“Honey, come out here… quick!” I shouted while opening the door to the house, the fervor of shock engulfing my every act and emotion.

I had pulled into the driveway just minutes before. I was very tired from a long day at work. It was raining lightly, almost sleet like. Exiting the car, I looked down the driveway, normally to see a few leaves or the neighbor’s trashy pine tree debris scattered about. But tonight, it was the image on the driveway that immediately caught my attention.

My initial reaction was disgust. Who the fuck would do that? Spray paint some type of black outline of a death mask on someone else’s property. Must be some sort of gang initiation. Those fuckers always wanting to tag a clean surface with one of their symbols to get noticed, report back to their leader to gain admission into a group of others who have nothing else better to do than worry about their status and their exploits of property defiling.

As I began to sleuth various pieces of the crime, various scenarios consumed my thought process: When did this take place? It had to be in the daylight or early dusk. And before the rain/sleet started so it had time to dry. Which lead me to my next conclusion… no one must have been home at either my house or the neighbors, who are a fence away.

As I entered the house, the rage inside my head increased as I went from room to room looking for my wife. I wanted so bad to find out who did this and when it happened [and why] to our driveway. I found her and told her she needed to come out and see what happened. I didn’t try to explain what had happened because I didn’t really know of a way to explain it. Actually, it was more likely due to the fact that I liked the element of surprise.

Finally entering the back room downstairs, I walked up to her. “You need to come outside to see what happened to the driveway.” Her first response was, “what happened?” I tried to imagine what her reaction would be when she viewed the vandal’s creation.

“Just come out and see… it easier than trying to explain it.”

Coming out of the house in a hurried pace, we made it towards the end of the driveway. Starring at the supposed gang symbol for a few moments, my wife calmly turns to me.

“Um, dear… look up.”

I let out a sigh that was equal parts of embarrassment and relief.

History

In my quest of becoming a creative fictional writer, I toyed with the idea of taking something that happened to me in real life and adding a more dramatic twist to it. This short story was originally submitted to Thrice Fiction, but at the suggestion of Dave2, it was decided that it would be more suited as a post here on this blog.

The photos were originally submitted for week 2 of KevinIL’s Photo Scavenger Hunt contest he held last year. Reusing photos is a good thing, especially when it unleashes one’s creative writing skills.

———————————————————–

Shannon, Marty, Reba and Shannon’s Dad

Back in April of this year [I'm not that far behind], we had a couple of visitors to our fine state of Utah. Shannon, who is more famously known as Bubblewench [Blog, Twitter] and her dad spent a few days in Park City to golf, ski and just hang out. Since Shannon knew my wife and I lived here in Utah, she gave me a heads up and we planned a meet up.

Jumping back to October 2009, I met Shannon at Avitaween. Shannon was nothing but a fun and cool person, not only fixing me some wonderful pasta, but also making me a couple of drinks before the costumed-festivities started. Both my wife and I connected with her and had a blast. So imagine my excitement when we had the chance to meet up with her again – without having to travel [BONUS!]

We met at Market Street Grill, which is a local restaurant that serves great food and drinks. We all ate so well and shared some great wine and awesome company. Shannon’s dad [who's name I cannot recall] was such a nice gentleman and I can see why Shannon is the great person she is.

If you have a chance to meet Shannon, please do. Make every effort to do so. She’s fun and full of energy and just good people. I know I’m looking forward to my next meet up with her [and her dad, too].

To read Shannon’s post [which was posted back in April], go here.

Since We Last Updated

Way back in November of 2008, I updated my progress on how my workout plan was going.

But then something happened. My gym closed in early December 2008. Not a problem. 24 Hour Fitness was offering Bally’s members to work out for free for the rest of the month, which I continued to do. But when it came time to sign up for a regular membership, their payment plan wasn’t something I wanted to do. They required first and last months up front and took the monthly dues from a checking or credit card account [I have some serious issues with gyms in this area] and didn’t have a pay up front plan that worked for me. So as of January 1, 2009, I was without a place to work out.

No problem. I’ll go over to my wife’s sister’s house three days a week. They have a treadmill, elliptical and free weights. But even though they were gracious hosts, after a few visits, it wasn’t what I was looking for.

And so the year ended up being me not working out.

The Food

For the most part of 2009, I kept to my diet, but by the end of August, I reintroduced hamburgers and other messy treats into my weekly intake of carbs. Drinking alcohol was still moderated well, so I had that going for me [except for the occasional party]. But eating what I wanted and not doing any formal exercising, I was back to where I was at the end of September 2008.

My basic stats through Dec 31, 2008

As you can see from above, when I was regularly working out, my stats were showing results and a healthy drop in weight in just a couple of months. My weight today is 185. I gained 13 lbs over the course of a year. Nothing extremely bad, but for me, a sore disappointment.

same as it ever was

The photos that were in my first workout post still reflect what I look like. The little bit of loss and toning that happened came back. I’m sure there is a bit more on my chin since then, but in the end, I’m in the same place I was. Frustrating, but it’s the result of doing pretty much nothing.

