An Unexpected Surprise

When I got to Jen and Will's I had gotten a direct message on twitter from a follower of mine asking if it was cool if he friended me on Facebook. He started following me a few months back and we chatted here and there so I started following him back. I checked out his profile on twitter and thought to myself he's cute and has these beautiful blue eyes.

I responded to his request with "of course.. if we were local friends we'd be hanging out all the time" as he's a geek just like me. So as soon as he friended me I accepted and we started chatting via twitter DM. I checked out his profile on Facebook and noticed a few things that lead me to believe that he was gay. I had no idea before this time as he never really mentions much in his twitter feed.

About an hour into our conversation and three mistaken tweets I gave him my phone number and he gave me his and we started texting. We texted back and forth the entire D&D run and when I went home at 11pm we continued to text until around 12:30am. We texted for a total of 7 1/2 hours... it was pretty awesome.

His name is Erik and he lives in Portland Oregon. I don't know where this is going, as of right now we are getting to know each other better and from the sound of it we are very much alike in our geekiness. All I know is that he makes me happy and I look forward to seeing where this adventure takes us.

Lunch with a Friend & D&D&D

Got up early today.. have to drive back to my brothers and finish getting the rest of my stuff. No moving today. Once I packed up the car I headed to LA to meet up with a buddy of mine who was visiting from Chicago. He's a Neurologist looking for residency and was applying to places here in LA.

We meet on the set of The Guild's Game On music video and became fast friends and that friendship has grown because of Facebook. We hadn't actually seen each other in almost four years.

So I picked him up and we headed to The Grove for lunch. He wanted to try out this fancy burger place called Umami Burgers. I had never had them before but they were very good. Some of the best beef I have eaten in a hamburger.

After lunch we wandered around The Grove, walked through stores, talking about our lives and I learned alot about the medical system. It was great spending some time with him. I don't know when I'll see him again as he's residency will be starting in July and the next four years of his life will be nothing but that. Thanks Andrew for taking some time out of your busy schedule to hang out with me. Good luck with your residency and I can't wait to hang out again when you're back in town.

Once I dropped off Andrew I headed home just for a few minutes before walking over to Will and Jen's for this years first D&D game. We are starting a new campaign and this one is a bit different because we are drinking as well. We even added a drinking game so when certain characters do certain things we all drink.

There was a lot of exposition in the first few hours and not a lot of action going on.. and also not a lot of drinking. But man as soon as we started to fight the chaos began. I was extremely tipsy as were many fellow players. Towards the end of the night it was crazy. Dallas our DM had quite a bit to drink and everyone was becoming louder and louder. Finally at 11pm I called it a night thought they played on for another few hours.

Moving In - Day 2

Got up early and packed up everything at my brother's house. I was borrowing my sister-in-laws Ford Flex as it's about three times bigger then my little Fiesta so I figured I'd be able to make fewer trips. I left my computer and bed at my brothers as I intended to go back for one last night.

I put a call out to my friends for help and like before my buddy Doug volunteered to give me a hand. So I picked him up and we were off to my storage. We loaded up the Flex with nothing but boxes. We filled every corner of that car. We got back to my place and my landlord was in my apartment fixing my toilets (I guess they were leaking).

So Doug and I went up and down and up and down those stairs many many times. We headed back for another load. Once we were done bringing that load in I thought we were both going to keel over. We were exhausted. I knew then this wasn't going to be an easy move.

Doug was done, he couldn't continue but after an hour break I went back solo for one more load and by the end I was wiped. I don't recall being that tired in a long time.

Doug texted me later that day and said that his step counter that he had on him while we moved said that he did 24 flights of stairs.. and since I did one more trip,  I'm thinking I climbed about 36 flights of stairs today.

For the evening I got to hang out with my buddy Will. We walked to Pitfire Grill to grab some dinner. Afterwards we went back to his place were he offered me a beer. In the past I have declined as I will never drink and drive.. not even just a sip. But then it him me.. I can drink all I want as I only live a block away and can stumble home if needed. So we enjoyed a beer while playing Injustice.

Afterwards Will loaned me a pad and sleeping bag as I decided that I was not going to drive back to my brothers tonight and instead just go tomorrow and picked up my computer and air mattress. I wish I would have just brought everything this morning like I planned but oh well..

