Mr. Sunshine

SO I went to the mall with my cousins tonight and a thought occurred to me...Why do we go crazy buying material things for family for Christmas? 

My cousin was worried about what to get everyone, who to get for, how much she had to spend on each person, and I basically feel bad because I don't have a child like she does to worry about, and I only buy for the people in my immediate family. I don't kill myself buying gifts, but I tried to drill it into her head that Christmas doesn't need to be all about the gifts and the materialistic stuff...

And I understand that everyone likes to give and feel good, but with today's economy and the fact that money is soo tight is there anyone out there who feels that it's okay if there aren't a bunch of presents under the tree? I mean really, you could buy gifts like that all year round, why even stress out trying to buy them all at once and for multiple people...

So my whole opinion on this is that Christmas might be about giving instead of receiving, but it should also somehow be tied into giving LOVE and/or togetherness and then we wouldn't have to stress out about buying all these presents and making sure everyone is pleased with their gifts. 

I mean, yes, at a time when I was younger I could never imagine a Christmas without a lot of presents, but of course now that I'm older I appreciate the other aspects of Christmas, and I am just blogging to say that before the actual Christmas season comes in full swing, this is what people should be considering. 

Vacation part II

Okay so continuing on with the vacation story...after we left Orlando on Wednesday, we drove three hours south to West Palm Beach to a community called Wellington, where it is gorgeous.  R's parents were very accomodating and generous to us.  The parents house is absolutely beautiful, even though the gated community has like five models to choose from and they all look like cutout cookies, but the decorum is pretty and they were situated in a great area with a marsh looking thing behind their house, and every day I saw pelicans, cranes, egrets, ducks, and even an otter. We saw the sunrise again each morning, it was beautiful. There was a huge duck that waddled right up to the back sun room and it was cute, I really wanted to feed it but I couldn't. 

So I sat by the pool for like two and a half hours one day cause it was absolutely beautiful out, and I got burned a little, but it was just enough color to bring back to Connecticut.  The flight home was a bit hairy cause I was having like a freakin panic attack for some reason over 10,000 feet. But all in all, I was fine, the trip was great, great vacation. I hadn't had a vacation in like seven years so it was long overdue and much appreciated. Can't wait for the next vacation, hopefully will be ITALY. 

My vacation

Hey people!!! So I'm back from Florida and I had an awesome time, there were a few ups and downs but nothing major. 

So starting with the Plane ride....it was fine. I'm just not at ease when it comes to flying, I don't know why. Maybe it has something to do with the fact that you are squeezed into the cabin like a pack of sardines without lube and gliding 10,000 feet in the air...that might be it!  

So first off I went with my uncles wife (my aunt)...we'll call her R. I know some 24 year olds wouldn't consider going on a vacation with their 40 year old aunt fun, but she's cool so we had a fun time. The vacation was planned with five days in Orlando, to visit the four Disney parks (Magic Kingdom, Epcot, Animal Kingdom, and Hollywood Studios), and then R's parents, who live in West Palm Beach (in a gated Jewish community) were going to come up to Orlando to stay with us for two nights so we could visit a park with them and then take us back to their home in West Palm Beach, and we would stay with them for the following four days, and leave from WPB instead of Orlando.   So we arrive in Orlando on Friday night and it is like 70 degrees and sticky outside, so I immediately changed my jeans and hoodie that I wore on the plane to shorts, polo shirt, and sandals pronto! Our hotel room was amazing, it had a full kitchen, dining room, living room with 32 inch plasma t.v., balcony, washer, dryer, two bedrooms each with a 27 inch t.v. and a bathroom for each room, it was beautiful, so we went to the grocery store down the street and bought some good groceries for like breakfast and munching on, coffee, juice, snacks, etc. It was better than having to go out for breakfast or anything like that. 

So as part of our vacation package, we got park hopper passes, and for those of you who aren't familiar with them they are inclusive to the four aforementioned Disney parks, and it means that you basically pay around $150 I think, and the pass will get you in and out of any of the parks as many times as you want for the days you are there. So take us for example, usually people who go to Disney without park hoppers, might do one park each day and that is it. They buy the passes for the parks each day, but with the park hopper you can choose to go to Magic Kingdom for a few hours, go back to the hotel, rest, and then go to Epcot for the later half of the day...then maybe the next day you want to do Epcot again, then Animal Kingdom, or Hollywood Studios then a little more Magic Kingdom...they are interchangeable for however many days you buy them for. We had four day park hopper passes, so one ticket got us into the four parks two or three times in that number of days. 

