We signed up for a Bank of America checking and savings account a couple weeks ago. I think we're gonna like 'em. I had an account at WAMU, but they weren't very customer friendly. They wouldn't make an exception just to get my wife added on my account because she didn't have two "acceptable" forms of ID. Bank of America did. They were so nice there. The lady that set up our account took forever, but at least she was being thorough. And she was super sweet, too. One reason we chose Bank of America is because I hope to be going back and forth to Michigan at least a couple times a year. I needed a bank that had branches all over the nation...or at least almost all of the nation.
We ran into a problem with Chase while were in Georgia. We had to put money in our account, but there were no Chase banks within a 500 mile radius. I called, just to be sure.
So I think we're going to be very well satisfied with Bank of America. So far, we haven't had anything but good customer service, smiling faces, and people who go out of their way to get your business. Bank of America has my business now.
Tuesday, November 28, 2006
Saturday, November 25, 2006
Try Blogsvertise!!
Do you want a great way to make money on the internet? Are you sick of networking until you're blue in the face for merely enough money to buy a daily newspaper? Now there's a better alternative. Go to Blogsvertise!! This is a site that actually pays you to do what you do best...BLOG!! Blogsvertise will assign you a product or service to review for one of their advertisers and you will...you guessed it...BLOG about it. So if a few cents a day isn't enough to sustain your "work at home" lifestyle, give Blogsvertise a shot. It's free to sign up...so what have you got to lose? Don't just blog anymore...Blogsvertise!!
Friday, November 24, 2006
Southern Hospitality...Straight from South Korea
Cast of Characters: (This may come in handy for future blogs, too).
My mother-in-law - she's from South Korea
Diana - my hot, lovely and half-Asian wife
Me - I'm Chad
My mother-in-law is so sweet...almost to a fault.
I got sick Tuesday night on the way home from Santa Ana. By the way..California traffic - B-R-U-T-A-L. Santa Ana is maybe 60 miles away. It took over three hours to get back from there.
Anyways, back to me. I thought it was sinuses, but it turns out that it was the flu. I don't understand how I got sick in this weather, but I did. I told Diana, but I told her not to tell her mom because I knew she would make a fuss over me. I hate when people make a fuss over me...kinda.
But last night she was talking to her mom on the phone and I hear her say, "Chad's been sick all day. He started feeling sick on the way home last night." Then I hear, "Because he didn't want you to make a fuss over him...he knows how you are." So they talk for a couple more minutes and then, in true "mother of Diana" fashion, her mom tells her, "Okay I gotta go. I love you," and then she hung up the phone.
Ten minutes later, there's a knock on the door. Diana's mom walked through the door with a bag full of chicken soup and NyQuil. She even cooked it for me!! The chicken soup...not the NyQuil. I'm not complaining. The soup was good...and the NyQuil was even better. I'm was feeling pretty darn good after a couple of doses straight from the bottle. No sissy cup for me...just give it to me straight. And none of that cherry crap either. I want the "Green Death" flavor.
Mmmmm...chicken soup and NyQuil...it doesn't get much better than that.
My mother-in-law - she's from South Korea
Diana - my hot, lovely and half-Asian wife
Me - I'm Chad
My mother-in-law is so sweet...almost to a fault.
I got sick Tuesday night on the way home from Santa Ana. By the way..California traffic - B-R-U-T-A-L. Santa Ana is maybe 60 miles away. It took over three hours to get back from there.
Anyways, back to me. I thought it was sinuses, but it turns out that it was the flu. I don't understand how I got sick in this weather, but I did. I told Diana, but I told her not to tell her mom because I knew she would make a fuss over me. I hate when people make a fuss over me...kinda.
But last night she was talking to her mom on the phone and I hear her say, "Chad's been sick all day. He started feeling sick on the way home last night." Then I hear, "Because he didn't want you to make a fuss over him...he knows how you are." So they talk for a couple more minutes and then, in true "mother of Diana" fashion, her mom tells her, "Okay I gotta go. I love you," and then she hung up the phone.
Ten minutes later, there's a knock on the door. Diana's mom walked through the door with a bag full of chicken soup and NyQuil. She even cooked it for me!! The chicken soup...not the NyQuil. I'm not complaining. The soup was good...and the NyQuil was even better. I'm was feeling pretty darn good after a couple of doses straight from the bottle. No sissy cup for me...just give it to me straight. And none of that cherry crap either. I want the "Green Death" flavor.
Mmmmm...chicken soup and NyQuil...it doesn't get much better than that.
And His Name Shall Be Thomas...Or Not.