I crashed on the floor of my master bedroom with nothing but a thin pad, some pillows and a sleeping bag.. a perfect 1st night in my new apartment :)

Happy Birthday Mr. Tolkien

I want to acknowledge J.R.R. Tolkien's Birthday today. He was born 122 years ago on January 3rd 1892 and would go on to create one of the most amazing fantasy worlds I've ever had the pleasure of visiting. I read the Hobbit with I was in school and instantly fell in love with Middle Earth. I saw the cartoons when I was younger and even attempted to read Lord of the Rings.

Not until the movies did my love expand, not only did I love what Peter Jackson did with the story but I also got the audio books for The Hobbit, Lord of the Rings and The Silmarillion and have listened to them to many times to count. I am now exploring other parts of Middle Earth with the Histories of Middle Earth, Unfinished Tales and anything else I can get my hands on. 

My love of science fiction came from Star Wars but my love of fantasy came from this man, who wrote about this little people called Hobbits, who live in hole in the ground.

Thank you Mr Tolkien for ever changing my life with your masterful works. Happy Birthday Professor.

"Get Fit" Week 22

I knew this wasn't going to be a good week. Being at my brothers and in the middle of looking for an apartment and such I haven't eaten that great or worked out at all. And the scale doesn't lie. If you remember I was at 196.5 lbs.. been that weight for quite a few weeks but today I jumped on the scale and was up to 198, yeah I gained a pound and a half.

It wasn't a shock and I can't really get upset as my life has kind of been topsy tuvy for some time. I'm hoping once I'm all moved in and can get back into my routine I can start losing weight again. I mean I have a park right across the street from me.. no excuses this time.

Moving In - Day 1

Well not really a full move in day but I got started...

After signing the lease I headed to my storage unit and made my first of what I'm sure will be many trips from storage to my new apartment. My little Fiesta is alot bigger on the inside and I managed to bring in a bunch of stuff on my first trip.

After the one load I headed back to my brothers for the night. Tomorrow the real moving begins

Signing the Lease & Moving In

So I signed my one year lease for my new apartment today. Got up early and headed to Bank of America to get a cashier's check and then drove to my new apartment. I got there a bit early so I walked around and tried to figure out where I would park a moving truck. The manager soon arrived and five minutes later I had signed the lease, gave him the check and he showed me my mail box and my two parking spaces (tandem). The manager was actually funny. He's an older gentleman but he said if I have any problems and they are emergencies he'll take care of them right away but if they are not emergencies then he'll probably procrastinate on getting it done... at least he's honest.

He left the place and I walked around and took photos as well as a video that I posted on Facebook but you can watch here.

I then went up to my storage unit which is about 25 miles away and loaded up my little Ford Fiesta as much as I could and took the a load back to my place. I'm extremely happy that my apartment is on the second floor in the back of the building but that doesn't bode well for moving things in. That one "light" load of stuff I moved almost killed me. My apartment  might be on the second floor but it's actually the third as the parking is under the apartment and really the first floor... so lots of stairs.

Moving stuff into this place is going to be rough but I have decided to just take my time. Yes I want everything done sooner then later but I have my storage units paid until February 10th so there really is no rush to get everything out.

Can't wait until it's done and everything is unpacked and up. I'll post another video when my place is all set up and looking great.

Got The Apartment and Rose Bowl Party

So I was going to do a year end review for 2013 but it hasn't been the best of year for me. I'd rather just put all that behind me and start fresh and new for 2014.

And what a great way to start 2014... While I was blogging this morning I got a call from the manager of the apartment that I looked at yesterday and he had fantastic news.. my credit check, checked out and I got the apartment... woohoo. I was going to sign the lease today, but like last time I am still out of checks and my storage place is closed today so I can't get to my other checks. And like last time I was going to get a cashiers check but the banks are closed as well today. So we made an appointment tomorrow at noon to sign the lease and officially get my new apartment.

You can read more details about the place in my previous blog post HERE

Today I headed over to my friend Adam and Katie's place. They were having a Rose Bowl football party. Now I'm a fan of football but I've never liked collage ball, but I was going more to see and hang with a bunch of friends.

Adam is a Stanford alum so his place was decked out in Stanford stuff... they even had this great shrine devoted to Stanford and the Rose Bowl.