We had a lot of fun, I took sooo many pictures, we basically hoofed our way through all these parks in a matter of like three hours, we saw all that needed to be seen, the only thing is that my aunt walks like ninety miles a minute, and I, uh...don't. So every picture I have of her is her back view cause she was always at least a mile ahead of me. I got a picture with Jiminy Cricket, but not with a lot of other characters cause we didn't stand in the long lines for like Pooh, Tigger, Pluto, Goofy, I did not ONCE see Mickey up close, but I did see him on the stairs of Cinderella's Castle doing a show with the other characters, but I couldn't get a close enough shot. 

Oh and the hotel was very accomodating, they had a bar near the pool, a grill/cafe thing, a beautiful pool with plenty of palm trees, a gym, a daycare, all kinds of stuff, and they offered round trip shuttle service to and from the parks. The only beef I had with them is that they only had three departure times in the morning, and two at night for return. They offered an 8:10, a 9:10, and a 10:10 shuttle, with only a 6:15 and a 9:45 pm return shuttle. I would have liked an earlier return, or maybe the option of leaving for the park at noon, or around 2, and then coming back later. I didn't get to see any Firework shows, or a parade or anything cause we always were gone early, however we were always beat by like three oclock, so I couldn't imagine even staying until 9:45 let alone 6:15...just the same I wish I had seen the fireworks and parades...

So R's parents came up on Monday night after we got back to the hotel from Animal Kingdom, and we went out to dinner, now I don't eat a lot of fish, and we went to this place called "The Crab House".  where everyone else ordered salmon or trout...I ordered...fish and chips. I felt a little out of place..Then on Tuesday we went to Downtown Disney which seemed fun but again, we sort of just walked from one end to the other without looking at a lot of things, and I would have spent all day there except I felt like I was being timed...

That's all for now, I'll continue this blog after dinner...

Checks and balances

You know, what ever happened to just having a bank account??? I work in a grocery store where we offer check cashing to our customers as a courtesy, if you complete the proper paperwork...Let me just say this....Why in god's name would you wait until Friday to even stand in the line and cash the check??? Especially if you have an 800 or 900 dollar check...Wouldn't you think that you'd want to sign up for direct deposit? OR if that is not an option, at least open up a bank account with $50 of those dollars, and be on your merry way every week??? 

Every single Friday there is a line which goes OUT THE DOOR just for check cashing and its ridiculous, because these people have grown accustomed to our policies and they think they just have the right and privelage to do whatever they want...someone suggested that i should work in a bank because it's better hours and pay...well guess what?? I DO WORK in a BANK!!  Come look at our line on any Thursday and Friday is even worse...

So why the hubub?? It's just ridiculous. I would NOT want to wait in that line, I would not want to walk around with that large amount of cash on me...I would definitely want to have it in a secure place....Why not just get a bank account people?? We go through, easily about $7-80,000 dollars in check cashing a week, and sometimes its more during the holiday times...

I mean i don't get it and I do get it...On the one hand the economy is already shaky enough, people probably want to feel their money in their hands and make sure it's safe, but then again what happens when you get robbed? What happens if you lose that money? You can replace a bank card in two weeks...you are not going to replace that 900 dollar check unless by some miracle someone returns it....

I'm tellin you, its an every week thing, it's getting out of hand, and all you people who don't have bank accounts, don't use your local grocery store to cash those checks...keep your local banks in business that's what they are there for...the grocery stores don't need your Fifty cents from cashing your check..we're already making your money in groceries....keep the lines moving people!

My own top ten list

I have taken some kind of liking to blogging, but I am still in the process of learning how to make it interesting and have people (0ther than one person) read my thoughts and interests. I love making lists of my favorite things, so here's one of all my favorites, no particular order...hope you enjoy..

