Today I went to the Social Security office to get a new social security card since apparently I lost my old one. I need to have it for my new job. But that's not the fun part of this trip.
On the way out of the office, I, like any other customer, have to pass through two sets of doors to escape. At the first door, I held it open for this older, shorter, white-haired lady with a big smile. She said, "Thank you sir, do you mind if I do the same for you?"
I assumed that she meant the next set of doors so I immediately replied with "Sure!"
I was right, she held open the next set of doors me and I told her thank you and to have a great day and she replied back with:
"You too! That's equal rights for ya!"
I loved it. I laughed my ass off actually since equal rights is something I will often joke about with any of my friends who are female (and which some of the feminist ones don't like me doing).
That's Equal Rights For Ya...
Wednesday, May 30, 2007
Monday, May 28, 2007
Memorial Weekend
This past weekend was a blast.
Originally, I was supposed to do David's bachelor party on Friday. However, through a long list of blah blah blahs, it got moved to sometime in June. Which ended up working out great for me as my cousin Mitchell's Bar Mitzvah was this Saturday.
Friday, I drove to St. Louis and had dinner with the extended family and friends of Mitch's at his temple. The layout and the food was amazing, however, it was all really ritzy. I am not a person that is comfortable with being catered to and so the entire dinner was a little bit of an awkward experience. I hope I was able to say enough "please"'s and "thank you"'s to get the point across to the servers that I wasn't trying to act like I was any different than them. I got to meet some of my cousin's family friends and uncles on the other side of the family tree. Needless to say, those people are nuts. We had a blast during dinner and many of the other tables were most definitely envious of all the laughter and loudness coming from our side of the room.
Saturday morning, we got up early and went to the temple for family pictures. Sometimes, I feel a little out of place during family pictures because I am only related by marriage. My mom married into the family after I was already born. So when things are said like "All the cousins get together for a picture" I normally wait until someone tells me that I am included in that before I head over to pose for the cameras. Maybe I'm just thinking too much about things, but I'd rather be safe than look like a fool.
If you have never been to a Bar Mitzvah, you should go to one sometime. If you don't know what a Bar Mitzvah is, here is a description in a nutshell: A young Jewish boy approaching his 13th birthday will begin training and learning how to chant, read, write, and speak in Hebrew; specifically, certain selected phrases from the Torah. He will then go through an entire ceremony in which he is basically leading the congregation in a sermon. His family will often play critical roles during this ceremony. All of it is presided over by the temple's Rabbi and other important persons. This same thing can be done, although as I understand is not done as often, for girls. The girl ceremony is called a Bat Mitzvah.
After the Bar Mitzvah, we went back to the hotel for a bit until later on in the day. The hotel, by the way, had a pool. And I absolutely love to swim. As long as the water isn't opaque. Lakes and oceans give me panic attacks if I can't see in them and I if I am allowed to start thinking too much about the fact that I can't see in them.
The reception part of the event was to be held at a different location. The theme of the party was Sports and people were asked to dress casual and to wear either jerseys or shirts of their favorite sports teams. I wore a MU basketball jersey, white athletic shorts, white armbands, black head band, and lots of pimp juice. I hope I am able to get some pictures from that night, as we all looked amazing. The entire event was hosted by a DJ and my cousin's parents. We had dinner, which consisted of hot dogs, brats, nachos, miniature hamburgers, salads, potato skins, etc. It was designed to be like you were at a sporting event and man, did it work! There was also an open bar, which, as you can probably guess, I took total advantage of. Jack Daniel's and Coke until I could drink no more.
Eventually, dancing started and the DJ mixed in recent songs with some older ones that appeased to some of the older members of the crowd. What I thought was hilarious though was that my mom, step dad, brother, and sister had no idea that I liked to dance and that I actually can dance (yes, I will admit that I can get down). However, I have to be feeling a little tipsy before I even try or I don't do it.
Needless to say, I was more than a little tipsy. For the rest of the weekend I kept hearing many members of the family saying things to me like "Joshy, I had no idea you could dance..." It was pretty hilarious, but I had a ton of fun.
My only regret was letting my step dad down when there was a dance off of Old School vs. New School. I didn't represent and I should have. I blame my liquid courage on backfiring.
However, I've got two more cousins who will be going through their own Bar Mitzvahs in the next couple years, so I will have a chance to redeem myself.
Damn, this weekend was a friggin blast.
Originally, I was supposed to do David's bachelor party on Friday. However, through a long list of blah blah blahs, it got moved to sometime in June. Which ended up working out great for me as my cousin Mitchell's Bar Mitzvah was this Saturday.
