago

The Movie of Jon's Life IV

My "girls" from high school and beyond will see a lot of screen time.

Ashley: Teresa Lisbon

Dhara: Gwyneth Paltrow

Emily: Daniele Fishel

 

Neighbors

Just to chronicle the new house... we had our first neighbor visit today.  We were visited by Renee and her daughter Madeline.  They dropped off some brownies and we enjoyed them... immediately. They, with the husband/dad, are a very cute family from Michigan who moved in two weeks before we did.  

  

Tomorrow the plumber is coming to fix the dishwasher, the cabinet people are coming to fix... you guess it, the cabinet.  Then I am hopping on a charter bus and heading to Boone.  I am going to watch my Charlotte 49ers play the Appalachain State Mountaineers.  

The Movie of Jon's Life III

Uncle Rege: Sean Connery

Aunt Barb: Florence Henderson

Aunt Annie: Janine Turner 

mom would say before she let herself go

Paula: a special guest appearance by 

Sarah Palin

p.s. The Obama's new dog is going to be a bichon frisse named Whirlpool.

The Movie of Jon's Life II

Allison: Alyson Hannigan

David: Steve Carell

shave the head, it is really all about comedic timing

Andy: Mike Myers

Re Re: Shirley MacLaine

The Movie of Jon's Life

I gave this idea to Allison to post, I am going to try it myself.  I think it would be fun to cast a movie of my life, who plays who etc.  Please do not be offended if you do not like the person picked to play you.  There may not be a correlation in their look but maybe I just thought they could capture you essence.  If you are not included, it isn't that I have written you out of my life, it is just that I could not think of anyone to play you.  I would LOVE to hear your suggestions on me, you, or anyone else... please give feedback and make this fun.

Jon: Jonah Hill

seriously, if I grew out my hair... seriously!

 Amanda: Anne Hathaway

girl next door hot, please meet girl next door hot, it's the smile

Mom: Kathy Bates

the look is kinda close, but the attitude is there.

Dad: William H. Macy

dye the 'stache and color the hair.. I can almost see it

When I continue, I will case Andy, Allison, David, and ReRe.... bet you cannot wait til the next post. :-)

I

I still have a lot to do with the house, but it is coming along.  We had our first guests over, Mom, ReRe, and Andy came over to see the place.  They encouraged me to hook up the TV, awesome!

I completely ripped this from Allison tonight.

I am glad that tomorrow is my last day off work, I don't like spending all day in the house by myself, I miss work sometimes.

I worry about loosing my job, especially since we just bought a house and bought appliances, it just seems like now is the time that would happen.

I have a lot to be thankful for-- a superb family, a wonderful wife, great friends.

I miss my high school friends, I just don't see them or talk to them enough.  They were rare birds that understand me, really know me.  

I fear being useless or unwanted.

I feel a little drained right now.

I hear the refrigerator running... no I will not try to go catch it.

I smell the new carpet smell

I crave beer tonight, I could use one.

I cry less often than I used to, I think that is good most of the time, I miss it though.

I usually get to work before my shift starts, I try not to be Mr. Five Minutes like I used to.

I search for cheap lawn equipment on craigslist.

I wonder what my true calling is.

I regret a ton of things... I could not list them all here.  I keep a list in my head of every decision I have ever made, I eventually revisit all of them in my spare time.  I try not to spend too much time alone for that reason

I love the way I felt when I lost 45 lbs... I want to go back there sometime soon.

I care about what other people think way too much.  

I always want to be everything to everyone.

I worry that my fate is predetermined.

 
I am not a fan repeating myself.  

I remember spending endless hours with Dhara and Ashley in the bed of my pickup, staying in Dhara's driveway til 2am just talking about nothing.  Those were some of the happiest times of my life.

I believe in earning your keep... I hate when people complain about things that happen to them but never admit when they happened because of them.  I am not a millionaire because I have not made decisions and done the things necessary to get there.

I sing Sister Hazel songs while I am previewing cars at auction.  "Its hard to say what it is I see in you, wonder if I will even bid on you."

I don't always put in enough effort at being a good husband.

 
I write in my planner all the time, I never look at it again, but it creates a date association in my head so I know what I have to do.

I win rarely, I am built for comfort not for speed.

