Island in the Sun

Racing and Pacing and Plotting the Course

2012-02-01T06:11:00.003-05:00

The end of this week marks the midpoint of training for the half-marathon. Feels like a good time to look at how it's been going.

If you don't already know, I'm running the Rock 'n Roll Half-Marathon in D.C. on March 17.

This is week 6 of training, and if I'm being honest, I haven't really been great about it. I didn't really keep to the mid-week runs during the first four weeks. Look, no excuses. I shouldn't have been so nonchalant about it, but here was my thinking: waking up at 5 a.m. to run was just so unappealing. Plus, the long runs were two four-mile runs and two five-mile runs. Well, I ran four and five miles, like, four times a week all summer and fall.

The point is this: I knew I could get out and run four and five miles without a problem. So I didn't feel the urgency to get after it as hard as I should have. And I did. I finished the first few long runs without an issue.

Well on Saturday, I ran six miles -- the longest distance since the first half-marathon nearly two and a half years ago. I knew the six-mile run was going to be the most challenging of training so far, so I knew I had to get my ass in gear and do the mid-week morning runs leading up to it.

See, the thing about training is it's not all about getting up to the distance and running further. Of course that's a large part of it. Another large part of it is getting your body accustomed to the wear-and-tear.

I was running between 15 and 20 miles a week between July and October, and I never experienced any injuries (that weren't related to softball haha). Once I started my job at the end of October, I really fell off the running wagon.

So you could say I was a little concerned about the six-mile run. It was entirely my own fault, but it is what it is. On a few of the earlier training runs, I experienced a little tightness in my right hamstring. That's a problem because that's what I injured during the summer of 2010 when I tried to train for a half-marathon.

The pain hasn't been nearly as bad, and I've been obsessive about stretching. And the pain has subsided as soon as I stop running or stretch it out, which tells me it isn't necessarily an injury -- it's just a little tightness that will hopefully work itself out as I continue to stretch properly and run more often. That's what I'm hoping anyway.

Well, I woke up on Saturday, walked Allie and stretched for the run. I mapped out a three-mile path so I could run to the turn-around point and come back, totaling six miles. I made it about a mile and a half when I felt the first twinge in my hamstring. I immediately stopped and stretched it out for a good minute or so. The next two and a half miles passed by pain-free, which is significant because almost the entirety of the path from mile marker 2 to mile marker 3 was the most ridiculous uphill stretch I've ever done.

That I was able to run the entire way up that hill without experiencing any hamstring pain is a huge reason why I'm so hopeful it's nothing terribly serious. At the top of the hill, mile 3, I paused again for another minute or two to stretch. I stopped to stretch once more at mile 4.5.

All told, I walked barely a quarter-mile of the six mile path and stopped to stretch for a total of maybe six or seven minutes. And I still finished the six miles in just more than 62 minutes.

Let's GO. That tells me my pace is pretty solid, and as long as I keep up with stretching and don't miss anymore mid-week runs I'm going to be just fine. What a relief. I'm really excited about not experiencing any lingering pain in the hamstring.

A year and a half ago, it hurt constantly -- walking, running (obviously), standing, whatevs. And the pain lasted for almost a solid YEAR. It was terrible. So that's why I'm concluding it'll work itself out if I'm responsible about the rest of training.

I really can't wait. I've been thinking about the first half-marathon more lately. What a fucking adrenaline rush. As I got closer to the finish line, with maybe three-quarters of a mile or half a mile to go, I could hear the crowd cheering. And let me tell you, that's exactly when you need to hear the cheers.

My legs felt like jelly. Well, I don't know that because I couldn't really feel them anyway. I'm honestly pretty surprised I didn't fall down because I tried to run a bit harder down the homestretch. And that's not really feasible when your legs are bordering on numbness.

Anyway. We're almost to the midpoint of training, and while I haven't been as on-the-ball as I should have been so far, I think I'm still on track. I can get it back quickly, and there's still plenty of time left to make the gains I need to make. CAN'T WAIT.

Let's go!

-BG

Lighting the Fuse

2012-01-30T06:26:00.004-05:00

A couple of brief notes before I really get to writing:

I feel like I need to share my dream from Friday night. Two friends from work joined me in helping a third co-worker friend move. We were all really excited because one of the co-workers brought her friends.

The band from the awesomely 90s TV show California Dreams. The characters, not the actors.

They helped us with the moving, and then they let me jam with them. Like you do. Oh, and it was the original lead singer, Matt, who was there -- not Jake, the later guy with the leather jacket. You know, FYI.

Don't wake me up if I'm dreeeaaammin'. And they didn't! So that happened.

And this happened, too. File this under "Reasons I Sometimes Wonder How I Survived to 29."

If you read this space in the Fall, you may remember me talking about the movie 50/50 and how I really wanted to see it. Well it came out on Bluray/DVD last week, so I wanted to rent it.

I stopped by the Redbox at the grocery store across the street. I'd never used Redbox before, and I was surprised you can only pay by credit card. So anyway, I went through the menus, and I found 50/50. I paid my $1.27 and looked at the movie. It's a DVD. Dammit I wanted to get the Bluray. Watching anything NOT in HD on my TV is very distracting because of the size of the TV. #firstworldproblems

But it was only $1.27, right? I'll just return it and pay another $1.27 (for a total of $2.54) and still be getting a pretty solid deal. Well. I returned it and went through the screens again only to discover the Bluray version of the movie was out of stock.

So I paid $1.27 to hold the DVD ever so briefly. And I had to rent it from OnDemand for $6. And I have to say, it's now one of my favorite movies. It was so, so good. Naturally, it reminded me of Erik, which I was expecting, so there was definitely some sadness. But it brought a lot of happy memories back, too, and the movie was just great. Go see it. Immediately.

Also, I may or may not be (but definitely AM) completely in love with Anna Kendrick now. I'll have to check out some of her other work -- most notably, the George Clooney movie Up in the Air, which I did not see when it came out.

Anyway. I want to write very briefly about Saturday. I don't intend for this to be a really long post, but we all know what usually happens when I start rolling.

Saturday was Jan. 28. It marked one year since I relatively unexpectedly became unemployed. As I was getting out of the shower on Saturday and dancing to "I Want You Back" in the bathroom, it struck me what that meant. And I felt compelled to write.

I will never forget that day. It had snowed a few days earlier, and my car experienced a near catastrophe when a large tree branch fell directly on it. Luckily, because there was nearly a foot of snow blanketing the entirety of the car, the branch had a nice cushion when it hit. There was no damage.

I managed to dig out over the next day or so, and I headed to work that Friday morning. Two of the partners called me into one of their offices early that morning and explained what was happening. I packed up my things and headed home, unemployed.

As I sat on the metro that morning, it started to snow again. I felt like I was sitting outside my body, watching the scene unfold. I had no idea what I was going to do. The ex-girl and I signed a lease to move into a townhouse the previous night.