Friday, I drove to St. Louis and had dinner with the extended family and friends of Mitch's at his temple. The layout and the food was amazing, however, it was all really ritzy. I am not a person that is comfortable with being catered to and so the entire dinner was a little bit of an awkward experience. I hope I was able to say enough "please"'s and "thank you"'s to get the point across to the servers that I wasn't trying to act like I was any different than them. I got to meet some of my cousin's family friends and uncles on the other side of the family tree. Needless to say, those people are nuts. We had a blast during dinner and many of the other tables were most definitely envious of all the laughter and loudness coming from our side of the room.
Saturday morning, we got up early and went to the temple for family pictures. Sometimes, I feel a little out of place during family pictures because I am only related by marriage. My mom married into the family after I was already born. So when things are said like "All the cousins get together for a picture" I normally wait until someone tells me that I am included in that before I head over to pose for the cameras. Maybe I'm just thinking too much about things, but I'd rather be safe than look like a fool.
If you have never been to a Bar Mitzvah, you should go to one sometime. If you don't know what a Bar Mitzvah is, here is a description in a nutshell: A young Jewish boy approaching his 13th birthday will begin training and learning how to chant, read, write, and speak in Hebrew; specifically, certain selected phrases from the Torah. He will then go through an entire ceremony in which he is basically leading the congregation in a sermon. His family will often play critical roles during this ceremony. All of it is presided over by the temple's Rabbi and other important persons. This same thing can be done, although as I understand is not done as often, for girls. The girl ceremony is called a Bat Mitzvah.
After the Bar Mitzvah, we went back to the hotel for a bit until later on in the day. The hotel, by the way, had a pool. And I absolutely love to swim. As long as the water isn't opaque. Lakes and oceans give me panic attacks if I can't see in them and I if I am allowed to start thinking too much about the fact that I can't see in them.
The reception part of the event was to be held at a different location. The theme of the party was Sports and people were asked to dress casual and to wear either jerseys or shirts of their favorite sports teams. I wore a MU basketball jersey, white athletic shorts, white armbands, black head band, and lots of pimp juice. I hope I am able to get some pictures from that night, as we all looked amazing. The entire event was hosted by a DJ and my cousin's parents. We had dinner, which consisted of hot dogs, brats, nachos, miniature hamburgers, salads, potato skins, etc. It was designed to be like you were at a sporting event and man, did it work! There was also an open bar, which, as you can probably guess, I took total advantage of. Jack Daniel's and Coke until I could drink no more.
Eventually, dancing started and the DJ mixed in recent songs with some older ones that appeased to some of the older members of the crowd. What I thought was hilarious though was that my mom, step dad, brother, and sister had no idea that I liked to dance and that I actually can dance (yes, I will admit that I can get down). However, I have to be feeling a little tipsy before I even try or I don't do it.
Needless to say, I was more than a little tipsy. For the rest of the weekend I kept hearing many members of the family saying things to me like "Joshy, I had no idea you could dance..." It was pretty hilarious, but I had a ton of fun.
My only regret was letting my step dad down when there was a dance off of Old School vs. New School. I didn't represent and I should have. I blame my liquid courage on backfiring.
However, I've got two more cousins who will be going through their own Bar Mitzvahs in the next couple years, so I will have a chance to redeem myself.
Damn, this weekend was a friggin blast.
Tuesday, May 22, 2007
Religion Confusion
While I was making a whole crap ton of trips back up to Kville to get the rest of my stuff from our house, I couldn't help but see this same billboard sign each time. It was for some church, whose name I can't remember and probably shouldn't include anyways, that was advertising its faith like most churches do. Except this one's message was a little... confusing.
It read: "Take a chance on Jesus, if not, Satan will take you."
Or something very similar. The last part is right on the money as that is the portion of the phrase that made an impact on me. Was it meant as an alternative to Jesus? Is this a threat? What happened to God being the focus? Will Satan really take you somewhere? To Hell maybe? What if you don't believe in Hell? Does believing in Jesus mean you automatically believe in Satan also? Is Satan a part of Christianity? I had a ton of questions that stemmed from that particular phrase and no one besides myself available to be asked.
Now, I'm not going to go ask anyone these questions for the purpose of finding the answers. I don't really care that much about this issue. However, seeing that made me think. Which, by the way, is a real good thing as I tend to fall asleep when driving long distances.