We had a "get together" in May to celebrate the end of a decade of college. Okay..over a decade...but whatever. We had two of our "couple friends" over - Ken & Sunita and Bryan & Julie - our top two "couple friends" at the time. Julie was pregnant. Her original due date was June 6..which means her kid's birthday would be 6/6/06. So we all made fun of her and said that she's carrying Satan's spawn..like Damien. She's got a good sense of humor about it, but she told us that the doctor said her new due date was May 31. All of us always wondered if she was just telling us that so we'd stop with the Lucifer jokes.
But anyways...I could understand how that could annoy her after awhile. But that's not the awkward part. At the time, they were discussing the idea of naming their baby Thomas. It's a good Christian name. It's nothing out of the ordinary...a good, all-American boy name. You got your Thomas Edison, your St. Thomas Aquinas, your Dave Thomas - the founder of Wendy's. Mmmmmmm...Wendy's
Anyways..one thing that they really liked about Thomas is that nobody can really make fun of his name like most kids do. They said they spent a lot of time trying to find a name that nothing rhymed with and that nobody could find anything to make fun of. Such as, oh..say Dennis could be Dennis the Menace. Another friend of mine - I won't name him because he might get mad...but his last name rhymed with "rusty booty." So he went through hell.
But Bryan and Julie took great pride in the fact that nobody could make fun of the name Thomas....until me. After they talked about how great the name Thomas was, I said, "What about Tom - Ass?" Everybody looked at me, but I was the only one laughing. It was a silent moment. Then it turned into a few silent moments. So I tried to relieve the awkwardness and said, "Maybe I'll just call him Tom or Tommy..how's that?" Diana didn't try to save me this time like she usually does when I say things that aren't socially acceptable. I think she rejoiced in my squirming. Julie looked at me and said, "Well, how about we won't let you call him anything...how's that?" They left soon afterwards.
But anyways...I could understand how that could annoy her after awhile. But that's not the awkward part. At the time, they were discussing the idea of naming their baby Thomas. It's a good Christian name. It's nothing out of the ordinary...a good, all-American boy name. You got your Thomas Edison, your St. Thomas Aquinas, your Dave Thomas - the founder of Wendy's. Mmmmmmm...Wendy's
Anyways..one thing that they really liked about Thomas is that nobody can really make fun of his name like most kids do. They said they spent a lot of time trying to find a name that nothing rhymed with and that nobody could find anything to make fun of. Such as, oh..say Dennis could be Dennis the Menace. Another friend of mine - I won't name him because he might get mad...but his last name rhymed with "rusty booty." So he went through hell.
But Bryan and Julie took great pride in the fact that nobody could make fun of the name Thomas....until me. After they talked about how great the name Thomas was, I said, "What about Tom - Ass?" Everybody looked at me, but I was the only one laughing. It was a silent moment. Then it turned into a few silent moments. So I tried to relieve the awkwardness and said, "Maybe I'll just call him Tom or Tommy..how's that?" Diana didn't try to save me this time like she usually does when I say things that aren't socially acceptable. I think she rejoiced in my squirming. Julie looked at me and said, "Well, how about we won't let you call him anything...how's that?" They left soon afterwards.
Hootie & the Blowfish: Not Just a Funny Name Anymore
Hootie and the Blowfish is the greatest band on the face of the earth.
Okay...if you can stop laughing long enough, please continue to read.
I'm completely obsessed with this band. I have been since they came out with Cracked Rear View. I'm not sure what it is...but I am utterly and completely enamored by them. Darius Rucker's voice is one man's voice that I could listen to all day without getting tired of it. There's a couple others, like Eddie Vedder's and Kurt Cobain's, but Darius tops the list.
I'll admit it. When I first started listening to them, it was because of their name. "Hootie and the what-fish?" I said to myself.
And then I saw their video. When their first video played on VH1, I remember liking them for their uniqueness. "Hey, a black guy in an all-white band," I remember thinking. "That's a great concept." I thought that was even more intriguing then their name. But that wasn't the only thing I liked. At the time, Darius seemed a tad bit chubby. Besides John Popper of Blues Traveler, there were not many lead singers of bands who had extra meat on their bones. I liked it...because I was chubby...but I wasn't black. And I'm still not...yet.