I called my parents and told them what happened. I didn't want to bother the ex-girl at work because she likely couldn't have answered the phone anyway, and, in the first of a series of related bad decisions, I didn't want to burden her with it right away.

We went to dinner that night, and I told her in the car. It was exactly as devastating as I expected it would be. The next day, I explained the situation to the guy who would have been our landlord, and he let us out of the lease. Tough few days, really.

And here's something that seems incredible today: I didn't tell Mike until March 17. Almost two months went by before I told him. Ridonk. It's funny because if something similar were to happen now (God forbid, geez), I feel like I'd probably call him during the meeting. Lulz.

I'm not going to go into the rest. I already wrote it this month in my year in review (Part 1, Part 2, Part 3).

It's just that when I realized what the date was, I knew I needed to write something about it. It was the day that lit the fuse, man. It set off a chain reaction of events that led me inexorably to where I am today.

So in a lot of ways, I am thankful for it because I am so thankful for where I am now. If it hadn't happened, I might not have hit the rock bottom I needed to hit to turn things around; I might not have lost all that weight; I might not have joined the softball team; I obviously wouldn't have found the job I have now; I might not have met all the wonderful people I've met since then; I might not have had the opportunity to figure myself out to the degree I have; and so on and so on.

It certainly is hard to dispute I am better off in every way now than I was then. It's funny how things that seem so terrible at the time end up being the catalyst for incredibly positive changes, actions and behaviors.

So there you go. January 28, and I am so much better off than I was a year ago. Pretty crazy how things work out.

-BG

2011 Part 3: Livin' Life for a Living

2012-01-16T06:23:00.007-05:00

First of all, sorry for the incredible delay in getting this written. Last week was one of the most ridiculous weeks of work I've ever experienced. Don't get me wrong! It was awesome. I had a lot of fun being that busy, but I was just that: very, very busy.

Anyway, here we go!

So here's the thing about me. I've never had terribly high self-esteem. I don't have low self-esteem either. I don't know. I'm perfectly happy with most of me, and I think I'm fine. But I very, very rarely look in the mirror and think, "Damn, son. Nice."

Well. When I woke up on the morning of April 17, I weighed almost 230 pounds. When I woke up on the morning of Sept. 3, I weighed 188. Needless to say, I was feeling it. I walked Allie early that morning to get the blood flowing, and I got myself ready to go. I had a 5K to run!

I got my running gear on, and I was ready. And for the first time in, well, maybe ever, I looked in the mirror and thought, "Now you're talking. I am looking good today." And then I killed the race -- improved on my time from the previous year by more than five minutes. It was an unbelievable feeling. Such a great day.

And really, thus began what continues to be the most ridiculous time of my life.

The last third of the year turned 2011 from one of the most difficult years of my life into one of the most fun, rewarding and fulfilling years of my life. It all started with that 5K. I blew my goal out of the water, which sent my self-confidence skyrocketing. Shortly thereafter, I hit my lowest weight in more than six years, clocking in at 186 pounds.

It had been years since I felt that good. And oh boy did the good times keep rolling.

Two weeks later, I made plans to visit Raleigh for the first time in a year. I coordinated with Mike and Nick and a few others to get tickets to the N.C. State football game that weekend, and we were going to make a big deal of me being in town. I got a hotel that allowed dogs, and Allie and I made the trek to Raleigh.

That weekend was to be the first time Mike and I hung out in person since we became best friends. It did not disappoint.

I don't need to rehash the weekend. I already wrote about it, so feel free to check out those stories (Part 1, Part 2). Suffice it to say, it was the first of many experiences where Mike and I could only look at each other and exclaim, "That just happened." It was the origin of the desire for the anonymous blog.

That weekend had everything. Old friends I hadn't seen in a while, new friends, lots of dancing, football, Lilly's Pizza. It was the perfect outlet for everything I'd been building toward all summer in terms of getting into better shape and blowing up my energy level. So great.

It helped me to realize I was getting things in order. My life was starting to line up in ways it never had before -- in ways that were really exciting to me. I still didn't have a job, but I felt good. There were promising leads.

Within a few weeks, I decided to try to start dating again. For several months, I dedicated myself to focusing on improving me, and I had done a better job than even I ever believed I could. I'm not saying I was perfect, but I was incredibly excited about the progress and positive changes I made. It was time to meet girls again. And that really picked up in October.

To my everlasting surprise, the dating game has been pretty good to me. I've met some really cool people -- some more interesting than others haha. But it's been a lot of fun. I've never really done this before, and I've always kind of felt like I missed out because of my, you know, serial monogamist tendencies.

Getting back on that horse was something I really wanted to do, but I was actually kind of nervous about it. After all, I didn't have a job, so I had no idea how that whole conversation would go. And even though I almost definitely looked better than I ever had before, I was still anxious because that's just how I roll haha.

All of that has proven to be unfounded though. First of all, mid-way through October, I received a job offer. That was a hell of a week.

I had my final job interview on a Wednesday morning (Oct. 12). That Saturday, Kirk and Liz were getting married in Charlotte. My plan was to drive to Charlotte on Wednesday to get the terrible seven-hour drive out of the way. On Friday morning, I was going to drive to Raleigh because Mike and Laura both had birthdays on the following Monday. We were going to go be ridiculous on Friday. I mean. Sign me up. Obviously. Then I'd wake up early on Saturday morning and head back to Charlotte for the wedding. It was a lot of driving, I'll admit, but it seemed doable. Plus, it was all going to be a lot of fun, so it seemed worth it.

Well.

That plan went to shit almost immediately. It rained most of the day before I left. By the time I was done with my interview around lunch time, it was a very gray day. The dog and I hit the road around 3 p.m., which was going to put us in Charlotte around 10 or 11 p.m., while hopefully missing most of the traffic.

Around 8 p.m., I was on I-85 in Virginia, approximately 20 miles before the North Carolina border. It finally stopped raining, and there were no other cars around, so I put on the cruise control and relaxed.

I saw something in the road up ahead, but it didn't look like anything at first. Then, because I was finally driving at full speed, it came up quick. I swerved, but it was too big to avoid completely.

It was a huge tree branch, and it busted both tires and wheels on the passenger side of my car. Thankfully, I somehow managed to retain control of the vehicle and moved over to the shoulder. I called my parents to tell them what happened. I called AAA to get a tow truck out, and then I was stumped. I did the only thing I knew to do. I called Mike. Long story short, I ended up stranded in Raleigh from Wednesday night until my mom could drive to Raleigh on Saturday morning to get me.

A brief aside about Allie. That dog, man. I've never known a dog more laid-back than her. She will roll with ANYTHING. She was a little concerned at first when we had to pull over, but for the most part, she just hung out in the backseat. Then the tow truck came, and she was totally fine in the backseat of my car on the back of the flatbed. The cab of the truck was too small for the driver, the dog AND me. So she just chilled in the back. I opened the windows for her, and she eventually just went to sleep.