I lose my mind when I use the wrong word while talking, I become Ted Mosby, Architect when other people do it too, I love to correct them.

I listen NPR all the time, I used to hate it when I would get picked up from Jr. High and my mom would have on Talk Of The Nation.  Now it is one of my favorite shows.

I don't understand women.

I can usually be found at work or on the computer.

I need to work on my patience with others and my weight.

I forget everything all the time.  I should have put that on the "I need to work on" lead but I forgot to.

I am happy in these little moments when I am not thinking about a lot of stuff, sometimes it is when I just wake up, sometimes it is that moment before falling asleep.  Sometimes it is right after I kiss Amanda on the head, sometimes it is while I am driving up I77 in WINI.  I just try to hold on to those little smiling moments as long as I can.

insert cricket noises here...

An ere calm has beset me, a first in a while. I am not longer pensive about the campaign, I am no longer fretting about closing costs, down payments, and appliance shopping. We seem to have all of that squared away. I am not concerned about moving day, I think we have the trucks and the help required for such a job. I am only slightly worried about not being worried... the scariest thing in the world is not knowing what you are scared of*. Where will that big shoe drop?





*please note that for the last 8 years, the Rovean Republican Religious Right (my english teachers would be so proud of that alliteration) has told Americans what to fear, so there was little wonder about what to be scared of... mostly it was Muslims, homosexuals, non-religious types, and minorities. I woke up this morning scared of none of those things, so I guess I should worry about what flat screen to pick out on Monday!!!

Election

I have no idea what to type here. I know there have been a thousand posts per minute about the results of this campaign, I do not need to add my commentary to the world wide web. I will merely sum it up for me with some bullet points below.

• Winning is just the beginning. It is a luxury to have the other party in power, it gives you justification to piss and moan. When it is your guy, he as your surrogate, you are responsible and accountable for the promises made.
• I am so proud of North Carolina, who could have guessed that this ruby red stalwart would have been this close. Even if they eventually call if for McCain, I am impressed that the Tarheel State is last to be called and was this competitive.
• I really respect John McCain's concession speech, if he had run his campaign with that kind of poise and grace, he may never have had to deliver that speech.
• I pledge to remove the Obama/Biden after the first 100 days in office. Nothing on the road would piss me off more than a Ford Explorer with a W 04 sticker on the back. I would yell "quit gloating, he is horrible." I don't want to be that guy.
• I hope that Barack Obama's election ends the race victimization feeling within the African American community. I pray that children are inspired and encouraged by what they see. I hope that he acts as a role model to all children. With Clinton's womanizing, W's drinking, drugs, and unprovoked attacks of sovereign nations, kids have not really been able to look to the President as a role model.
• I am glad I got to see the President speak the night before he was elected into office.

PLEASE

VOTE TODAY!

Speeches: Motivate & Influence

Power is truely the ability to influence and motivate other people. I witnessed power tonight that I have never felt in my life.

Tonight, with my gorgeous wife and best friend, I watched the man who COULD (and God willing WILL) be our next President, Barack Obama, speak at my alma mater.

This is easily the biggest thing to ever happen at the University of North Carolina at Charlotte. I know we have made the Final Four, I know we have won conference championships, I know we have hosted world leaders and Presidents before, but this, this was really special.

The three of us met at 4:30... waited in line at Verizon Wireless Amplitheatre to catch the busses to get over to Campus. We boarded busses at 5:45 and made our way over. At 6:15 we made it to the recreation fields where the event was set up. After two periods of rain and phone calls to Andy to track Obama's progress through Charlotte, the motorcade arrived. Like a rock star he wasted little time taking the stage and lighting it up.

Barack's grandmother died today, he talked a bit about her. He really touched me with sincere pain as he rememberd the way she has affected his life. I wish she would be alive if he could have taken the oath of office. The speech touched us all. Amanda and I were both really excited the the good parents of the world brought their kids to witness this history, brave the rain, and give them a real civics lesson.

The rally served its purpose, I am going to find a way to volunteer and canvas for Barack tomorrow. If you need a ride to the polls, call me, if you need some info, I will find it for you.

Halloween Costume

So I went as Sara, not Palin, Smith for Halloween... how'd I do?