But then my fascination with them deepened. I began listening to their lyrics. I don't like to label them as many have - "the band that brought down grunge." There were many bands at the time that were very similar to HBF (that's short for Hootie and the Blowfish for the laymen). But the other bands just weren't as overplayed as HBF was...nor was their name as funny. Come on...Sister Hazel?? That's not very funny. Toad the Wet Sprocket was pretty funny...but it just wasn't as catchy as Hootie. HBF's lyrics were happy, save for the few obligatory ballads that every band is forced to compile on their albums. But unlike the grunge bands that fell to the feet of Hootie, the theme of their ballads didn't revolve around "angst" and being a "social outcast" or "teenage loserdom." Their songs didn't have the message of "Life sucks and I want to kill myself." They were about breakups and parental deaths and growing up. Their lyrics were more mature, focusing on dealing with heartache rather than wallowing in it. Their song, "Hold My Hand" was basically about sticking together through the troubles of life rather than running away or being intent on self-pity.
And so my love grew...exponentially. I went to a Hootie concert - my very first concert ever. My second concert, coincidently, was Lollapalooza - a festival of bands and musicians that personified self-pity. I not only had to beg my friends to go to see HBF, but I also had to buy their tickets. And what's more, we had to drive to Dayton, Ohio to see the concert because the scheduled shows in Michigan were sold out.
The next year, I had to choose a college to go to. I decided to go to the University of South Carolina. Yep, that's right. The hallowed halls of USC - Columbia...the same university that was graced by the mesmerizing voice of Darius himself. It was a religious experience for me. The entire summer prior to my leaving, the only music I listened to was Hootie. My CD player was all Hootie, all the time. Their second album, Fairweather Johnson, had just been released and now I had double the Hootie for my listening pleasures.
HBF helped me grow up. For every situation I was going through, good or bad, there was a Hootie song that helped me get through it. USC didn't work out for me, due to family problems back home. But the spirit of HBF stayed with me.
Soon after coming back, I met the gal that would be my wife...just before their third album - Musical Chairs - was released. There were songs on that album that carried me through feelings of a new love.
One of my biggest praises of HBF is that they don't go around spouting their political views. The closest they come is one line in the song "Drowning" - "Why is the rebel flag still hanging from the statehouse walls?" I hate these bands that think they can use their popularity and position to spout off their irrelevant and uninformed opinions. Very few musicians have my permission to do this. Bono is one of them because he actually gets involved. But enough about Bono...back to Hootie. Out of all the Hootie concerts I've been to (and trust me, it's MANY), I've never heard an "Impeach Bush" or anything political coming out of their mouths. I respect that. I think they're Democrats, but the fact that I don't know for sure impresses me.
And another think I like - they admit that they started playing music so they could get free beer and women. I love honesty, especially when most of the pretentious musicians are like, "Aww man, I just love what music does. I need to spread the message. I couldn't care less about the money." Yeah right. That's why you and everybody that has said that fought Napster tooth and nail. Just say you're doing it for the money..or for the ladies...or whatever. That's more respectable.
Anyway...I'm cutting this off now because I'll probably be doing more Hootie-inspired blogs in the future...the near future. Thanks for reading. Give 'em a listen if you haven't tried 'em out yet. They're amazing.
Okay...if you can stop laughing long enough, please continue to read.
I'm completely obsessed with this band. I have been since they came out with Cracked Rear View. I'm not sure what it is...but I am utterly and completely enamored by them. Darius Rucker's voice is one man's voice that I could listen to all day without getting tired of it. There's a couple others, like Eddie Vedder's and Kurt Cobain's, but Darius tops the list.
I'll admit it. When I first started listening to them, it was because of their name. "Hootie and the what-fish?" I said to myself.
And then I saw their video. When their first video played on VH1, I remember liking them for their uniqueness. "Hey, a black guy in an all-white band," I remember thinking. "That's a great concept." I thought that was even more intriguing then their name. But that wasn't the only thing I liked. At the time, Darius seemed a tad bit chubby. Besides John Popper of Blues Traveler, there were not many lead singers of bands who had extra meat on their bones. I liked it...because I was chubby...but I wasn't black. And I'm still not...yet.
But then my fascination with them deepened. I began listening to their lyrics. I don't like to label them as many have - "the band that brought down grunge." There were many bands at the time that were very similar to HBF (that's short for Hootie and the Blowfish for the laymen). But the other bands just weren't as overplayed as HBF was...nor was their name as funny. Come on...Sister Hazel?? That's not very funny. Toad the Wet Sprocket was pretty funny...but it just wasn't as catchy as Hootie. HBF's lyrics were happy, save for the few obligatory ballads that every band is forced to compile on their albums. But unlike the grunge bands that fell to the feet of Hootie, the theme of their ballads didn't revolve around "angst" and being a "social outcast" or "teenage loserdom." Their songs didn't have the message of "Life sucks and I want to kill myself." They were about breakups and parental deaths and growing up. Their lyrics were more mature, focusing on dealing with heartache rather than wallowing in it. Their song, "Hold My Hand" was basically about sticking together through the troubles of life rather than running away or being intent on self-pity.