Anyway, Mike was nice enough to let me use his car while I went back and forth to the mechanic. It ended up taking days longer than it should have because they did not put the car on the lift to determine exactly what was wrong before they ordered parts. They ordered one wheel and two tires. When they went to put those on, they found out the rear passenger wheel was also busted. The problem was it was already Friday afternoon, so it was going to be at least Monday before the car was ready. No problem. I'll hang out in Charlotte until it's done. I didn't have anywhere to be.

And then I got the call that changed my life. A job offer!

See what I mean? The final third of the year was extraordinarily kind to me. I'd been waiting for that phone call for months. Somehow, it lived up to every expectation I had. Every hope I'd built up for that moment -- wow. I screamed. I sobbed. I ran around the house and did cartwheels. I love everybody.

Finally, the one thing that still stressed me at all -- it was done. The offer came 14 days before I needed to vacate my apartment. Thankfully, the leasing office hadn't rented out my apartment yet, so I was able to sign a new lease. I wasn't going to be homeless!

I'm getting the chills just thinking about that day again. That was the best.

This job, man. It is excellent. In my life, I've never been this busy. I work more now than I ever have before. And I truly love every second of it. I love my coworkers so much. We work so hard together, and we play just as hard together. Haha gah I am SO happy.

Tough to beat October, right? November was pretty ridiculous though. I went to Raleigh again for the UNC game, and we did what we do, man. Dancing every night. Football all day. We tailgated early on Saturday morning for the game. We grilled pancakes and bacon, and one of Mike's friends made spiced wine on the grill, too.

State beat Carolina for the fifth year in a row, and that made going out Saturday night particularly sweet (even though we couldn't leave until we watched that lame-ass Alabama/LSU game haha). P.S. Mike, you all right, man? I mean, really. You OK? Lulz.

We all crashed at Mike's apartment after a ridiculous night of dancing and 4 a.m. McDonald's. It looked like a refugee camp. Mike and Nick shared his bed. Four people slept on the floor, with bags and clothing strewn about. I was asleep on half of a loveseat. Why half? Because Allie was asleep on the other half. Like you do.

It was so, so awesome haha. It may not sound awesome, but I can't even begin to explain how much fun I'm having right now.

That Sunday was Bark for Life! Allie and I went out and met Adam, Danielle, Danielle's sister and Erik's parents. We raised a solid amount of money to fight cancer, so thank you to everyone who donated for that. Team VIVA LA DUCK ended up raising the third-most money of any team at the event. We'll be back again next year, too.

Just two weeks later, I headed to Boston (Part 1, Part 2). Scorpion bowls -- yikes. I don't need to write about all that again. Check out those stories, though. And then what happened. Whew.

October and November were also filled with flag football and softball! Softball was particularly awesome. Almost all the same people (plus a few new ones) from the CAN spring/summer league joined up to play in the D.C. Fall recreational league. We figured we'd get some experience playing together to prepare us for the next CAN season.

Then we went 9-1, winning the regular season league championship. HEY OH. And we have awesome trophies to prove it. Damn that was fun haha. I finally found a spot on the field I really enjoy playing, too. I was always an outfielder growing up. I used to be pretty good, too. But not throwing a baseball for damn near 10 years got to me, and I don't have the arm strength I did in high school and college.

It's really not THAT bad, but there are some guys on the team with legit cannons for arms, so it felt like poor strategy to continue putting myself out there when there were people who could do it better. Don't get me wrong. No one tracks and catches fly balls better than I can. But there's more to it than that, you know? So I tried out playing first base. Oh man. Love it. A lot. I have some room to improve, but wow I loved playing first base.

I can't wait to get out there and play again. The next CAN season is only a couple of months away. I told Dale I'd be one of the coaches with him, so that's going to be really awesome. Legit pumped doesn't even begin to describe it.

So anyway, the holiday season kicked off with Thanksgiving, and I was just overwhelmed with emotion. I have absolutely no problem admitting how lucky I feel on a daily basis. I work hard for what I have, that's true, but I am also truly, truly blessed. Especially after the first two-thirds of 2011 -- for me to emerge on the other side with my sanity and happiness not only intact, but at all-time highs? Wow. Thank you to everyone who played a part in that.

November and December are always nice because I get to see my family more often than usual. Plus, my sister comes home for Christmas, and I only see her like twice a year MAX now because she lives in south Florida.

Plus, the dating game continued to be pretty good to me in November and December. I'll say this, thank God I lost 40 pounds. That confidence and energy boost has just done wonders for me. Let's GO.

The week between Christmas and New Year's at work was slow, comparatively, haha. It was still as busy as I ever was anywhere else I worked, but compared to how busy we usually are here, it was laid-back and relaxed haha. I really can't say enough about how much fun I have with my coworkers. So great.

New Year's Eve! My plan all along was NOT to do anything. I was exhausted from all the travels of the previous several weeks and from working, and I loved the idea of a quiet night at home to ring in the new year.

Well, Carnell gchatted me around mid-day to let me know he was going to head to Evan's apartment downtown and that I should come. I'm so glad he gave me such advanced notice so I could plan my night haha.

The great thing about New Year's is you start drinking at like 6 or 7 p.m., right? By the time midnight rolls around, every one is already feeling really good, and it's almost time for bed haha. We started the night at Evan's apartment and then moved to Local 16, a bar downtown on U St.

Surrounded by a few of my closest new friends, I said goodbye to one of the most ridiculous, challenging and, in the end, incredible years of my life.

I'm so excited I decided to document the last half of the year here. This blog was so much fun these past few months. I have truly loved sharing my stories with you, and I am so blown away by the response. People actually read my bullshit. And not only that, they're excited to read my bullshit. I actually had a lot of people actively badger me about writing this post because they couldn't wait to read it. Do what now. Thank you so, so much to everyone who stops by to read my words. This blog is nothing without you.

Here's a brief list of my favorite blog posts this year:

Beware: Lots of Words Ahead, June 3 -- This is the post that started it all. I held everything in for too long, and I needed an outlet. I needed some accountability. Boom.

Break-ups, (500) Days of Summer and the Art of Moving On, July 6 -- This one is my favorite post that I've written. It is honest and thoughtful, and it's written just a few weeks after a break-up. Plus, I love that movie, and some of the things I wrote have proven to be stunningly prescient.

The Single Life, Sept. 26 -- I finally realized things were coming together for me. And being single was actually really good for me. Who knew, right?

Another Summer's Gone, Oct. 3 -- I always have connected Fall with love. Always. I really enjoyed writing this one because of the happy memories it brought up. Also, foreshadowing like whoa haha.

Employed, Oct. 17 -- Everything I'd been building toward and anticipating in this space, week to week, culminated in that post. For the WIN.

Hey. Thanks., Dec. 7 -- So many people helped me in so many ways. I had to give some thanks for that.

And that's a wrap on 2011. I left out some things, I know. Some of them I left out because this is not an anonymous blog. If it was, whew haha. Some things, I'm sure I just forgot to include unintentionally. It happens. I hope you enjoyed this as much as I did. It was a lot of fun for me to go back and relive this year.