I don't really know what I would call my version of faith. I can say that I am not a Christian if only because I do not believe in the Bible. Man-made things are not perfect, so I will not put my unyielding faith in something that is not perfect. I also can't, because of another aspect of me that the Bible says is wrong. But anyways.
I believe in something like a creator, something that made everything and gave purpose to everything. To me, everything was meant to happen for a reason. There is room for hindsight, regret, guilt, joy, thankfulness, happiness, what have you. However, everything that has ever happened to you has happened for a certain reason. That's how I try to look at things. And although I may fail and get angry, I will get over it and learn from the experience... eventually.
I believe in karma. I use that word for lack of a better word. I believe that you will get what you give; all things will be returned three-fold. So, I try to be upstanding. Now, don't get me wrong, some people think I am a mean person or just outright rude. However, I will never be mean to someone without a reason. That reason is often just my own mind overreacting to something, but it is still there and still bothering me. I'm just opinionated and things that I find stupid or a waste of time is going to get me riled up. Getting me to talk about what is bothering me is a whole different issue. I don't open up very easily. It makes me uncomfortable and makes me feel weak.
Death scares the crap out of me. In my mind, I can't cope with or grasp the feelings of eternity or simply ceasing to exist. So both avenues are scary prospects for whatever happens after death. I don't know if I ever want to find out what will be waiting on the other side. Heaven/Hell forever and ever or just nothingness. The only idea of life after death that I have ever liked has been reincarnation. But I'm not sure if that is a cop out and escape from the aforementioned prospects.
So, what does faith provide? Hope, I think. I think that people who go to this church with the billboard go there every Sunday (or more!) for the sole reason of finding some hope. A small measure of hope, brought about by belief, will produce mass amounts of comfort and content. And perhaps, in a message like this, as confusing as it may be to some people, it is, in its own way, trying to spread that hope.
It read: "Take a chance on Jesus, if not, Satan will take you."
Or something very similar. The last part is right on the money as that is the portion of the phrase that made an impact on me. Was it meant as an alternative to Jesus? Is this a threat? What happened to God being the focus? Will Satan really take you somewhere? To Hell maybe? What if you don't believe in Hell? Does believing in Jesus mean you automatically believe in Satan also? Is Satan a part of Christianity? I had a ton of questions that stemmed from that particular phrase and no one besides myself available to be asked.
Now, I'm not going to go ask anyone these questions for the purpose of finding the answers. I don't really care that much about this issue. However, seeing that made me think. Which, by the way, is a real good thing as I tend to fall asleep when driving long distances.
I don't really know what I would call my version of faith. I can say that I am not a Christian if only because I do not believe in the Bible. Man-made things are not perfect, so I will not put my unyielding faith in something that is not perfect. I also can't, because of another aspect of me that the Bible says is wrong. But anyways.
I believe in something like a creator, something that made everything and gave purpose to everything. To me, everything was meant to happen for a reason. There is room for hindsight, regret, guilt, joy, thankfulness, happiness, what have you. However, everything that has ever happened to you has happened for a certain reason. That's how I try to look at things. And although I may fail and get angry, I will get over it and learn from the experience... eventually.
I believe in karma. I use that word for lack of a better word. I believe that you will get what you give; all things will be returned three-fold. So, I try to be upstanding. Now, don't get me wrong, some people think I am a mean person or just outright rude. However, I will never be mean to someone without a reason. That reason is often just my own mind overreacting to something, but it is still there and still bothering me. I'm just opinionated and things that I find stupid or a waste of time is going to get me riled up. Getting me to talk about what is bothering me is a whole different issue. I don't open up very easily. It makes me uncomfortable and makes me feel weak.
Death scares the crap out of me. In my mind, I can't cope with or grasp the feelings of eternity or simply ceasing to exist. So both avenues are scary prospects for whatever happens after death. I don't know if I ever want to find out what will be waiting on the other side. Heaven/Hell forever and ever or just nothingness. The only idea of life after death that I have ever liked has been reincarnation. But I'm not sure if that is a cop out and escape from the aforementioned prospects.
So, what does faith provide? Hope, I think. I think that people who go to this church with the billboard go there every Sunday (or more!) for the sole reason of finding some hope. A small measure of hope, brought about by belief, will produce mass amounts of comfort and content. And perhaps, in a message like this, as confusing as it may be to some people, it is, in its own way, trying to spread that hope.
Tuesday, May 08, 2007
New beginnings
I actually graduated from college! I can't believe it.