1. Food- Anything Italian
2. Book- Angela's Ashes by Frank McCourt
3. Season- Fall, hands down. Love the turning of the leaves and changing of the weather.
4. City to visit- Boston...has some of the busy-ness of New York, but less chaotic.
5. Month- October
6. Day of the Week- Saturday
7. Music- Easy Listening
8. Opera- Tosca (so far.)
9. Movies- The Shawshank Redemption, The Italian Job, The African Queen
10. Time of day- Between noon and four oclock.
11. Color- blue
12. Dream car- Dark Blue Mini cooper with white stripes...IDK ever since I saw The Italian Job I've been wanting a Mini Coop.
13. Clothing Store- Old Navy,
14. Book Store- Borders
15. Holiday- Thanksgiving
16. Thanksgiving Food- Sweet potatoes, cranberry sauce
17. Current TV Show- Brothers and Sisters
18. Past TV Show- Friends
19. Classic TV Show- The Cosby Show
20. Cookies- Chocolate Chip ....classic.

That's about all I can think of right now, but if you've go any other interesting top favorites, let me hear 'em, I'd like to add to my list. Hope we share some of the same stuff!

Riflessioni

So today is my cousin Zachary's birthday, he would have been 23...He passed away last year unexpectedly due to a sudden heart attack. We miss him a lot, he was one of the funniest kids you would ever meet...RIP Zachary Paresi 9/28/85-10/6/07...

Okay well I have a wedding to go to on Friday and then I am off on Saturday so I think how I'm gonna do it is wear something very suave and sophisticated but yet comfortable...I cannot wait for this wedding, I have been waiting for this wedding for like four months...about the same amount of time as I've been waiting for Disney...

Letting it out.

So let me just say that I am just full of a lot of thoughts and ideas tonight, so don't be offended.......
I am getting sooo annoyed with my mother...I mean I know there are some people out there who will probably not appreciate me bashing my mom when they may not have a mother to bash, but sometimes just venting it out helps to soothe you again.....Literally I think I really cannot take anymore of her inane questions: "What are you doing? Where are you going? Did you go anywhere today? Did you work today? What time did you work? What did you do at work today? What did you do today? Go get my sneakers off the line for me....Where did you just go???"......All asking the most stupidest questions like a 5 year old...And not to mention the fact that I just CANNOT drive with her...she does at most 15 miles/hour on any given road in or outside of town, yesterday I was on the highway with her and I just Literally have to bite my lip and strangle myself...She was doing about 45 mph on Rte 9...where the limit was 65!!!!
I was about to kill her....All of her freakin questions, her inane sense of humor, her attempts to be in on any conversation, I am just going out of my mind. I think one of us has to either work or go to school longer in the day.

Does anybody watch TLC?? I'm a fan of "Jon and Kate plus 8"...That woman, not to mention both of those parents, are my heroes...10 people in that household, 8 kids that are below the age of 7, I think I'd actually shoot myself.....The thing is that my mom and sisters started to watch it, it runs like three hour marathons nearly every night, and I was not a fan of it until I sat down to watch it and I was amazed at how organized and structured those kids lives are, and those parents deserve some serious vacation time for just themselves.....Although Kate seems like a bit of a bitch, but I'm sure its just that she needs to stay focused and strict until the kids get old enough to govern themselves respectfully...But kudos to them man.

I'm going to my friends daughters birthday party on Saturday. However, it is up at their campground and I am spending the night on Friday, so she is excited cause I've only been up there one other time..But I need to relax, and I think that this will be the time to do so...I will be drinking, don't you worry about that...Plus Sunday I have a Jack and Jill to go to, so I know that will be fun...One good weekend that I have definitely deserved..

I made Chex Muddy Buddies today....on Jon and Kate plus 8 she calls it Monkey Munch...with the Chex cereal and melted peanut butter, chocolate, and powdered sugar...I haven't had that in years, it came out realllll good...Why don't people bring that to parties for a dessert/snack?? Nobody ever thinks of it, it's just so simple that people don't think they can use it....It's really some good times...

I'm getting excited about my Disney vacation, but I'm also upset cause my aunt is doing a Boston trip on Oct. 25th and I am leavin on the 24th, so that doesn't work for me!!! I wanted to go because I would have had an awesome time with my Aunt Lisa all day...But I'll be in Disney with another aunt, who can be fun toooo.......

Okay well I have to go to bed right now but this really helped me...I needed to vent a bit about different things, and this is the perfect outlet.....SoOOOOOO TTYL.