I am so lucky, you know? So many wonderful things happen to me, and I can't imagine why I deserve it. I am so thankful though. I am overwhelmed with joy at the promise 2012 holds.

I was talking to Mike and Nick on the phone (at separate times haha) a few weeks ago, and I remember saying to them, "You know, the past couple of months has been the first time in my life where I really felt like I truly lived like I was in my 20s."

Does that make sense? I'm finally taking advantage of my relative youth and energy, and it feels so good. I can't imagine that's going to be stopping anytime soon either. Life is so, so good.

Let. Us. Go.

-BG

2011 Part 2: Bouncing Back

2012-01-09T06:35:00.004-05:00

Sorry that part 1 was so down and depressing. I can promise you this: the next two parts are much better!

I had a few people tell me, "wow that was a downer." Well, yeah haha. It was. Imagine living it. It's all good NOW, of course. But you know. It happened.

I was down as far as I've ever been down, and I needed a wake-up call. As I said before, when you're stuck in such a downward spiral, such a pattern of negativity -- it was just so hard to see what was happening. I didn't realize what I was doing.

Then, three things happened. One day, some time in mid-April, the ex-girl came to me and said she was unhappy with how things had been going. Between you and me, in hindsight, it's easy to see I had been taking things for granted. Well when she said what she said, I mean. Wow.

Talk about shaking things up, you know? Something I had never even considered doubting was thrust into question and was no longer certain. You could say I was awake.

I immediately looked at myself, and I saw a few things that unquestionably needed to change if I were ever going to be happy again:

I had to change my eating habits.
I had to get the fuck UP and out of my apartment.
I needed to make local friends.
I needed to start working out for real.

I am extraordinarily proud to say I got my ass the fuck in gear and DID WORK, SON.

I tracked what I ate obsessively. I mean, it had to be an obsession with how bad it was, you know? Every calorie, every gram of fat, every gram of protein, every carbohydrate that entered my body was recorded and tracked to make sure it stayed within an acceptable range.

I began walking Allie two miles twice a day instead of just once. Every two-mile walk burned another 200 calories, so why not do it twice a day? I hit the gym six days a week. I couldn't run just yet because of a hamstring that was still sore from a few months earlier, but I found I could use the stationary bike.

The second thing that happened was Jon's girlfriend contacting me to see if I wanted to fly back to Charlotte for Jon's birthday. Oh absolutely. The three of us went out for a great dinner with his parents, and then we hit a bar where I got more inebriated than I'd been in months. It was the first of many times I'd be able to say that over the coming months, but it had to start somewhere.

It was my first taste of actually going out and having fun in, embarrassingly, too long. But it is what it is. When I got back after that awesome weekend, I felt fundamentally changed inside. I felt a fire inside I hadn't felt in years.

So I kept doin' work. Tracking what I ate, making smarter decisions about what I ate, walking the dog four miles every day and forcing myself into the gym six days a week. The biggest lesson I learned was NOT to deprive myself of all the foods I loved the most. Some things had to go, of course. But Chipotle, Jersey Mike's -- things like that stayed as long as I made the necessary adjustments elsewhere in the day.

Progress was extraordinarily slow at first. It took nearly five weeks of kicking my own ass every day before I saw the first glimmer of success. By the end of the May, I'd lost 10 pounds. I knew then I could never go back. I was completely consumed with just doing better for myself.

The third thing that happened was maybe the best decision I've made in a long, long time. I joined the N.C. State softball team in CAN. I've written over and over about how awesome my experience was with the team, and how much I absolutely LOVED playing softball. Throughout May and June, I played softball downtown and hung out with the team for hours and hours afterward. It was exactly what I needed.

By the time the end of May/beginning of June rolled around, the ex-girl and I officially ended things.

But I had my obsession to keep me busy. I'd worked running on the treadmill back into the picture, and the weight kept falling off. By mid-June, I'd lost more than 20 pounds.

Remember in part 1 how I said I needed to get away? Well, in early June I did. My cousin Jeb had been trying to get me to go to Savannah with him and a few others for a while, but I just figured I wouldn't be able to because of dog logistics and money logistics, etc.

Once the break-up happened, I needed some debauchery, understandably I would think. I'm not going to go into everything that happened again, but feel free to check out my three-part Savannah story (Part 1, Part 2, Part 3). It was the best weekend I'd had in a long time at that point.

Aside from a cracked rib at the CAN softball tournament in August, the summer was so awesome. I ran. I worked out. I lost weight and got in SUCH better shape. I played softball, drank way too much several times a week with my friends downtown. I was happier than I'd been in as long as I can remember.

The cracked rib sidelined me for a few weeks, but around the time Hurricane Irene rolled through D.C. in late August, I decided it was time to run outside for the first time since I pulled my hamstring the previous summer. I stuck to the treadmill because it's easier on the legs -- less wear and tear and such. But I'd registered for a 5K at the beginning of September, so I figured I should at least run outside for a few weeks beforehand.

And what happened was I rediscovered how much I loved running. Like whoa. I tolerated it on the treadmill because I wanted to get in shape, but when I started running outside, it was a ridiculous adrenaline rush. SO great.

I began to see the 5K as a milestone for me in terms of where I was in my weight-loss and how I was improving my overall fitness. The beginning of September marked around five months since I started trying to change my life and where I'd been going. It also marked the beginning of the most ridiculous four months of my life.

I mean, my life got ridiculous in so many awesome ways I can't even begin to explain. Sometimes, I really do wish I had an anonymous blog so I could share all the stories without anyone finding out it was me.

But more on that in part 3.

2011 Part 1: The Descent

2012-01-04T06:02:00.005-05:00

What a year.

I mean, shit. I remember New Year's Eve 2010 very vividly. The dog and I were at the ex-girl's house with a couple of friends. It was a really, really great night. Here we are, a year later. Almost nothing is as it was that night.

And almost everything was entirely unexpected and unforeseen. HOWEVAH. Almost all of it has been ridonk awesome and for the better. Almost haha.

I've actually been looking forward to writing this year-in-review for a while. If nothing else, this year has given me a LOT of time for reflection. I've thought a lot about this year and what's it meant for me on a lot of levels.

Geez, where to begin?

Overall, I honestly and genuinely believe 2011 turned out to be pretty excellent. And when you consider the extraordinarily inauspicious start, I think that says a hell of a lot about the final third of the year. So as you're reading this first part, keep in mind how, well, awesome I am now haha. It's incredible this is where I started. Parts 2 and 3 will be much more fun and happy, but in order to understand how excellent that was, I have to look at this part, too.

I was so excited about 2011 back in December of last year. There was so much promise, so much to be excited about, really.

A lot of things really seemed to be lining up well and falling into place. The ex-girl and I were thinking about renting a townhouse together. I had a job downtown I enjoyed. In hindsight, though, it's incredibly obvious to me now. I was very unhappy; I just didn't know it at the time.

Then a few things happened that really shook me.