We were lucky enough not to have any rain on Saturday, so I didn't need my lack of rain site tickets. It was a pretty surreal experience. It didn't hit me until the procession got close enough to see all the people in the stands what was actually happening. As far as the actual ceremony went, well... the commencement speaker was a little lame but the name reading went super fast. The entire thing took maybe an hour and a half; which for how many people was graduating, that is at lightning speed. I got to sit with Heath and David, which is how I always wanted it to be. It was great having all of my family there for the event as well. They mean the world to me.
We went out later that night with the usual gusto. Tons of people were out and I got to see a lot of individuals that I normally wouldn't have been able to see. That alone was a great graduation present. Plus, somehow I didn't end up spending a single dollar all night. How about them apples!?
On our way home, Scott, Amy, and I were pulled over by a cop. I had made Scott pull around the block a second time so we could spy on something interesting (which I plan on getting more details about). The cop asks us if we had been partying and Scott politely says yes. Then he asks if we've been drinking and I tell the cop, before Scott can respond, that only I have and that I'm a loser alcoholic and that the other two do not drink. Amy has to explain to the cop why she doesn't have her license (her family stole it) while the officer takes both mine and Scott's identifications. He ends up only giving Scott a warning for the light above his licence plate being out and sends us home. The funny thing is, we were right up the street from our house.
The day after was a little crappy. It rained all freaking day and my dad had come back up to take all of my stuff home. Needless to say, he was pissed. We ended up only taking home what we could fit in the cab of his truck and the cab of my truck.
I snuck up to Kirksville yesterday and got even more stuff and today my dad and I finished getting everything else. I'm just glad the entire ordeal is over.
Now, the only time I will need to go back to Kville is to visit people. But it's so much easier going back knowing that I don't have to stay.
As of now, I am unpacking what I want to unpack while also looking for a job in my hometown. I've got a few reasons why I want to stay here for the time being and this place is pretty happenin in the job department. I am pretty confident I will be able to find something as well as find my own place. Or, I can just stay at my dad's house until David and Abbie move into town and then pull a "Me, You, and Dupree" on their couch.
We were lucky enough not to have any rain on Saturday, so I didn't need my lack of rain site tickets. It was a pretty surreal experience. It didn't hit me until the procession got close enough to see all the people in the stands what was actually happening. As far as the actual ceremony went, well... the commencement speaker was a little lame but the name reading went super fast. The entire thing took maybe an hour and a half; which for how many people was graduating, that is at lightning speed. I got to sit with Heath and David, which is how I always wanted it to be. It was great having all of my family there for the event as well. They mean the world to me.
We went out later that night with the usual gusto. Tons of people were out and I got to see a lot of individuals that I normally wouldn't have been able to see. That alone was a great graduation present. Plus, somehow I didn't end up spending a single dollar all night. How about them apples!?
On our way home, Scott, Amy, and I were pulled over by a cop. I had made Scott pull around the block a second time so we could spy on something interesting (which I plan on getting more details about). The cop asks us if we had been partying and Scott politely says yes. Then he asks if we've been drinking and I tell the cop, before Scott can respond, that only I have and that I'm a loser alcoholic and that the other two do not drink. Amy has to explain to the cop why she doesn't have her license (her family stole it) while the officer takes both mine and Scott's identifications. He ends up only giving Scott a warning for the light above his licence plate being out and sends us home. The funny thing is, we were right up the street from our house.
The day after was a little crappy. It rained all freaking day and my dad had come back up to take all of my stuff home. Needless to say, he was pissed. We ended up only taking home what we could fit in the cab of his truck and the cab of my truck.
I snuck up to Kirksville yesterday and got even more stuff and today my dad and I finished getting everything else. I'm just glad the entire ordeal is over.
Now, the only time I will need to go back to Kville is to visit people. But it's so much easier going back knowing that I don't have to stay.
As of now, I am unpacking what I want to unpack while also looking for a job in my hometown. I've got a few reasons why I want to stay here for the time being and this place is pretty happenin in the job department. I am pretty confident I will be able to find something as well as find my own place. Or, I can just stay at my dad's house until David and Abbie move into town and then pull a "Me, You, and Dupree" on their couch.
Thursday, May 03, 2007
Graduation?
It still hasn't hit me yet that in two days I will be graduating from Truman and that there will be family members here who have never ever been to Truman or even Kirksville; namely, my ma.
I can't believe it.
The weather right now is shitty though and I hope it clears up because I only have 4 rain tickets and 12 people I know for sure are coming to my graduation.
I can't believe it.
The weather right now is shitty though and I hope it clears up because I only have 4 rain tickets and 12 people I know for sure are coming to my graduation.
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