I got to meet a few new people, which is always fun as well as hanging with some of my best buddies. The game was fun to watch with a group of people, as well as Adam who was on the edge of his seat most of the time. Unfortunately Stanford lost but it was a really good and close game.

I got to enjoy some home made pretzels from my friend Andrew as well as some tasty bacon bowls (which are bowls literally made out of bacon).

Got back to my brothers in the evening and hung out before calling it night.. tomorrow I go and sign my lease to my new apartment.. can't wait.

New Year's Eve

After checking out the apartment my friend Jes texted me and asked if I wanted to have lunch and hang out. I went over to her place and we walked to a place called EAT. I had never been there before but it was a nice place. She then took me to the local comic book store (which will be my comic book store if I get this apartment). The place was nice and the store owner seemed to be cool. Afterwards we went back to her place and we talked about Frozen and watched the scene were Elsa sings Let it Go. We watched it a few times :) This got me thinking about the sound track so I went online to itunes and saw that it was on sale for only $6.99.. I had to buy it.

I said goodbye to Jes around 3:30pm and headed over to Roberts to celebrate New Year's Eve. I got to his place around 4pm to find that Tamar already arrived. The three of us planned to watch some movies, play some games and bring in the New Year together.

We sat around chatting for a bit before we decided to go grab a bit to eat at the local Taco Bell.

Once we got back we were going to watch one of my screeners and of course it was Frozen. This would be my third time watching it, Tamar's second and the main reason we were watching it, it was Robert's first time. Robert loved it as I knew he would, our taste in movies are pretty similar.

After the movie we played a new board game that I had gotten Robert for Christmas "Ticket to Ride". If you haven't played this game it's a ton of fun. This was Robert and Tamar's first time playing it.

We were all a bit peckish so we walked to a local Yum Yum Donuts for a snack. When we got back to Roberts place we jumped onto a Google Hangout with a bunch of friends. We chatted until about 11:45pm before getting offline and turning on the TV to watch the ball drop. We counted down from 10, said Happy New Years and then called it a night. Tamar headed home and I crashed at Robert's.

It was a pretty awesome way to end 2013. Saw an apartment that I love and hopefully will get, got to spend some time with some amazing friends and had a nice simply New Years Eve celebration.. just what I was hoping for.

Possible Apartment

Had an appointment to see an apartment today at noon. This one looks perfect on paper but will see what it actually looks like inside.

I left my house at 10:45am and managed to get to the apartment at 11:57am. When I got to the front door the manager was there, greeted me and took me up to the apartment. First plus is that it is an upper unit and it's also in the back of the building. It's a small complex, there are only 7 units. What's great about the apartment is that there is only one joined wall and it's in the guest bedroom. Of course there is someone below me but that's it.. it's very secluded in the corner of the building.

I walked in and noticed that the living/dining room was fairly large and there was a fireplace as well. The kitchen was small but usable. The appliances are old but as long as they work I don't really care what they look like. There is a dishwasher, which is also a plus.

Both bedrooms were very large. The master bedroom has an en suite bathroom and a walk in closet. The guest bedroom is also just as large as the master with a wall closet that runs the width of the room. The second bathroom is just outside the guest bedroom and is in good shape.

It has central air, lots of light and is across the street from a park. So many pluses and honestly there were no negative. I mean it has carpet and I would have preferred hardwood or faux wood but I understand why it's carpet as it's reduces sound for the downstairs neighbor. And it's a bit of an older place.. but again it looks good.

I mentioned that the price is $1495 and the manager said.. well it's actually $1550 but since you saw the ad at the lower price the owners are going to honor that price... woohoo.

Oh and this place as two parking spaces for this apartment and they are included in the rental price :)

I had seen enough.. I wanted it. I started to fill out an application when another couple came in. They looked around and asked questions that I never thought to ask. After they were done they asked if there was another apartment in this building available since there seemed to be someone filling out an app (me). He said no but she jokenly said.. well I'll take an app just in case things don't work out. I looked up from the app and said.. yeah that's not gonna happen. Everyone laughed and they left the apartment. I finished the app, paid the $30 for the credit check and said I would be able to move in tomorrow (Jan 1st). He said he would expedite the application and let me know as soon as possible.. so now I wait.