From Nothing To Something

Now four days into 2010 and I’ve done nothing, until now. I am making a plan for both diet and exercise, heavier on the exercise side of things. It’s time that I got myself back into shape. I’ve had all I can take of myself feeling tired and out of shape.

Does this mean I’ve joined a gym? Not at this time, but I am open to that. Most of it involves finding one that has multiple payment options, including pre-paid. Until then, I am starting with the basics: walking, stretching and using an exercise ball. In discussing this matter of getting me back into shape with a medical professional, it was suggested that I start with simple exercises before I go full on into running 30 mins a day. Work up to it over the next four weeks, building some stamina and then working in more cardio. I also have something fun I’m going to add in here and will reveal it in a future update [no, it's not Wii Fit Plus, but maybe down the road].

On the diet side of things, soups and salads, veggies for snacks and an increase of water are part of this first 4 weeks. Also, a couple nights a week, some protein in the form of meat or soy [which I am not a fan of, but will try it as was suggested] and minimal starches like rice and potatoes. One positive that I did in 2009 was to start eating smaller portions, so that habit is set. It’s rare that I eat any big meals as I get full pretty quick. When my wife and I go out to eat, we almost always share a meal. So the diet will not be that difficult to stick to.

The Challenge

I went back to my previous posts throughout the year to see if there was anything that I did that tried to kick me back into gear. I found a post by Nilsa where she challenged her readers to some form of exercise. I accepted that challenge, made whatever efforts I did, and then let it go. Not that I did it on purpose, mind you. But it was just something that happened.

So I’m reinvigorating the challenge from Nilsa and am going to make this work. There are other pieces to my life that need some attention, which I will cover in a separate blog post. But for this one, I think getting more energy and starting to get fit again will help the other lacking parts.

As before, my wife is doing her own workout schedule, but wishes for me to not include her in updates. But I’m sure at some point, she’ll allow me to do some sort of update out here. At least a photo showing some progress.

Future Updates

All future updates [yes, there will be future updates... I'm holding my own feet to the fire this time.] will be under the Exercise category. I may title this set of posts going forward and get fancy with a logo.

And here we go….

Crash landed – photo by renagerie

Avitaween is one of the premier annual blogging events [the other one I've been to is TequilaCon] and this was my first time attending.

As you can see from the first photos, my wife and I attended this event as penguins. Think “March Of The Penguins” with alcohol and other invaders.

“I don’t need a fish.. I need a drink” – photo by renagerie

“Beam Me Up, Mindy” – photo by renagerie

The party was a huge success, with Adam doing so much to put it all together. I can’t thank him enough for the great job and massive effort he went through. Also, there were so many cool people there – some of which I hadn’t met before. I’ve previously posted a photo of meeting Hilly for the first time, but I also got to meet Becky – hellohahanarf. Becky and I have been wanting to meet for some time. And we finally did.

Look at how happy we are now that we’ve met.. well, we’ve both had alcohol, too

And of course, I got to meet up with Dave from Blogography again. Always a pleasure to meet up with the King of the PRB.

King.. meet Penguin.

The Best of the Rest

Adam also had a wall of photos of people’s vacation photos with “reported sightings” This is the one I sent in of Reba and I at Rockefeller Center in NYC.

Who knew that the aliens had invaded NYC. Never seen that before

Click here to view the Alien Sighting photo set.

And for those that want to see all photos, here’s the entire Flickr photo stream for Avitaween ’09

Can’t wait for next year.

UPDATE

Always dapper and ready for a photo op in the studio

As Adam pointed out in the comments, there were studio photos that were taken during the Avitaween party. Here’s the link to the entire set of studio photos.

It’s not too often that I share something of a personal nature on my blog. This is one of those times.

My wife manages just about everything financially for us. My entire paycheck goes into her bank account. She pays [just about] all of the bills. When we go most places, it’s her credit card and debit card that gets used to purchase the various goods and services we consume. And to be completely honest, I’m ok with this, with some minor exceptions.

She’s got a proven track record, having been in accounting for over 20 years, knowing how to manage money and all of the financial matters. We’ve paid off several credit cards and my car loan, so I’ve seen her management of this first hand. And we’ve been able to travel and do some things with the house and still manage to have coffee, creamer, milk, juice and oatmeal available for me to fix each morning. All in all, it’s a system that works, with some minor exceptions.

Exceptions

But even the best of operations have their gotchas. And this is where mine come in here.

There’s something to be said for having your own money – without restrictions. Not just spending like a mad man, but without having to check in with the finance manager and just being able to purchase something. This is my exception to the almost perfect system of our financial management.