First, the ex-girl and I found a townhouse to rent. Signed the lease and everything. Exciting, right? The next day, my job situation suddenly changed. Obviously, the townhouse couldn't happen anymore. I was devastated. For a lot of reasons.

Honestly, unemployment is pretty embarrassing. It just is. It shouldn't be. It happens. But you know. There you go. And in an effort to put on a strong face and try to force the idea that everything was fine, I internalized a lot of the stress and depression I was feeling at the time.

Well, that's not very productive, now is it? It's not. So what happened? I trapped myself in a downward spiral. Some other things were going on at the time that I clearly did not realize either, and naturally, that did not help matters. Allow me to explain.

I've never been a big guy. I was always very small growing up. At some point over the past two years -- after my half-marathon -- I don't really know what happened. I was complacent, I guess. I stopped taking care of myself the way I should have been. Last Halloween, I went to a party with the ex-girl. At this party, one of my old roommates took a picture of us. We were having a good time, so sure let's take a photo.

Then I saw the photo a few weeks later. Whoa. Who's the fat dude with my girlfriend? Oh shit. That's me.

Then I went home for Christmas. As we do every year, we took photos of Christmas morning. Then I saw the photos. Once again, whoa. When did I get so huge? No, I wasn't morbidly obese or anything. Of course not. But I'm only, like, 5'10". I was nearly 230 pounds. That's not a good look, my friends.

So add those feelings to the increasing feelings of stress, worry, depression, shame and embarrassment, which I was, unwisely, holding inside. Exactly. Nothing good was going to come from that.

I was trying so hard to "be strong" or whatever. It was a poor decision. All I ended up doing was shutting out the people who cared about me. I lost interest in doing anything. I watched a lot of TV. I applied to jobs. And not much else.

I can't even emphasize this enough: that is SO not me, you know? It's incredible to look back on that time now with the benefit of hindsight. Holy hell was I unhappy. How could I let it get so bad and so bleak?

Well, for me, the answer is when you're stuck in a pattern of negative behavior and feelings, it's not always easy to see it. I found a boring routine that suited me, and I stuck to it because it was comfortable. I had blinders on, and I didn't see what was going on around me. Not good times.

It's so strange to think back to a year ago. I seriously cannot even imagine feeling that way now. What in the world. It's just the opposite of everything I know to be, you know, me.

January through, I'd say, mid-April was so incredibly trying. I had a few job interviews. I was a finalist for a position and narrowly missed out. It was a heart-breaking experience -- to get so close to a new job on practically my first try only to be sent back to the beginning. That was in March. Whew. Tough day. It did not help my mindset at all.

I spent my days lying on the couch. I watched the entire series of Mad Men and Breaking Bad. And I didn't do much else. I woke up, fed the dog, went back to sleep, woke up again, applied to a few jobs and hit the couch for the remainder of the day. It was a terrible way to live, and it was a completely unsustainable situation for long-term health and happiness.

Something needed to change. Well, a lot of things needed to change. The only problem was I was stuck in my own head -- so deep into the world of semi-depression I'd created for myself. Not only that, but I did not really tell anyone else I was feeling that way, so I had no idea how those feelings were affecting the people around me, who loved me and who I loved.

I needed a wake-up call. Badly. And I needed to get away.

Happy Holidays!

2011-12-23T08:02:00.002-05:00

How can you not love Christmas?

It's just so much fun. Everything about it makes me so happy. The way the room looks with the Christmas tree light on. The way the air feels and smells. It's just different at Christmas time, you know?

Having the whole family back together is so great. And it happens less and less now. Obviously, I see my brother a fair amount because we both live in the DC area. And because we're both in the same area, my parents make it up our way a good bit since it's a reasonable drive. My sister, however, lives in south Florida for grad school. I am honestly having a hard time remembering the last time I saw her. It really might have been last Christmas. Well, she and her dog will be here tomorrow at the latest.

Every family has their own traditions and Christmas memories, and, obviously, I'm no different. I'm pretty sure I remember talking about this one, specifically, at some point over the past couple of weeks with someone. I think it's kind of funny.

I'm not sure when it started, but I remember it in the early- and mid-90s, after we moved to North Carolina. For reasons I'm not sure I'll ever understand, Kathy Lee Gifford recorded an album of Christmas music. Because of course she did. Well, my mom had the CD and loved it.

Whenever she made her Christmas cookies (for the WIN, by the way), she'd listen to the Kathy Lee Gifford CD. So many of my teenage Christmas memories take place with Kathy Lee Gifford singing "Gloooooooooooooooooria in excelsis Deo" in the background. Like you do.

But man those cookies are my JAM. I've already eaten way too many of the homemade chocolate chip cookies since I got home.

So! Since my dad's Jewish, we also celebrated Hanukkah. By celebrate, I clearly mean we just light our menorah. And since the exact dates of Hanukkah vary year to year, there were definitely years (like this year, P.S.) where we turn on our Christmas lights and then immediately light the menorah.

In fact, from my position on one of the more comfortable recliners on which I've ever sat, I can see a menorah ornament on our Christmas tree, which is also topped with a Star of David. Again, like you do.

Funny story. A few years ago, I wanted to buy my own menorah for my apartment. I was living in Raleigh at the time, and I know the south is not always known for its religious diversity. But I still felt reasonably comfortable that I would find a menorah someplace. I don't normally go to Wal-Mart. I generally find it to be a wasteland of humanity. This time, I figured its mass appeal would mean it would surely have a menorah and/or other Hanukkah things.

I walked out to the big holiday section they had outside. I didn't immediately find anything, so I asked the clerk.

"Excuse me, do you have any menorahs anywhere?"
"What's a menorah?"
...
"You know. It's what holds the candles you light during Hanukkah."
"Hanukkah?"
Well then. "Yes. Hanukkah. It's like Jewish Christmas."
"Ohhh. No we don't have any of that. You can check the candle section though."

Clearly, he missed the point. I humored him and went to the candle section. Predictably, I had no luck.

There was a Big Lots in the same parking lot as the Wal-Mart, so I walked over to that store to try my luck again. There was no sign of any Hanukkah things in the holiday sections, so I asked again.

"Hi. Yeah I'm looking for a menorah."
"You're looking for what?"
"A menorah. The thing that holds the candles for Hanukkah. Nine candles."
"Oh a candle holder. Those are over here. See? This one holds nine candles."
"Noooo that's not exactly what I meant. I don't need just ANY candle holder that holds nine candles. A menorah is a very specific item."

I went to Harris Teeter because I know they have a a reasonable selection of kosher foods and other Jewish items. When the clerk pointed me to the candle section, I just walked out. I did eventually find one at Bed Bath and Beyond, so it was, eventually, a successful effort. So yeah. That happened.

Anyway. Back to Christmas! My favorite Christmas tradition, by far, is our yearly Christmas Eve viewing of "The Muppet Christmas Carol."