I don't want to get my hopes up but I really want this place.. it's in the neighborhood that I want and it's better then the first place that I got a few weeks ago

Uncle Handy, Josh, Ringers & Frozen Again

Today I got up and noticed that CVS twitter account was following me. They also tweeted me that "@Geekyfanboy We take these matters seriously. Please DM us your contact information so that the customer relations team can get in touch." So I DM'd them my email address.. will see what happens next.

This morning I went back into super handy uncle mood and built Kenobi his glider and Molly her tricycle. Both were no where near as hard as the trampoline but it's fun seeing their faces when they woke up and saw their new "toys".

Didn't do any apartment searching today.. instead decided to take a break and head out to Rancho to hang out with my buddy Josh.

When I got to Josh's he had a Christmas gift waiting for me. He got me a really cool Harry Potter cookbook as well as a Lord of the Rings documentary that I have wanted for a few years now called Ringers: Lord of the Fans

Of course we had to watch Ringers. Here's a quick synopsis: 'Ringers: Lord of the Fans' is a feature-length documentary that explores how "The Lord of the Rings" has influenced Western popular culture over the past 50 years.

I enjoyed this immensely but then again I knew I would. This documentary was made for fans just like me. I thought it was informative and it even taught me a few things I didn't know about Tolkien and the films.

Afterwards Josh showed me all the various Tolkien book he had. Lots of versions of Lord of the Rings and few none Middle Earth books from Tolkien... awesome stuff.

We then headed out to lunch and went to Islands to enjoy some burgers and cheddar fries.

When we got back Josh, Justin (Josh's brother) and I chatted for a bit and then Josh and I watched my screener of Frozen. This is my second time and Josh's second time as well which surprised me as he knew every word to the songs. And I have to admit something... I commented in my blog that I didn't think the music was as memorable as Tangled.. how wrong I was.  I don't know what I was thinking with my first viewing. This time around I found the music so moving, enchanting and very catchy. Once again I was drawn to my animated boyfriend Krisoff. I can watch this movie over and over and never get bored.

After the movie we went out to dinner at a local Mexican restaurant before calling it a night and I headed back to my brother's place. Thanks for a great day Josh.

CVS Scare, Apartment Hunt & Lunch with a Friend

Woke up at my friend Robert's place today. I crashed here last night as I'm continuing my apartment search and he's lives a bit closer to North Hollywood then my brother.

So I got up and Robert had made some tasty breakfast. Afterwards we played some Injustice for a few hours before I had to head out.

Before I started the apartment search I had to deal with an issue with CVS. A few weeks ago I got a prescription filled and a few days ago I went to take a pill and noticed that the pills looked different. This isn't unusual as the pharmacy has changed manufacturers in the past but when they had they would tell me, it would also be written on the prescription slip and the description on the pill bottle would reflect that. Well none of that was true in this case. The description was what my old pills looked like so I didn't take any of them and had to return to the CVS that filled the prescription, so that meant driving back up to Santa Clarita.

I got to CVS and took the pills in and explained that I wanted to double check before taking them. The assistant took them over to the pharmacist and she looked at the pills, looked at the bottle, looked at the pills and then proceeded to go to every assistant in the office. She then went over to the counter and poured out the pills and replaced them with other pills. She walked over to me and in a kind of panic asked if I had taken any of the pills. I assured her that I did not. I looked at the pills and they were the previous pills I had taken. I asked if the other ones were wrong and she mumbled something and handed me the bottle and sent me on my way. No explanation of what they were, if they were harmful to me or an apology for the potentially deadly mistake.

I was surprised by the abruptness and tweeted about the experience using the official CVS twitter account.. let's see if that get's their attention

Afterwards and since I was out in the area I went to my storage unit to drop off a few Christmas presents and to make sure all was well.

I then drove south back to North Hollywood and once again drove around looking for apartments. There was one that I called and left a message with yesterday but the person never called me back so I called once again and this time the person picked up and I found out that this person is out of town for the holidays and will be back on Tuesday so I made an appointment to see the apartment on Tuesday at noon.

It was now lunch time so I texted my buddy Greg to see if he wanted to get lunch. Surprising he responded within a few minutes and was up for lunch. I haven't seen Greg since SDCC as he's an extremely busy guy. Greg is the guy who made my Hobbit feet (if you didn't know). He is also designing my next Tattoo (Star Trek themed).

