Let's move along

Michael Jackson.

He's dead... I get it.
He changed the face of music... I get it.
Many people are sad he's gone... I get it.

Guess what... he's still dead.
He didn't come back three days later so he's not the savior.
Can we move along now and deal with the issues of people who are still alive?

Recycle

Disney made one movie... and they have been retracing it for years.

See more funny videos and funny pictures at CollegeHumor.

Limbo

Limbo... a state of uncertainty, Dante's First Circle of Hell. Yesterday marked two weeks of living in limbo. I wish I could tell all of you more, but some privacy is needed in this instance. Heck, if I'll tell you about irritable bowels and anti-depressants, you must have figured out by now that I can't say anything. I can confirm it has nothing to do with my health, or the health of anyone close to me. Let the speculation continue. (If you really, really need to know... most of you know how to reach me privately.)

Back to the limbo thing. I'm on the fence whether it is worse knowing or not knowing. These two weeks have featured a plethora of scenarios playing out in my head, most of them not good. That's the way my brain works, so it is a challenge to fight off those negative thoughts. The longer I go on not knowing, the more and more I seem to lose hope for a positive result. The few people who know what is going on have been extremely supportive and keep boosting up my spirits. Of course, my blogger buddies have lent their good karma too, even though they have no idea why. That's what I call friends.

As much as I want this uncertainty to be over, I'd rather have a positive result even if it does mean not knowing for some more time. It's difficult to concentrate on the present when I'm thinking about the future. Life is full of "what if's," but this one is more important to me than even I'm willing to admit to myself. Now I know first hand why Dante made sure limbo was included in hell.

An old soul

Yesterday someone at the office told me that I had an old soul. Since she is slightly older than me (about 10 years?), I was interested what she meant by this and asked her to elaborate. According to her, I have a calmness and maturity about me that outpaces my 40+ years on earth. She went on to say that I was wise beyond my years and had a personality of someone who had seen and done more than others my age.

It was somewhat flattering, and somewhat confusing. I do feel like I've been more "grown up" over the years than other people my age. When you lose your father at 12 years old, you feel like you have to grow up pretty quick. You learn all the things that "men" do on your own without the help of the guiding hand of Dad. I taught myself to shave when it was time, and to tie a windsor knot on my own. All of that was secondary to making sure my brother and I were taking care of Mom. She made sure we got the best education possible, there was a roof over our heads, and food on the table. It was the least we could do to make sure that things around the house ran smoothly, the yard got mowed, the hedges trimmed, all of the little fix-it things got done, and we kept our noses clean and out of trouble. It was a middle class life less one important person.

It took away our innocence, some carefree days of youth, and gave us some maturity at an early age. I've always been more comfortable around people older than me. From those early days, it has always seemed that I had more in common with an older generation than peers my age. Whether it be at work, on the golf course, or anyplace else I generally tend to gravitate toward them. It is probably because I grew up around them, they tend to be safe, and there is none of the awkwardness of trying to fit in among those of the same generation. Not that I don't have people in my life my age, but I feel more secure amongst those who are my senior.

While being perceived as an old soul, I often feel like I haven't grown up enough. I haven't done many of the things other my age have accomplished. No wife, no 2.5 kids, no white picket fence. I readily admit I'm not the most responsible person when it comes to my money, having made mistakes that continue to affect me to this day. There is no nest egg in case something happens, not nearly enough in my retirement 401(k), and a whopping $6.71 in my savings account. With all of these insecurities and flaws, people expect me to be the old soul. They depend on that calmness and maturity that outpaces my 40+ years. It is hard for me to reconcile these two wildly separate places inside me. How can I be an old soul when I don't always feel confident about taking care of myself? How do I capture some of the carefree qualities of youth that I missed out on when I'm expected to be the wise and mature one? I'm not sure I'll ever know.

For Blottie #1

Suzy.... since you don't remember posting this I thought I'd help you out. You can thank me later :)


Jun 21, 2009 (18 hours ago)

(title unknown)

from My Rose Cottage Studio by Suzanne

Cece called tonight. Yes. I think to just make me laugh. The woman's hilarious. And yes, I laughed my ass off.

I'm going to be gone for awhile. I'm working on a painting, but will keep you informed.

XO

For Annie and Megan

Click to Enlarge

Pins and Needles

When is the damn phone going to ring? I was expecting it yesterday, but nothing. Now it's Thursday and I'm still on pins and needles waiting. This is not helping my increasing graying hair or nervous anticipation. Fortunately I've been able to try and keep myself pre-occupied, but it has gotten to the point where that is not working anymore. Concentration has flown right out the window, replaced by constantly checking the phone to make sure I didn't miss a call.