We moved to North Carolina in October of 1993. So the Christmas of 1993 was going to be our first without all of our extended family involved. I was 11 years old, and we'd just gotten the movie. Christmas Eve rolled around, and I figured, hey why not. Who doesn't love the Muppets, right? Let's see what the movie is about.

Well. It was awesome. It's still awesome, of course. And this will be the 19th year we've watched this movie on Christmas Eve. I can't wait.

Every December for the past few years, once it gets to be two weeks or so before Christmas, I'll post the first line of the lyrics from the opening song on Facebook. My brother and sister will inevitably reply with the next lines.

And now, through the miracle of social media, some of my friends have discovered our mutual love for the movie, and they will join in as well. So good.

So yeah, I really can't wait to watch this movie. And I know. I'm 29 years old, but I don't care. I've come home and spent Christmas with my family every year so far, and I really don't anticipate that changing anytime soon. I love being home for Christmas.

To everyone who stops by this page to read when I write, thank you from the bottom of my heart. I hope all of you get to be where you want to be this Christmas. And a very, very happy holidays to you and your loved ones.

"It's in the singing of a street corner choir,
it's going home and getting warm by the fire.
It's true wherever you find love,
it feels like Chriiiistmaaas!"

Back next week with my week-long year-in-review. I really can't wait to write those posts. Anyway. Later, kids!

-BG

And Then What Happened: Boston Part 2

2011-12-16T06:57:00.010-05:00

If you missed part 1 of the Boston story, here's where to find it. Really, this photo does more to explain the weekend than anything I could say. It was taken on Sunday afternoon, on our way back from watching football downtown with Katie, Lindsey and my cousin Justine. It took MAYBE 30 seconds for us both to fall asleep.

Anyway. I'm sure I've talked about this before, but I've never in my life had a hangover. I've never gotten sick from drinking too much. I've definitely had enough to warrant those situations, but for whatever reason, it hasn't ever happened. My working theory is that I'm a superhero of some kind with the lamest super powers ever. But I digress.

Now I'm not sure exactly what a hangover feels like. I've woken up and not felt great -- a little bit of a sour stomach sometimes, maybe a slight headache. But it's never been anything I couldn't just wake up and power through.

Well, I woke up on Saturday morning with the biggest headache I'd ever had after drinking. I blame the scorpion bowls. I had some water and took a shower, and I was good after I had some food. I don't know if that counts as a hangover or not, but it's definitely the closest I've ever come. I still say no.

Langdon and I were up around 7:45 or 8 a.m. to head to the airport to pick up J. Mike. Let me take a second to plug J. Mike's blog, where he posted his own story about Boston. Very cool. When J. Mike got in the car, we started recounting some of our old Technician road trip stories. J. Mike and I talked about our infamous trip to cover the Miami game in 2007 where we realized we did not have our press passes two and a half hours in the trip and turned around. "BG, turn around, man. I don't have the press passes." Oy haha.

Then Langdon and J. Mike told a story about a road trip to Winston-Salem to cover a Wake Forest game. The game was long over, and the interviews were done. Langdon and J. Mike exited the field house with the new writer they'd taken along with them, only to be semi-accosted by a homeless man who screamed, for no apparent reason, "And then what happened!" As Langdon told the story, he broke into a dead run as soon as the man yelled. J. Mike followed along quickly enough, leaving the young writer alone. Like you do. Naturally, they tried to spin it into a life lesson for the poor kid in the car.

So there you go. I did what I do, and I ran the saying into the ground all weekend. And then what happened.

We'd made plans to meet Carnell, Katie and Lindsey at this bar near BC's football stadium. There's not a whole lot of room to tailgate for games there, so people often go to bars. This particular bar -- City Bar, I believe it was called -- is where the N.C. State Boston alumni chapter meets before games. Carnell was nowhere to be found until the second quarter of the football game. The girls were very slow to arrive at the bar as a result of Friday night.

Langdon, J. Mike and I had a few drinks and some food and met up with a bunch more of the DC folks who made the trip. We made our way to the stadium, and the game was terrible from the start haha. We were down 7-0 before we even found our seats. What can you do. We laid an egg in the game and lost 14-10. Obviously, we now know how the regular season ends, so it's all good.

That game was the first time I'd really heard the song "Shipping Up to Boston." I documented my thoughts on that last week. I was getting fired up, and they weren't even playing it for me.

So there's not a whole lot to say about the game. After the game, however, Langdon, J. Mike and I hopped on the T to get back downtown to meet Langdon's roommate and his girlfriend for some drinks. We sat down, and I could already tell I was only minutes from sleep. But Langdon saw this guy in a Boston Transit uniform, drinking something out of a Gatorade bottle. Langdon, being Langdon, asked him what kind of Gatorade it was. "My own special blend," he said. (I'm sure it is, I add parenthetically.)

The man, whose name I cannot recall nor do I know if we ever knew, came and sat down near us to share his life story. All I remember is he "fackin' hates loyahz," and he and his ex-wife have a standing appointment in court seemingly daily.

I passed out not long after, but Langdon kept up a conversation the entire ride downtown. And then what happened. Indeed.

The combination of Friday night and a long day on Saturday left all of us pretty drained. We headed back to Langdon's apartment after a few drinks at an Irish pub downtown. When we got back, his roommate and roommate's girlfriend cooked homemade enchiladas for us all. LEGIT. So very good. The roommate made us some kick-ass drinks, too, but of course I don't remember what they were. If Langdon reads this, maybe he can chime in on that. I'd love to know what that drink was. Some kind of ginger beer mixture. For the win.

I tried incredibly unsuccessfully to make plans with Katie and Lindsey. They were, understandably, exhausted and not sure they were going to make it out. Well we were having none of that. So we hit the T and headed downtown. We ended up a bar called Hurricane O'Reillys. Carnell found us while we waited outside, and we headed in. It was pretty much redonk. J. Mike was so excited to be out with us, he joyfully bought all our drinks that night (THANKS BUDDY). Naturally, we drank, I think, four High Life tallboys each. Like you do. Keepin' it classy.

Well, you know how I roll. I got a couple of drinks in me, and it was time to dance. Listen. My arms get involved when I dance. Out to my sides. Above my head. I'm just grooving, man. I can't help myself. The problem was this: I've never seen a more crowded dance floor in my life. My arms were stuck to my sides because I simply couldn't move them.

Carnell peaced out to meet up with some other people he was in town with, so we worked our way over to a side bar and kind of made our own dance floor for a bit. J. Mike got really excited and bought us shots of straight Jager. I don't often take shots of straight liquor. The occasional shot of Jameson this summer, I suppose, but it's not common.

Here's how you know I had a good time. I was checking my Twitter feed after the weekend, and I found the following tweet, timestamped at 1:34 a.m. while we were out Saturday night: "Aww sookie sookie now."

Clearly, I was feeling it.

Langdon and I were finally able to get up with Katie and Lindsey, who DID make it out Saturday night. Katie sent us a picture of the wallpaper where they were and told us to find them and have fun with the scavenger hunt. Of course. As we were getting ready to leave, this guy walked by Langdon, J. Mike and I and LITERALLY showed his teeth to Langdon. What in the world. It was one of the strangest things I've ever seen.