So I stopped by his place and picked him up, we went to a local Mexican restaurant that he wanted to try. It actually turned out to be very tasty. We hung out and chatted for almost two hours. Because we don't hang out as often as I would like I do cherish the time we do get to spend together.

After I dropped off Greg I drove around a few more neighborhoods but didn't find anything that looked like it would work for me. I'm hoping the apartment I'm looking at on Tuesday works out as it sound perfect on paper.

Went back to my brothers and blogged a bit. I also went to Amazon.com and purchased 14 movies that were on my wishlist. Previously in the day when I was at CVS I cashed in my loose change from the past year.. I wound up with about $180 dollars and I opted to put that into an Amazon gift card. So it was fun getting all these movies that I have wanted and in a way it didn't cost me anything since this was all loose change I had.. at least that's how I will justify it. :)

More Babylon 5 Goodness

So we continued our B5 first time viewing between games of Injustice. First up was S3 Ep 11 "Ceremonies of Light and Dark" After severing ties with Earth, the command staff must deal with some unexpected issues. Delenn suggests they go through a Minbari rebirth ceremony. Secrets are revealed, and hidden dangers are revealed as a group loyal to Clark takes Delenn hostage.

After the last episode things have gone upside down on B5. I like that Nightwatch has been rounded up and kicked off the station. Of course there are still a few lingering around and that is what this story is about. We also find out that there are still spies among the B5 staff.. that I'm sure will be played out in future episodes. I liked all of the crew confessions. Some were obvious but some took me by surprise. I like the new uniforms that Delenn made of the main crew. And the fact that Delenn sacrificed herself to save Sheridan, of course she didn't die but still that is going to play a major role in Sheridan's and Delenn's budding relationship.

Then came S3 Ep 12 "Sic Transit Vic" Vir returns to Babylon 5, and meets his fiancée'. As he and his bride to be get to know each other, a Narn attacks, and takes a blood oath to kill them. The command staff must figure out why someone would want to kill Vir.

This episode was all about Vir and that made it awesome. I've always liked Vir, I found him to be Londo's conscious. When they made him the Centari representative to Mimbar I figured they were scaling down his role so it was nice to see an entire episode about him. I also liked the b-story of Sheridan and Delenn finally going on an official date and Sheridan confessing his feelings for her.

Back to Vir I loved his reaction to having a "wife", and when he finally comes to grip that this could be a good thing, you find out how vial she is to Narn's. Of course you can't really blame her as she was raised this way and doesn't know any better. But with what Vir was doing (a kind of underground railroad for Narn citizens) I'm sure things are going to get heated between those two. I also did not like that we didn't see the conclusion of the scene with the unconscious Narn, did Vir kill him??  That really bothered me.

Third up was S3 Ep 13 "A Late Delivery From Avalon" An impressive man in medieval armor arrives on the station, claiming to be King Arthur. Is he the genuine hero, sent by the Vorlons? If not, who is he and what are his secrets?

This was an interesting episode. I figured that they guy was not the "real" King Arthur but to find out that he was the gunner who essentially started the Earth/Mimbari War...wow. I liked his friendship with G'Kar. It was fun to see G'Kar's adventurous side. Overall a entertaining episode.

We then watched S3 Ep 14 "Ship of Tears" Bester arrives in a starfury. He wants their help in tracking down weapons, which turns out to be telepaths captured by the Shadows. They discover why the Shadows wanted telepaths for their war.

We have the return of Bester, they have really done some character development with him. I started out hating him and after a few episodes featuring him I'm starting to warm up to him. I'm not saying I would trust him but I like that he is not a black and white character and that he actually has a heart. We find out why the Narn's telepaths were wiped out. We also find out that telepaths are a threat to the Shadow.. I'm sure this will be played out in future episodes.

And finally our last episode of the evening was S3 Ep 15 "Interludes and Examinations" Garibaldi tries to get Franklin to face up to his stim usage. Londo waits anxiously for Adira to return. Morden returns first, and manipulates the situation to his advantage. The alliance asks Sheridan to prove he has forces equal to the Shadows before they will commit. Sheridan calls on Kosh for assistance, but Kosh is resistant at first, Kosh finally agrees to help Sheridan, and later pays the price for his involvement.