And so my love grew...exponentially. I went to a Hootie concert - my very first concert ever. My second concert, coincidently, was Lollapalooza - a festival of bands and musicians that personified self-pity. I not only had to beg my friends to go to see HBF, but I also had to buy their tickets. And what's more, we had to drive to Dayton, Ohio to see the concert because the scheduled shows in Michigan were sold out.
The next year, I had to choose a college to go to. I decided to go to the University of South Carolina. Yep, that's right. The hallowed halls of USC - Columbia...the same university that was graced by the mesmerizing voice of Darius himself. It was a religious experience for me. The entire summer prior to my leaving, the only music I listened to was Hootie. My CD player was all Hootie, all the time. Their second album, Fairweather Johnson, had just been released and now I had double the Hootie for my listening pleasures.
HBF helped me grow up. For every situation I was going through, good or bad, there was a Hootie song that helped me get through it. USC didn't work out for me, due to family problems back home. But the spirit of HBF stayed with me.
Soon after coming back, I met the gal that would be my wife...just before their third album - Musical Chairs - was released. There were songs on that album that carried me through feelings of a new love.
One of my biggest praises of HBF is that they don't go around spouting their political views. The closest they come is one line in the song "Drowning" - "Why is the rebel flag still hanging from the statehouse walls?" I hate these bands that think they can use their popularity and position to spout off their irrelevant and uninformed opinions. Very few musicians have my permission to do this. Bono is one of them because he actually gets involved. But enough about Bono...back to Hootie. Out of all the Hootie concerts I've been to (and trust me, it's MANY), I've never heard an "Impeach Bush" or anything political coming out of their mouths. I respect that. I think they're Democrats, but the fact that I don't know for sure impresses me.
And another think I like - they admit that they started playing music so they could get free beer and women. I love honesty, especially when most of the pretentious musicians are like, "Aww man, I just love what music does. I need to spread the message. I couldn't care less about the money." Yeah right. That's why you and everybody that has said that fought Napster tooth and nail. Just say you're doing it for the money..or for the ladies...or whatever. That's more respectable.
Anyway...I'm cutting this off now because I'll probably be doing more Hootie-inspired blogs in the future...the near future. Thanks for reading. Give 'em a listen if you haven't tried 'em out yet. They're amazing.
Hootie's Wand of Wonder Waves Again
Once again, Hootie and the Blowfish has come through for me. With their music, they helped me through many things in life. Many a night I drove around in my sticker-filled mini van...looking at the stars in the sky and listening to the power in Darius's voice as he sang, "Goodbye." Many a night, I listened as Darius poured his heart into "Let Her Cry" - possibly one of the most beautiful songs ever written. Mr. Rucker's voice has sent many chills up my spine and given me hundreds of cases of goose pimples. (I haven't heard that word in forever!! Are they trying to phase it out?? Is it derogatory towards geese? Just wondering).
We used to go to karaoke bars all the time - me, my wife, and some friends. In 1999, I got up and sang, "Only Wanna Be With You," by...you guessed it...Hootie & the Blowfish. At the completion of the song, to my then girlfriend's surprise, I asked her to come up. I got down on one knee and proposed to her, dedicating the song I had just sung to her. I know...I know. How romantic could it be in front of a bunch of drunken idiots, you're probably asking. Please, try not to swoon into unconsciousness. In my defense, the first time I proposed to her was earlier in the year...at the Grand Canyon...as we watched the sun was setting over the majestic wonder on the Northern Rim...with Hootie's "Only Wanna Be With You" softly playing behind us on the car stereo. That time wasn't official, though. I didn't have a ring.
But now, thanks to a blog that I wrote about them, I have a writing job. And I'm so happy. I actually wrote the blog about them thinking that maybe it would catch one of their "people's" attention and maybe I could meet the band one day. That is my ultimate dream. Then I could die a happy man. But I suppose getting a job from the blog is the next best thing.
I'm not a celebrity worshipper or some nutjob fan. I just have nothing but respect for these guys. They're the "all-American" kinda guys. They have wives, families, and emotions. To me, they're real. They're all about beer, heartache, and having a good time in life. And they don't take themselves too seriously.
Hootie and the Blowfish are not only my favorite band. As silly as it sounds, they are a part of my life. I'm sure there will be more Hootie memories to follow.
So Hootie, here's to you and your funny name. If your people read this...how's about some tickets to the New Year's Eve Las Vegas show??