I'm sure Katie and Lindsey have figured this out by now, but there's no chance we could have found them if Katie hadn't checked in at the restaurant/bar on Facebook. I saw the check-in, googled the name and we were on our way.

I left my sister a drunk voicemail. Langdon and J. Mike left Nick and drunk voicemail that went straight to his voicemail hall of fame. Like you do.

So we were walking down to street toward the restaurant where Katie and Lindsey were with some other friends of theirs when these two girls jumped out of an alley, grabbed me by the arms, pulled me into the alley and threw me against the wall.

In my head, I'm thinking, "YEEAAH BUDDY. Best night of my life! Pre-emptively!" I've seen this movie; I know how it ends. One girl was so drunk, all she could do was lean against me. The other girl said to me, in a reasonably thick Boston accent (which is surprisingly endearing on young, cute girls and not middle-aged drunk men), "Please help us. This guy has been following us for, like, five blocks now, and he's really scaring us. You look like you're really cool, so can you pretend to be our friend so maybe he'll leave us alone?"

I'm thinking, well you're the ones that have me pinned against a wall in an alley. Do I need some help? But I said, sure why not. Apparently I look much more intimidating than I feel because that was the second time in a couple of months I was asked to scare someone off.

What the hell do you do in that situation? I looked over at the guy as menacingly as I can (read: not very), and the girls started talking really loudly, "Oh my god, Chris, thank GOD we found you! We've been looking for you for so long!" I continued looking at the guy menacingly, and he seemed to get the point and wandered off.

The girls kissed me and ran off down the street, thanking me profusely. So. That happened haha.

Langdon and J. Mike watched the whole situation unfold and were totally engrossed in what I told them about it. It was so bizarre. I'll tell you what, though. Shit like that DOES NOT happen to fat dudes. It just don't! So once again, hooray losing more than 40 pounds! haha

We finally found the restaurant after some googling and wandering. Katie and Lindsey were extremely surprised we found them. Langdon and I just looked at each other, and we were like, c'mon. Of course we did. Lulz. J. Mike was barely coherent at this point, which was awesome because he began to tweet complete and total gibberish the entire time we were there.

Unfortunately for the world, he went back and deleted it the next morning. I wish I had some examples.

Around 2 or 2:30 a.m., we decided it was time to head back. Now, remember the cab situation I faced the night before? Yeah. Again. Not only was it hard to get the cab drivers even to stop, but when they DID stop and heard where we were going, they often drove off immediately.

So the three of us fanned out to try to get a cab. Langdon and I were on opposite sides of this main street, trying to flag them down. J. Mike, however. Oh lord.

J. Mike took to standing ON the center line in the street, punching cabs as they drove by. It didn't seem like a sustainable situation, but wow do I wish I'd taken a picture of it.

Eventually, we came up with a new strategy. Langdon flagged down the cabs and distracted the driver while I jumped in the backseat and refused to move. Once I got in the backseat, they hopped in too, and we were just like, dude. We've got cash. We're not moving. Drive us home, you know? Shit.

I fell asleep in the cab immediately. Like you do. Like I do, anyway. We got back, paid the cab and headed upstairs. I crashed on the couch so fast I didn't even have time to change clothes.

Sunday morning was a bit rough for J. Mike haha. We finally got him out of bed around noon so we could head downtown to watch football with Lindsey and Katie. And my cousin Justine! Justine lives in Boston, and we tried unsuccessfully to coordinate hanging out Friday and Saturday, but Sunday there was no excuse.

I hadn't seen her since the wedding back in September 2009 that I've talked about so much. Her brother is the one who got married. But she came and hung out with us, and she exhibited what appears to be a BG-family personality trademark: infectious enthusiasm and energy. Good times.

She definitely helped rally us because we were dragging from two solid days of nonsense and staying out until 4 a.m.

Alas, my flight was that night, so we had to head back. The photo up top is from this point in the story. We fell asleep on the T in no time. J. Mike was too nervous to fall asleep, but you could tell Langdon and I are seasoned subway travelers. We fell asleep and would wake up at each of the stations as we approached the station we needed -- which is exactly how I roll on the DC metro.

Made it to the airport and headed back to DC. As we were exiting the plane at National, Katie gave us the most appropriate quote for the entire week: "It's kind of weird being sober."

Indeed it was.

Final verdict: Boston was infinitely more awesome than I expected to be, and I would love to go back very, very soon so I can do actual nerdy touristy things.

Boston, well done!

As always, thank you so, so much for reading and for telling me you enjoy the stories. I get such a huge kick out of knowing people actually like reading my BS.

It should be another insane weekend, again, starting tonight with a party with some work friends, continuing on Saturday night with a holiday-themed bar crawl downtown and then finishing up on Sunday with a date! Doin' the bull dance. Feelin' the flow. Let's GO. Hopefully there will be some blog-appropriate stories! Have a great weekend, kids.

Later!

-BG

And Then What Happened: Boston Part 1

2011-12-14T17:40:00.001-05:00

Oh boy is this post long overdue. For a few reasons, actually.

First, I went to Boston a month ago. Ha. Second, I've been trying to write this since Sunday night, but I keep falling asleep while trying to write. Like, falling asleep on the couch with the computer in my lap. But all night. Like you do. It is now Tuesday night, and I will do anything to finish this tonight (Ed. Note: I did, and then forgot to post it before I left work. I am clearly still adjusting to writing at night.)

Anyway.

Back in August during the CAN softball tournament, one of my teammates suggested we all head up to Boston for the N.C. State/BC football game. She lives in New Hampshire, and she said it'd be fun if we all came up. What a great idea! I'd never been to Boston, but I also never thought I'd want to go. In case you don't know, I'm a Yankees fan, and I'm kind of irrational about how much I hate Boston. I just never wanted to go.

Well. The city of Boston is pretty awesome. I'm totally glad I went, and I'd actually like to go back sometime when I won't be spending an entire day at a football game. I'd like to do some touristy stuff, you know? You do.

So here we go!

Lucky for me, the game fell on Veterans Day weekend. Since I'd just started this job a few weeks earlier, I didn't have much time off accrued. But Veterans Day was a floating holiday! We get three floating holidays a year, and since I was working the last third of the year, I'd get to use one. So I was able to get off work on Friday to fly to Boston. I managed to get on the same flight as Lindsey and one of the Katies (the only one of the three who made the trip, so she'll just be Katie from here on out haha).

As I was walking onto the plane, I heard the gate attendant say the following to another passenger: "You better buckle up! It's pretty windy, so you're probably going to have a rough flight!"

Do what now.

I would not say I'm scared to fly. I really do rather enjoy flying places. It's just that I have a sort of heights...thing. I don't care for them. So yeah. Definitely not afraid to fly, but you know. Nerves. That's all. And hearing Flo the Gate Attendant cheerfully tell another passenger we were in for a rough flight -- c'mon now. Thankfully, the flight did not live up to her warning. It was totally fine.