Wow what an episode to end on. The stuff with Garibaldi and Franklin was great. Not sure what's going to happen to Franklin, is he gone from B5 or will he seek help and return. I actually felt bad for Londo that Morden killed his love Adira, but then again it's karma.. Londo doesn't deserve to be happy and it was unfortunate for Adira to be caught in the middle of that mess.

The big shocker was the death of Kosh. I enjoyed the confrontation between Sheridan and Kosh and then Kosh coming to Sheridan in a dream to tell him he was wrong and say goodbye... so heart breaking.

This series continues to impress and entertain. I can't wait to continue our adventure through Babylon 5.

Trampoline Pt2, Apartment Hunting & Friends

I was up early and finishing the trampoline. It took another hour or so to get the safety net up and secured to the trampoline. Once it was done I was the first to test it and then my niece and nephew went crazy. It was fun watching them get so much joy out of it already. I'm sure they will have many years of entertainment with this thing.

Afterwards I headed to North Hollywood to look at some apartments that I found on Westside Rental. The first place I looked was right next door to the apartment that I had "gotten" last week.. it also said it was an upper unit but when I got there the lady started walking to a lower unit. Not only was a it a lower unit but it was on the main street with lots of street noise. The apartment itself was fantastic. Older but that means bigger rooms and if it was an upper unit as described I probably would have rented it, but it wasn't so I moved on.

The other place I was interested in was rented that morning so I missed out. The third place was in a more sketchy part of town so I passed and the final one that I wanted to look at, I called the number and left a message but the person never called me back.

While I was waiting for this guy to call me back my buddy Dallas texted me and asked if I wanted to do lunch since I was in the area. I said sure and he and Jes meet up with me at a local The Habit, it's a burger joint. It was nice having lunch with these guys. And by the end the guy still hadn't called me back so I said goodbye to Jes and Dallas and drove around the area to see if there were any other rentals... no luck.

It was getting late and instead of heading back to Riverside I headed over to Robert's place. We planned to hangout and then I'd crash at his place so I could continue my apartment hunting tomorrow and not have to drive as far.

Got to Robert's about 5pm, first thing we did was play some Injustice. After an hour of losing over and over again I had had enough. By this time food came and we switched over to watching some Babylon 5 while we ate. We watched a few episodes and then attempted to play some more Injustice but the result was the same. I won the first match but lost everyone after that. I know I suck at gaming as I just don't play that often but it's hard to lose over and over and over again.

We picked back up on Babylon 5 and watched an additional 3 episodes. I'll be giving my reviews of each episodes in my next blog.

Overall it was a productive day. I didn't find a place to live but I'm hoping this guys calls me back about the place I left a message at, as the apartment sounded very nice... and with any luck I'll find the right place before the end of 2013.

Truly Amazing!!

I didn't ever think I would be writing a blog about this topic.. but it's important and I wanted to share with you all. First of all I'm not a religious person, I wouldn't say I'm an atheist, I've identify myself as agnostic. And in the past I haven't paid to much attention to the Pope but this newest Pope, Pope Francis had made so many headlines this past year and instead of negative or hateful comments he's been nothing but accepting, loving and caring. When I read this article it brought me to tears. I could only imagine being a Catholic and finally having a leader who actually preaches what Jesus was all about... Love.

Of course one of the big issues for me is the Catholic's view of homosexuality, in the past it's been condemned and looked down upon but this Pope has made an attempt to accept all as long as they have a love for God in their heart. It's a big step forward.

I do hope that this is the start of something big in the religious world. Will always have haters (it's human nature) but the Pope is taking the first step forward and for once in my life I have respect and feel honored to have this man in this position... Thank you Pope Francis.

Here's the article http://distractify.com/people/reasons-why-pope-francis-is-the-person-of-the-year/

And here's the his highlights from the past year.