We used to go to karaoke bars all the time - me, my wife, and some friends. In 1999, I got up and sang, "Only Wanna Be With You," by...you guessed it...Hootie & the Blowfish. At the completion of the song, to my then girlfriend's surprise, I asked her to come up. I got down on one knee and proposed to her, dedicating the song I had just sung to her. I know...I know. How romantic could it be in front of a bunch of drunken idiots, you're probably asking. Please, try not to swoon into unconsciousness. In my defense, the first time I proposed to her was earlier in the year...at the Grand Canyon...as we watched the sun was setting over the majestic wonder on the Northern Rim...with Hootie's "Only Wanna Be With You" softly playing behind us on the car stereo. That time wasn't official, though. I didn't have a ring.
But now, thanks to a blog that I wrote about them, I have a writing job. And I'm so happy. I actually wrote the blog about them thinking that maybe it would catch one of their "people's" attention and maybe I could meet the band one day. That is my ultimate dream. Then I could die a happy man. But I suppose getting a job from the blog is the next best thing.
I'm not a celebrity worshipper or some nutjob fan. I just have nothing but respect for these guys. They're the "all-American" kinda guys. They have wives, families, and emotions. To me, they're real. They're all about beer, heartache, and having a good time in life. And they don't take themselves too seriously.
Hootie and the Blowfish are not only my favorite band. As silly as it sounds, they are a part of my life. I'm sure there will be more Hootie memories to follow.
So Hootie, here's to you and your funny name. If your people read this...how's about some tickets to the New Year's Eve Las Vegas show??
Writing Prompt Exercise: No Dialogue
So sometimes what I like to do is take writing prompts out of my various books and see what I can do with it. Here's one. The prompt was just "write a scene using no dialogue and only body language." Give it a shot, too, if you want. It's pretty fun. I got a few more I'm working on tonight that I'm gonna try to post.
They sat at the table, gazing at the pile of bills that had accumulated for the month. Vic refused to look Liz in the eyes, but she would not even look in his direction. His hand sifted through the pile, searching for evidence of her carefree spending habits. She searched for ATM records from Déjà vu. He gloriously held up a credit card bill - $143 dollars at JC Penney. He held it in his hand and then dangled it inches from her eyes. She moved her head, but the evidence followed it. His accusing smile shone as she frantically began to look for her redemption. A smile slowly crossed her face when she reached for her own damning evidence - $180 ATM withdrawal – Déjà vu. Her wide eyes and sarcastic smile only made him search harder and faster. Alas, another discovery. He shook his head and held another statement. The look of joy on his face gave her a frown. She could only guess what he found this time.
He raised it up above his head and threw it down into her lap, chuckling triumphantly. Don Franco’s - $192. He sat back in the stiff dining room chair and crossed his arms in victory. She continued to search frantically, but found no more papers to accuse him with. Slumping down in her chair in defeat, she looked at him out of the corner of her eye. He continued to stare her down with menacing eyes. She winked at him and reached for his leg. He did not move. She stood up and leaned over to kiss him, but his lips remained rigid. She walked towards the bedroom, unbuttoning her pink JC Penney shirt as she slowly glided towards the bedroom door. She looked back at him before entering and motioned for him to follow her with her newly manicured finger. He smiled. He stood from his chair and quickly followed her. Their monthly ritual continued.
They sat at the table, gazing at the pile of bills that had accumulated for the month. Vic refused to look Liz in the eyes, but she would not even look in his direction. His hand sifted through the pile, searching for evidence of her carefree spending habits. She searched for ATM records from Déjà vu. He gloriously held up a credit card bill - $143 dollars at JC Penney. He held it in his hand and then dangled it inches from her eyes. She moved her head, but the evidence followed it. His accusing smile shone as she frantically began to look for her redemption. A smile slowly crossed her face when she reached for her own damning evidence - $180 ATM withdrawal – Déjà vu. Her wide eyes and sarcastic smile only made him search harder and faster. Alas, another discovery. He shook his head and held another statement. The look of joy on his face gave her a frown. She could only guess what he found this time.
He raised it up above his head and threw it down into her lap, chuckling triumphantly. Don Franco’s - $192. He sat back in the stiff dining room chair and crossed his arms in victory. She continued to search frantically, but found no more papers to accuse him with. Slumping down in her chair in defeat, she looked at him out of the corner of her eye. He continued to stare her down with menacing eyes. She winked at him and reached for his leg. He did not move. She stood up and leaned over to kiss him, but his lips remained rigid. She walked towards the bedroom, unbuttoning her pink JC Penney shirt as she slowly glided towards the bedroom door. She looked back at him before entering and motioned for him to follow her with her newly manicured finger. He smiled. He stood from his chair and quickly followed her. Their monthly ritual continued.
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