Vacation all I ever wanted...

So I have decided to take the semester off. It would have just been too much to take a full course load with only electives, cause I have finished my general education requirements, so now the only thing left to do is apply to the Professional School of Education, and I wouldn't start that anyway until the Spring, so I decided to save the money for then instead of blowing it on courses I didn't actually need. It was a hard decision, but I also thought in the long run I would be okay.

It actually wll work out too since one of my good friends is ready to apply also, and I'm hoping that we both get accepted and that her and I will be in some classes together. She's awesome, and she's Italian so a huge help to all of us.

Another reason why I decided to take the semester off is because of my weeklong vacation to Florida in October. I'm going to Disney for five days and then to West Palm Beach (to visit some relatives, definitely not to show off this flabby beach body) for three days, so I decided it would be better that I wouldn't have to miss a week of school. I cannnnnnot wait for this vacation, I haven't been on a vacation in seven years, and that was Pennsylvania Dutch (oh yeah, I'm that boring), but before that was Italy. Who knows when I'll be going back there, but I am focusing on finishing school and then hopefull if I can save for the next two years, that will be my graduation present to myself. But anyway I'm excited for Disney, cause I've only been there once like ten years ago, but it was the middle of the summer, I went with my grandmother, it was really cool then, but it's gonna be better now!

Here's the thing, and you all might think I'm crazy: I don't do rides. I can't do anything that spins, rock and rolls, or roller coasters. I get motion sick from just watching things on t.v. and I'm already getting anxious over having to fly, cause I am not a consistent flyer, so I am a nervous wreck!

But at any rate, I know there is tons more to do at Disney besides just rides. I do know that I can handle like just normal rides and attractions, like Soarin, Fast track doesn't seem to bad even though it gives you like a spin around the track at the end. Make fun of me if you must, but I am soooo going to Epcot for the Living Seas exhibit, with Finding Nemo and all that cool shit. Yeah I'm a big dork.

Soooo give me some suggestions. We haven't decided what we're going to do on the Fourth Day, cause we have four days to actually do Disney, so we were thinking Magic Kingdom, Epcot, ( i think) Universal, and the fourth day we have no clue, but we do have Park hoppers so we could probably see two in one day...Samantha Brown from the travel channel suggests that if you do Park hoppers, you go to one park in the morning and then try to go back to your hotel around noon, take a nap, and then return around like 3 or 4 to do some more parks, or something like that. That sounds good to me, cause I know I'll be F-ing tired enough. I do definitely want to do Epcot and the World Showcases, I want to do magic kingdom and all that stuff, but I just cannot wait. It may sound boring to some, but I'm a hardworking guy who doesn't have time and money to spend like the rest of us, going on three or four vacations a year, it just doesn't work like that, which is why you appreciate the vacation that comes along after seven years.

Sooo until next blog...

Politics

Now I am not a political person... I avoid all politics and I don't care to watch Conventions on TV or follow elections in other states, or even local politics. In my eyes, all kinds of political discussions in this country always lead to a heated debate that I just don't feel like starting. I really can't say I don't care about politics, but I care a whole lot LESS about them than other things in my life.  I suppose at one point in the future I will be more interested in who runs the country, and I think it's going to be soon cause I have been more intrigued by this latest Presidential running than all others.  So with that said, I observed a few things. 

I couldn't sleep at like 1 a.m. this morning, so I woke up and just was flipping through the channels when I got to MSNBC and they were (I think) re-running the Democratic National Convention which had been on (technically) the "night" before. I watched Hillary Clinton rouse the whole audience to such a fervor that I was very inspired. I heard her spoke with such eloquence and poise about her former running opponent Barack Obama, I was impressed. Mrs. Clinton had gracefully lost the Democratic nomination for President (someone can correct me if I'm wrong, I'm just making conversation), but she was very nice enough to shift all of her former attention and energy to back the new face of the election, Mr. Obama. She spoke about how we cannot afford to "stand on the fence" and the time is now to unify on one side of the fence. She was also graceful enough to speak of the opposition, John McCain, saying that he was a colleague and friend of hers, but that she respectfully did not agree with his political choices and beliefs. She said that "We do not have a moment to lose or a vote to spare, the time is now...We cannot afford another four years just like the last eight years." 