1. He spoke out against frivolous spending by the Church

2. He invited a boy with Down's Syndrome for a ride in the Popemobile

3. He embraced and kissed Vinicio Riva

4. He denounced the judgment of homosexuals

5. He held a major ceremony at the chapel of a youth prison

6. He urged the protection of the Amazon Rainforest

7. He personally called and consoled a victim of rape

8. He snuck out of the Vatican to feed the homeless

9. He auctioned his motorcycle to benefit the homeless

10. He acknowledged that atheists can be good people

11. He condemned the global financial system

12. He fought child abuse

13. He condemned the violence of the Syrian civil war

14. He redirected employee bonuses to charity

15. He spoke out against the Church’s ‘obsession’ with abortion, gay marriage and contraception

16. He called for cooperation between Christians and Muslims

17. He took part in a selfie

18. He invited homeless men to his birthday meal

19. He refused to send away a child who had run on stage to hug him

Old Friends & A Trampolines

Today I got to have lunch with one of my "oldest" friends Michelle. We meet when I was 18 and became roommates and great friends. We worked together at Mervyn's and had some great times together. I then moved to LA to pursue my career and she got married and started a family and our lives took different direction and we lost touch for a bit. Then Facebook came around and we reconnected and would chat from time to time but we lived about 80 miles from each other so we didn't see each other much. The last time I saw her was at a party of a friend of ours and I got to meet her daughter when she was 1 years old. Well this daughter is now 14 years old so it's been over 13 years since we've actually seen each other.

But now that I'm staying with my brother I'm only a few miles away from her so we made plans to have a lunch date and catch up. I was super excited this lunch. We planned to meet at noon at a local BJ's Restaurant. I got there at noon and Michelle was waiting for me. We sat down and spent the next three hours catching up on each other lives. I mean we read each others Facebook pages so we know the going on's in each others life but of course not the details. It was great lunch and I hope we can hang out more often as I do miss seeing her on a regular bases.

Got home from the lunch and started to work on the trampoline that my brother and sister-in-law got for my niece and nephew. I knew it would take some time and I wasn't sure if I'd get it done by sun down and in fact I did not. With the help of my Dad, Lora, Kenobi and Molly I got all of the trampoline built but wasn't able to attach the safely net. Will have to take care of that tomorrow morning.

"Get Fit" Week 21

So I've been living with my brother's family this week and have eaten out every single lunch and dinner (of course I'm trying to eat reasonably). I expected to get on the scale and gain quite a bit of weight.. I was just hoping I had not gone over 200lbs. It was also Christmas on Wednesday and I partook in some yummy turkey dinner and quite a few desserts.

So just to remind you all, last week I weighted in at 196.5, the same weight I have been the past few weeks.. and today I weighed in this morning at 196.5. Don't ask me how I did it.. but I didn't gain a pound.. not even a half of pound. I'm extremely happy that I didn't gain any weight this week. I can still hit my goal of 195 by the end of 2013 which is only a few days away but it will be tough.

Soon as I can find an apartment I will get back into my routine and I can't wait for that to happen.

Downton Abbey & Doctor Who Christmas Specials

Watched two Christmas specials today...

First up is Downton Abbey Christmas special 2013. I know this won't be airing in the US until next year so tread lightly as there may be a few slight spoilers. Synopsis: Set in the summer of 1923. Rose's coming out ball will be at Buckingham Palace, with Cora's mother Martha and brother Harold in attendance. Martha has expressed a desire to, in Robert's words, "see another London Season before she dies".

The Crawley family is implicated in a scandal threatening to engulf the royal family, and Robert must go to great lengths to protect his family and the monarchy. Edith is struggling with a moral dilemma of her own, while Isobel has attracted an admirer. Daisy receives an unexpected invitation, while Carson treats the staff to a day out at the beach.

After last Christmas' shocking and upsetting ending, this years Christmas special was the complete opposite. I thoroughly enjoyed this episode. But like with this past season it wasn't as crazy or dramatic as previous seasons but still entertaining. And this feeling continued with the Christmas special. Lot's of focus on Rose, who I have to say isn't a favorite character of mine. Some fun stuff with Daisy. Not much with Anna and Bates, which was nice since they have been such a huge focus of the last few seasons. Lot's of Mary stuff and a nice conclusion/beginning to her next storyline. I always love Maggie Smith's, Dowager Countess. She is so set in her ways and the new world is scaring her. My favorite part by far was the end with Carson and Miss Hughes holding hands and walking into the water together.. I always hoped those two would get together and I hope this is the beginning of something special.

The second Christmas special I watched today was Doctor Who: Time of the Doctor. Synopsis: The Doctor's worst enemies, The Daleks, The Cybermen, The Angels and The Silence, return, as the doctor's eleventh life comes to a close, and his twelfth life begins. Orbiting a quiet backwater planet, the massed forces of the universe's deadliest species gather, drawn to a mysterious message that echoes out to the stars - and amongst them, the Doctor. Rescuing Clara from a family Christmas dinner, the Time Lord and his best friend must learn what this enigmatic signal means for his own fate and that of the universe.