I don't know how much more of this I can take.

Blottie version 3.0

The time has come

to heap some praise,
on a fellow blogger
who makes our days.

She's always there
with a timely comment,
when she's not around
we always lament.

She's a great mom
and a definite bibliophile,
Her spirit is contagious
and makes us smile.

She works really hard
and rarely complains,
Her posts are compelling
and her humor entertains.

She's always genuine
and never is fakin',
She loves her toast
and adores good bacon.

If you haven't guessed yet
let me be more specific,
All she needs is everything
She's really Megarific.

Please join me now
and clap everybody
for the wonderful Megan
She's now my third Blottie.

Do you wanna fork or would you rather just spoon?

Let's say you are out at a restaurant and for dessert you order a slice of Key West Key Lime Pie with a scoop of Vanilla Ice Cream. The waitress brings you one utensil with which to eat both items. Would you prefer having a fork or a spoon? I know what I got and would have rather gotten the other.

See you soon

I won't be around much this week. My health is fine and just family is fine. I have a big personal project that I'm working on... so most of my time will be consumed with it. I probably won't have time to visit your blogs... so keep all your best material until next week so I don't miss it.

Catch y'all sometime soon and keep your fingers crossed for me!

One corner of the world

A few weeks ago fellow blogger Leah started a meme showing her favorite corner of her home. Since I haven't been around much lately it has been a while until I got around to taking her up on her challenge. To be honest, I don't really have a favorite corner at the Abode of Bobness, and sometimes it seems I spend more time at work than I do at the Abode. So, here's my favorite corner of my office space.

1. This is pretty cool. One of the people we do business with is from China, and he brought back this collector package of plush toys of all the mascots from the 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing. The writing is in Chinese, so I can't really tell you their names. Suffice it to say, it gets people's attention.

2. You can't really see them behind the grease board, but those are my collection caps from all of the places I've worked over the past years. There's one from Colorado College, a Minuteman from UMass, a Wildcat from UNH, a Rhode Island Ram, and a current Spartan from San Jose State.

3. My grease board. Even though I'm a bit of a computer geek, I still use the grease board to keep my "to do" list. There's always something more rewarding about physically erasing completed tasks than simply checking it off an Outlook task bar.

4. Again a little hard to see, but that's my Bob The Builder construction hat. Nope, not life size but still cute.

5. That's a game ball that was presented to me by the UMass Men's Basketball team after their First Round NIT home win in 2007 vs. Alabama. With only a few days to prepare, my staff and I prepared the building for a nationally televised ESPN game. It was a dramatic overtime win and one of the most exciting games I've ever seen in person.

6. This is a medal from our Spartan Triathalon in April. No, I didn't compete, but jumped in and volunteered to handle all of the food preparation and service for the athletes. They tired me out just watching them swim, cycle, and run.

7. That's my "BOB" volunteer badge and Obama coffee cup from last November's presidential campaign.

8. A certificate presented to me by the U.S. Olympic Committee for the work and assistance they were given during their month of athlete processing and staging prior to the Beijing Olympics. The men's volleyball team practiced for three days before leaving for China and they brought home the Gold. Other teams using the facility were Rowing and Wrestling.

9. A beautiful kaleidoscope presented by the Inauguration Committee for all of the work done during the Inauguration of Ann Weaver Hart as President at the University of New Hampshire.

10. A thank you note from Head Coach Travis Ford while he was at UMass. I came in on a Friday night to turn on and operate the video scoreboards during an on-campus visit by a potential recruit for the basketball team. It was a last minute request and was greatly appreciated by the basketball staff.

11. Assorted cups, coffee mugs, logo golf balls and other knick knacks I've collected along the way.

12. Finally, a few photos of friends and co-workers from throughout the years. Some really good times and really good people.

That's it... one corner of the World of Bobness.

National Donut Day

The first Friday of June is National Donut Day. So what is your favorite way to celebrate the day? Mine are:










1. Chocolate Glazed












2. Coconut











3. Blueberry Glazed












4. Butternut













5. Maple Glazed

It's days like this that I really, really miss Dunkin' Donuts.

I'm around

I'm around but have nothing to say. My life is utterly devoid of anything worthy of writing about. I am very boring right now.

A New Day...

Time for a "Bobism."