Anyway, maybe I sound stupid and sentimental, but I was thoroughly impressed with her speech. She blew everyone away at that Convention, and she showed such sportsmanship in the face of defeat, and she genuinely encouraged all of her supporters to transfer that same energetic and loving support to Barack Obama. I had just never heard or seen anyone give such a truly sincere speech about anyone else in that position. I was on Hillary's side too, and I was upset that she didn't get the nominations that she needed, but since she is now rallying support for Obama, I think that the rest of us, if only for want of a new Democratic presidency, need to consider our votes. 

Something that she said really touched upon my mind..in so many words she said "Ask yourself one question: Were you in this election for me? Or were you in it for that mother with two children to raise? Were you in it for that Marine with a family back at home to support? Were you in it for that soldier who was worried about his friends and families who did not have enough medical insurance?" So in other words, were you following Hillary just because she was who she was, or because she was standing up for all of those issues that our nation is concerned about?? It just really made me think. And I am hoping that whatever the outcome is, that we can elect the truly right person for that ever so important job. 

So let me tell ya, I was really worked up when I finally went back to bed at 3 a.m....

WTF?

So I was just taking a look at a few of todays headlines on my msn home page, and I just have one question: Why is it that a "disaster" isn't truly a "disaster" until it is declared as such??? The headline says "Bush declared Fay-swept Florida a disaster"...Well Thank God for Bush! I'm just so relieved that all of those people in Florida who fell victim to Hurricane Fay are considered 'disasters'. Same thing when Hurricane Katrina came through Louisiana, Bush flew over the areas in a helicopter and declared it a "National Disaster". Ya know, it's a damn good thing we have Bush (if not for anything else) to declare an area ravaged with unimaginable wind, water, and flooding damages a 'disaster'. Now we can all sleep tonight knowing that we don't have to wonder "Well, is it a disaster? Or is it just a tragedy???" The whole of the American people couldn't possibly be able to distinguish their own Goddamned disasters! Some individuals that I know are just walking disasters themselves!

Maybe work made me irritable....I hate Sundays at work. Oh don't get me wrong, I love the time and a half pay, but sometimes it's so freakin inane on a Sunday: boring, slow, stupid ass customers, and people who just throw their money at me for a Sunday paper, and don't have any manners, cut everyone else in line, and then when they hand me a dollar, I ask what it's for, they just say "paper" and stand there like I didn't have someone else to take care of....and while I'm on that subject, I'm tired of people coming up to the SD with their fuckin groceries like "Can you ring me up here? There's lines" Yeah I know there's lines, you just stood in MY line to ask that DUMBASS question...and NO YOU CANNOT RING OUT AT THE SD WITH ALL THOSE GROCERIES!!! WHY is it that you don't want to wait in the line at the checkout with only three people, but you stood in my line of five deep to just ask that question, cause you think you are special or something??? AND NO I CAN'T RING UP PRODUCE AT THE SD I DON'T HAVE A SCALE, GET OVER IT!!!...and don't you just love those people who see that you are clearly counting, or aren't ready to take the next customer and they POUNCE on your spot like they're a fuckin King Lion and you're a wimpy gazelle...like today I had just come in and got my tray handed to me, and I have to count the money before I ring anything up. I'm standing there on my side of the SD counting my money, and some woman PUSHES her way past the customers in line for LOTTO (the other woman working with me was taking care of them) and starts to ask me for a book of stamps...I was like "UM, I'M NOT OPEN YET, AND SHE CAN TAKE CARE OF YOU IN A MINUTE...OR THEY HAVE STAMPS AT THE REGISTERS". Well, maybe I didn't yell it, but my mind was yelling and I was just politely, but sternly, telling the woman exactly that. Why don't they put signs or something on the registers saying "Stamps Sold Here"?? Day after day I see idiots go through the registers and then go directly to the SD and get stamps...why oh why do they torment me??? I always tell them "You know they have stamps at the registers too"....and I get the classic "Oh I didn't know that!!" Of course you knew that! We've been selling them for nine years and all of a sudden you didn't know that??!! Get your stamps and get the fuck out!!?....Whoo...i've got to calm down..these customers got me wanting to go Gangsta on them every day!