Another enjoyable Christmas episode. The past few seasons of Who have been good.. not great but good and this was a nice conclusion to the 11th Doctor and beginning of the 12th or 13th.. it's all very confusing. I liked that this episode answered some of the questions they have been playing with since the beginning of the 11th Doctor's run. It was great seeing Amy again one last time. I don't know if I quite understand how they are getting around the limited regeneration but somehow they have. I'm sure will learn more when the new Doctor Who episodes start in the fall of 2014.

So we say goodbye to the 11th Doctor, Matt Smith. When he first showed up I took to him in the first episode... alot faster then I did for the 10th Doctor. He was everything that I thought of when I thought of Doctor Who. I loved his new companion Amy and the fifth season was amazing, but the sixth season was just okay. About halfway though season six the "great" episodes were far and few between and that trend continued in the seventh season. I'm not saying that I didn't enjoy all the episodes..as I did.. very much. But if I had to choose a season to watch over again it wouldn't be six or seven. Overall Matt Smith was an great addition to the Who family and will have a lasting impression on the fandom.

One Week Later...

So I have stayed with my brother and his family for a week now. I'm thankful that he is allowing me to stay here while I look for a new apartment but it's difficult living somewhere were you really don't have a space. I'm staying in his sport memorabilia room which is like a dining area as there is no door, but they did put up a sheet for some privacy.

It's hard living without my stuff. I brought a few things with me like my computer but it's still difficult not to have things when I need them. I'm also sleeping on a air mattress (thanks to my buddy Doug for loaning me his). And it actually hasn't been that bad but then again I've only been sleeping on it for a week so far.

I love my niece and nephew but OMG they are loud. I have an whole new respect not only for my brother and sister-in-law but for all parents of young kids. Maybe it's because I'm older and set in my ways but I have always wanted a child of my own but after just a week with these kids I'm don't think I could handle one. When I do adopt a child he'll be at least 6 years old if not older.

My plan is to only be here a few weeks and hopefully find a place by January 1st.

Merry Christmas

I was up at 6:30am ready to open presents but the kids didn't get up until 8am and they had to be woken up but Daddy. I guess they are a bit to young still, ages 2 & 4, to really understand that Santa was here and left them lots of gifts. Though Kenobi (the 4 year old) has come to me everyday telling me how many days are left until Christmas.

Anyways my brother woke them up around 8am and the kids were soon down going through their stockings. Afterwards we hit the presents. It took us about two hours to get through them all. Santa was very generous.

After presents Lora's family arrived to do their gift exchange while I jumped online to open gifts with my bestie Chris, who is currently in Kuwait. We did a google hang out and opened each other's gifts online. Chris chatted with my Dad, brother and various other folks who were mingling in the kitchen. Last year I was in Montana celebrating Christmas with him so it was nice that he was able to join me and my family this Christmas (virtually). I got to hang out with him for about an hour before he called it a night and I had to start making Christmas dinner.

All I had to prepare at the moment was the turkey, it takes 3 1/2 hours to cook and we wanted to eat by 4pm. So I buttered, salt and peppered the bird and with the help of my Dad I was able to get it in the cooking bag and in the oven.

My other bestie Robert arrived around 11am to spend Christmas with me and my family. It was great seeing him. He normally goes home for Christmas but this year he decided to not do any traveling so I invited to join me. We hung out, chatted and snacked on some tasty desserts.

Around 3pm I started making the rest of the Christmas dinner and by 4pm everything was ready to do. From everyone's comments I think dinner was a success. My main goal was to serve everything hot and I'm happy to say I succeeded.

After dinner some of Mike's friends showed up to do some gift exchanges while a few of use tried to watch one of my screeners.. Saving Mr. Banks. We did watch the entire thing but between the kids and the gift exchange it was next to impossible to hear the movie. It was one of the worst movie watching experiences I have ever had. So bad that I won't even review the movie until I can watch it again. But from what I saw and heard.. I enjoyed it. I look forward to watching it again soon.

After the movie Robert decided to head home as did all the other guests. I was up for a few more hours but was extremely tired and called it a night around 10pm.

MERRY  CHRISTMAS  EVERYONE!!!