Poker Night

Played poker tonight, as you can see. It was a lot of fun, and I actually won some money! We played a cash game with a $5.00 buy-in, then if you run out of chips you can re-buy for $5.00 unlimited times. I was lucky enough to not need a re-buy, and walked away ahead $11.00.

This is one thing that is really difficult with my new job. Working 6 days a week, third shift, we haven't been able to spend much (if any) time with our friends. I just hope they realize that it's not that we don't want to hang out and do things, it's just very difficult when you only have one night a week. There are people who Steph and I really value as friends, and we don't want to lose that.

Too...Many...Books....

Is it possible to have too many books? Well, there's certainly too many books on this shelf. Steph and I both read pretty constantly, so we've amassed a small collection of paperbacks and hardcovers. She probably reads more that me, but an hour lunch break will do that to ya. I thought I'd list some of my favorites and recommendations.

We both really like Stephen King, and although he's no Chaucer, he's certainly entertaining. Even if you don't like his typical fare, I would recommend his Dark Tower series to anyone. This series is King's Lord of the Rings.

I just finished reading The Prestige by Christopher Priest. Wow. Absolutely fantastic. There was a movie based on this book in 2006 that I really wanted to see. It was actually a sleeper hit in 2006 and was nominated for an Academy Award. I'm looking forward to its release.

For those of you into fantasy/sci-fi, one of my all time favorite series is the Death Gate Cycle by Margaret Weis and Tracy Hickman. I've probably read this series about 5 times. No small feat considering it's seven books.

Finally, I want to mention the Bourne series of books by Robert Ludlum. These are the Bourne Identity, The Bourne Supremecy, and The Bourne Ultimatum. If you liked the movies, you should love the books. They're very intense, and very fast paced.

If any of you have any recommendations for me, feel free to post them in the comments. I'm always looking for something new to read!

Pitchers and Catchers Report!

Possibly the four greatest words in the English language, the title of today's post is the unofficial start of Baseball season. I can't wait! After the Bears dropped a deuce in the biggest game of their lives, I've been counting down the days until the opener. Oh, it's 46 in case you're wondering.

Okay, so I want to clarify what I was alluding to in yesterday's post. From the New York Times:

"The Chrysler Group is set to announce a restructuring plan Wednesday aimed at securing its place in the crowded American car market — and within DaimlerChrysler.
The plan is expected to include the elimination of about 11,000 blue- and white-collar jobs along with the closing of one and possibly two assembly plants — in Delaware and Missouri — people with direct knowledge of the plan said this week."

This is obviously big news, but I'm not quite sure that's it's bad news...yet. This could be a really good thing for me. It all depends on the amount of people that will take the expected buyout/early retirement packages at the Belvidere facility. They're going to need people to fill those positions, not to mention the positions myself and people like me are currently filling. On the other hand, since I'm considered a "temporary" worker, they could just sack the lot of us and call it a day. Right now, I really don't know how to take this announcement. I remain cautiously optimistic.

My Wii is Glowing!

I'm a gamer. No surprise there, right? For all of you living in a third world country, this is the Nintendo Wii. It does this really cool thing where if you have a message, the disc slot glows blue and pulses! Very distracting, but very cool. The games are controlled by moving the controller in physical space. No 16 button controller here. Very simple, very accessible, very hard to find. My Wii isn't feeling so well right now, so I'm sending it back to Nintendo for repairs. No big deal, it's all covered under warranty. Nintendo has the best customer service around!

I decided to stay home last night, because the road conditions were not good. I hate to miss any work, especially considering DaimlerChrysler's recent announcement, but sometimes you have to be safe.

*edit*
To give you a better idea of what this Wii thing is all about, here's a short video of Dad and I playing Wii Sports: Bowling. Please ignore Dad's comment about his "gay" pink bowling ball....

Third Shift Annoyance #4: Shoveling in the Dark

Fun, fun, fun! I love to shovel! Nothing beats a huge pain in the back, biting sub-zero winds, and soaking wet shoes! Not to mention it's pitch black outside! WOO-HOO!! Picking up the sarcasm yet? Yeah.

So we've been hit again. We actually didn't get that much snow, but add the 20+ mph winds, and you've got some serious drifting. On the way home this morning I saw 4' drifts on the road. Needless to say, the plows were running a bit behind schedule. I parked my truck in the driveway when I got home, and when I went outside tonight, there was a 3' drift right up next to it. I tried to move my truck to the street, backed up too far, and immediately became stuck. 1/2 hour later, I finally started my favorite chore. I'll be parking on the street until this crap melts, but Steph can get in and out of the garage now. Your welcome honey!

Harmony

I had some seriously disturbing dreams last night. I won't get into details, but it was one of those dreams that stays with you after you wake. Have you ever had a dream that put you into a very strong emotional state, then when you wake up you still feel like that? It was one of those.

I must say, however, that I am far from a "normal" sleeper. I talk, toss and turn, steal the covers, and occasionally I'll just have a walk about the house. Far from normal. I had a sleep study a couple years ago, but since I was incredibly uncomfortable, I couldn't sleep when I was there. The doctor said I woke up something like 47 times. Some ridiculous number like that. Needless to say, the test was inconclusive.

High Fructose Corn Syrup

It's everywhere. It's in your soda, it's in your fruit juice, it's in your candy, it's in your Miracle Whip. Since its inception in the 1970s, and its adoption by the soft drink companies in 1982, it's been an all American staple. Because of the high availability of corn and the tariffs imposed on sugar imports, it has become the go-to sugar substitute. Many researchers believe it's also a key ingredient to the American obesity epidemic.

Steph and I try to avoid it as much as we can, but sometimes it's just not possible. It's become so pervasive in our diets, that all the processed foods we dump into our bodies contain it now. Do yourself (and your kids) a favor and read your labels. Try to avoid large quantities of soda. Get some exercise!

Okay, I'm off the soapbox.

On a totally unrelated side note, today's my birthday.... :)