I have my own credits cards, including one that I still make my own payment – not coming from my day job income. It’s a nice independence to have a card that I can just make a purchase, without consulting my wife before hand.

But there is the issue of making the payment, how much I put on the card, keeping my balance at a reasonable level. So far, making the payment hasn’t been an issue as I’ve been able to do little side jobs here and there, or pull from savings. Up until now this has worked, but I can foresee the day when this flexibility of having my own little financial piece of management will be limited even more.

Since my wife and I have separate bank accounts as well, the issue of managing my own financial part hasn’t come into play, regardless of the bulk of what I make not being 100% available to me. But if it were to go away completely, I could see how that would bother me. I liken it to an older person that’s been driving for years, then being told they can’t drive anymore. Having that independence removed tends to be a difficult adjustment.

Compromises

But there are compromises that we have made so far. One is I now have a debit card that is linked to my wife’s checking account. This has made it possible for me to make various store, food and other purchases without having to pull from my personal accounts. I admit that it’s helped in having some direct access to the money I make that contributes to our household.

Also, with most of my credit cards being paid out of my wife’s checking account, I still have use of them, keeping my purchases [and their amounts] to a manageable level. This helps in knowing that at least I’m financially contributing to not only what I spend, but to our overall debt.

And this also doesn’t discount that my wife and I discuss financial matters on a regular basis. Things such as major purchases are things that we debate, making sure we don’t over extend ourselves and ensuring we are both on the same page.

Bonus

The bonus to all of this is that I’ve become a much better manager of my own finances. Not that I was horrible with my money before, but I do appreciate to know more about being able to better keep track of what I spend and make. Add to that the ability that I’ve had of getting 0% credit cards to do balance transfers to reduce the amount of interest I pay, I feel a bit more liberated in being able to feel like I’ve contributed to our overall financial picture.

In The End

So while I may balk at concerns with my reduction of managing my own finances, I’ve learned to adjust with the few little bits I still have control over. And in the future, I’m sure I will try my best to be open to more changes, just as long as they are not too drastic.

One of my favorite chain restaurants is closing a location, after 20 years in business. T.G.I. Friday’s, via their owner Slaymaker, made the decision to shutter the first Utah location of this popular eating establishment.

Starting in 1989, I’ve been going to this location and enjoying a good meal. As the years progressed, I’ve taken ex-spouses, my daughter, friends, dates and my current spouse to this location. Sure, I’ve visited the other Friday’s locations here in Utah, but this particular location was always a favorite.

One last visit

Hearing of it’s closing brought some sadness. I told my wife that we needed to go pay one last visit this past Saturday [which was their final day in business]. The two of us had been there at least 60 times in the last seven years, obviously a favorite place for us to eat. For myself, I can say I had logged over 300 visits, collecting and redeeming thousands of points that we used mostly for free appetizers – not to mention the many wonderful drinks I’ve enjoyed being served.

“Uh… you need to change this sign”

The closing of this location was brought on by the 2008 demolition of the Cottonwood Mall. This Friday’s location was supposed to remain open throughout the entire project, sticking around for the rebuild, to be completed in 2011. But obviously, the lack of regular mall visitors took it’s toll on those who visited Friday’s. Slaymaker, the owner of the Utah T.G.I. Friday’s locations, made a business decision to close this location.

As we walked into the restaurant, the manager was greeting all of the customers. We told him how long we had been coming to this location, mentioning my twenty-years of visiting and how sad we were to see it close. After all, this was the one of the first Utah restaurants to have a full service ball. [yes, Utah can be a bit behind the times when it comes to alcohol]

We were seated and our waiter took our order [both drinks and food] and we enjoyed a couple drinks [berry mojito for me, top shelf margarita for my wife] and two great meals [I had the pork chops, my wife has a sirloin steak]

As we finished our meals, the manager came up to us and mentioned that the news was there and would we mind being on camera. Of course we agreed.

On The News

With the camera pointed at me, then at my wife, we were asked how long we had been coming to this location, how sad were we that it was closing and then some general follow up questions.

Below is the video clip. This was the Top Story on the 10pm news on Saturday night [March 28, 2009]. It was part of a larger story about how many businesses were affected by the delay during the mall rebuilding project.

Video Courtesy of KSL.com

Click here for a link to the written story: “TGI Friday’s in Hollday closing“

NOTE: To those that read the story before, my last name was misspelled. It has since been corrected in the text story, but in the video clip, it’s still spelled wrong.

15 Seconds of Fame

It was cool to see my wife and I on the news. People talk about their 15 minutes of fame. Well, this was our “15 seconds of fame” [for each of us], but still exciting, none the less.

Psst… the service at the Southtowne location is better than the Foothill location. Just sayin.

As for those who are curious, we will still frequent other Friday’s locations here in the state [they are building a new location this August at another mall], but will always use this location as a barometer for great food, awesome drinks and a memorable atmosphere.