The Morning After

So last night I was at my cousin's house playing this game called "Apples to Apples"...and I really think that her neighbors are going to be calling the cops on us cause we laughed sooooo hard and loud until 12:30 a.m. 

The game is hysterical, there are two decks of cards, one green and one red. The red cards all have the name of a person, place, thing, idea or event of some sort, and the green cards all have basic adjectives and descriptive phrases on them. Each person gets seven cards and the "judge" (who is basically like the card dealer) flips over one green card (with a descriptive word on it) and the rest of the players have to choose one card from their pile which best fits the descriptive card. The funny thing is that it's not literal, you can soooooo have fun with it, and that's half the fun. 

For example, last night when the judge put down a card saying "Disturbing" I immediately put down my card that said "My Bedroom"...anyway I thought it was funny. It gets more hysterical as it goes on...so I suggest that everyone find this game and give it a try. 

But between my cousin, her husband, my aunt, and one of my good friends who is soooooo f-ing funny I can't even keep a straight face, we laughed sooo hard, long, and loud for like five hours my throat was sore this morning from all the laughing...Plus when I laugh as hard as all that I get the hiccups, so now we were laughin double cause I couldn't even laugh the right way without a big hiccup...

You had to be there....We're all gonna live an extra ten years with all the laughin we did.

Random Thoughts

So the only blogging I usually do is on my Myspace page, but here it goes for everyone to see...

I'm getting really frustrated. Like everyone, I am dealing with the day to day grind of working, paying bills, and going to school full-time (okay, maybe not everyone goes to school, but bear with me..) and I really think that I'm trying my damndest to do it all in an orderly fashion.  I cannot wait until I am done paying for my car, which will be in March. That will be a monthly burden off my shoulders, which are already bearing the burden of everything. 

I guess work isn't too bad, for the most part. I work in a supermarket and people are okay mostly, but everyone has their days.  My supervisor, whom we'll call 'B' hasn't made it easy either. Since B has arrived, nobody has enjoyed working anymore. The woman who worked here before B was a pure delight, and everyone loved her and there wasn't one bad thing that you could say about her.  TOTALLY DIFFERENT with B. There isn't one GOOD thing anybody can say about her, and that's all I'm going to say.  Because I am in a position where I would have to work alongside her, I really had a hard time getting along with her for a long time.  Only recently have I started to sort of get along with B just out of necessity of working.  I really was getting tired of coming into work hostile, and receiving hostility back from B day after day.  So, that being said, it really didn't help today when B pulled me in the office and told me she had written me up for something which I'm not so sure I did. So that did not help my day go better, because it was Friday, and as always it was a terribly busy day and I was just tired....so needless to say now I am fuming a little cause I've never been written up before and now I have been written up for something which I'm not positive that I did. 

Besides all that, I like the people that I work with in my department, some of them could use a few light slams (such as B), but somehow, someday they will get theirs....

What else is there??? School. School is starting in a week and a half, and I'm not even registered for classes yet. Let me tell ya why....Oh it's just great. 

For some reason, when you fill out for Financial Aid in college, the US Dept. of Education requires that you put down your parents as well as your financial information.  They do not care if you do not live with your parents or if they don't claim you on their taxes, or if they don't help you at all financially...they DOn't Care!! They want the parents information until the student/filer is 25 years old...which will be this year for me so good. Anyway, last year when I filled out my FAFSA (Free Application for Federal Student Aid) for this school year, the school required some forms to be handed in to their financial aid office.  Well that required getting the forms from My father...which in turn he would have to get from his accountant...Fast forward to June of this year and I've been hounding my father for nearly a year now and he still hasn't gotten these forms.  So what did my school do?? They 'canceled' all of my courses for Spring 2008, totally erasing me from the roster so now it doesn't look like I even attended school this past semester, AND they 'canceled' my financial aid that I received for the same time frame, so it looks in their system like I 'owe' a whole years tuition to them.. and until I produce these forms and then Talk to the Dean of Students, will I be able to fix the whole mess and then register for classes... Since school starts on September 2, I doubt this is all going to happen in a week and a half..unless there is some gigantic miracle.  So I'm really feeling a crunch here...

So basically right now that's my story. I'm in limbo until I get this whole thing straightened out, and I just continue to work at the good ol' SD and hope for some adjustments.  As long as nothing major happens with B or anyone else, I'll be alright.