So we landed and my old Technician buddy Langdon came to pick us up. He gets out of the car, and he said, "BG what is UP, my dude?" Katie and Lindsey were amused someone else from an entirely different group also called me BG.

Brief tangent: I'm not entirely sure how BG came to be my nickname. Well, OK. Obviously I do because it's my initials, but it stuck with my Raleigh friends, and then my DC friends began calling me BG, too, and I'm reasonably certain I never told either of them to call me that. It just naturally came up and stuck. I like it, so it's all good. Just kinda funny.

We dropped the girls at their hotel downtown, and Langdon and I headed for his apartment outside the city. Awesome, awesome apartment, and a pretty cool up-and-coming neighborhood. We grabbed some drinks with his roommate and his roommate's girlfriend at this really cool bar up the street. They don't sell food at the bar, so they allow two things: you can bring your own food in, and you can bring dogs in. Awesome.

Lindsey, Katie and I wanted a unique Boston experience for dinner. Langdon and his roommate recommended this place called Pizzeria Regina, near Boston's Little Italy. Well, I don't know if you've met me, but you don't have to convince me very hard to eat some pizza. And everyone we asked raved about Pizzeria Regina, calling it the best pizza in Boston.

After a couple of drinks with Langdon, he pointed me in the direction of the subway, and I worked my way downtown to meet the girls. The restaurant was going to be, like, a 15-minute walk from their hotel, so we decided to cab it. Pizzeria Regina looked legit from the outside. It's a pretty small place, so waiting outside is almost guaranteed. But they do it right, with heat lamps and benches outside. Very nice. We were a small party, so we didn't have to wait long.

Naturally, we ordered a couple of bottles of wine to get the night started right, as you can see in the photo. You know how we roll. We end up deciding on a margherita pizza with green peppers added. See the photo. It was redonk. Lindsey asked the waitress for some ranch for the pizza. In what I imagine to be true Boston style, the waitress looked right at her and said, "Oh we don't do ranch here. I'll bring you what we do have. It's better anyway."

Well then.

It was some kind of oil and garlic mixture. It was, of course, quite good. The pizza was amazing -- I can't say "best pizza in Boston" because it's the only pizza I had in Boston. But I will say I don't believe the claim to be ridiculous. At all. The walls were lined with pictures of famous people who'd eaten there and left their autographs, including a photo of our waitress with Danny DeVito. Lindsey and Katie took a picture of an autographed Leonardo DiCaprio photo on the wall, uploaded it to Facebook and tagged all three of us in it. Like you do.

So obviously with two bottles of wine, we'd built up a solid buzz already. We finished with dinner around 9ish and cabbed back to the girls' hotel. We had, like, half a bottle of wine we needed to polish off before we headed out for the night.

A few frantic phone calls between Langdon, my cousin Justine (who also lives in Boston), Carnell (who also made the trip to Boston) and one of the three of us eventually led to us settling on going to this place called Hong Kong. We were told it was a grimy place with fun drink specials where you can really dance.

I mean. Sign me up.

So we went to Hong Kong, and it was exactly as described (read: awesome). Check out the drink special. It's called a scorpion bowl. I'd never heard of these things before, but it's basically fruit juice, sugar and the cheapest brandy and liquor you can imagine. In a giant bowl. With four straws. Aaaand we drank two of them between the four of us (Katie, Lindsey, Carnell and me). And then the dancing started. And it was, predictably, incredible. Gah we had such a good time.

So the four of us were dancing in a circle when this girl came up behind me, grabbed me around the waist and started dancing with me. I mean. I'll allow it. She seemed...interested (to say the least haha). After a while, she looked at me and said, "You do not move. I'm not done with you. I have to go get a drink." Well OK. What's your name? Let's just say she shared a name with a recent ex-girlfriend of mine. Because of course she did. Lulz. No matter. She never reappeared after leaving.

The dancing and drinking continued, and we decided to leave around 2 a.m. The girls' hotel was close enough to walk to from Hong Kong. Langdon's apartment was decidedly not haha. Here's my least favorite thing about the city of Boston: their subway closes at midnight! What in the world!

It has to be collusion between the city and cab drivers, who are all assholes because they can be super selective. They know we all have to get a cab, so it's insanely competitive. I've never seen anything like it.

Obviously, I am not a cute girl, nor was I wearing revealing clothing, so it took me a solid HOUR to get a cab. An hour! I finally made it back to Langdon's around 3:30 a.m. He offered me a glass of wine, which I'm pretty sure I aggressively declined. Look, we needed to go to sleep. We had to wake up the next morning at 8 a.m. to pick up J. Mike from the airport!

And so we did.

Come back for part 2, which may or may not be the conclusion, depending on how much I write haha. Anyway, it will include such exciting details as the explanation for the title of these posts ("And then what happened?!"), our encounter with a (probably drunk) Boston transportation employee on the T and J. Mike attempting to fight cabs in the middle of the street, like you do.

Later!

-BG

That's my JAM

2011-12-09T06:35:00.001-05:00

First and foremost, I'd like to get this out of the way:

This is pretty much my favorite picture on the Internet at the moment, and it currently serves as my official position and motto.

So, you know, there's that.

In other news, I'm writing this pretty late on a Thursday night, and I really can't see a way where I finish this before I fall asleep. Hell, I may fall asleep while writing. It wouldn't be the first time. (Ed. Note: I did. Fell asleep and forgot to post it.) So yeah. What a night. At least Elf was on TV.

Anyway. Enough of that. Here's what I wanted to do: I wanted to share some of the songs with which I'm currently having a love affair so you can either join me or mock me. Most of you will probably mock me, and, you know, I'll allow it.

So here you go. Mock away!

"A Better Time, A Better Place," by Streetlight Manifesto

I first heard this song back in July when I went to the Reel Big Fish/Streetlight Manifesto concert. Thankfully, I have a pretty prodigious talent for memorizing quotes, lines of songs, etc., very, very quickly. I'd never heard the song before that concert, so I didn't know the name of the song.

When I got home, I googled the phrases I'd memorized from the concert and found the song. I youtubed it and liked it immediately, but the obsession didn't start until probably Thanksgiving. Since then, I've been listening to it several times a day. Like you do. I really like pretty much every Streetlight Manifesto song I've heard, so this should come as no surprise. I just love the guy's style of singing.

"We Gotta Get Out of This Place," by The Animals

Dammit I love this song. It's so 60s, you know? I just love the whole sound -- the driving bass line, the simple drum beat, the way it builds slowly toward the chorus before exploding, the gritty, imperfect singing of Eric Burdon. So good.

But my favorite part? At the end of each phrase of the chorus before the melody repeats, the keyboard has a few pick-up notes before playing the main melody of the chorus again. I don't know why I love it so much, but I do. Great fucking song.

"Shipping Up to Boston," by Dropkick Murphys

Believe me. It pains me how much I like this song. But that trip to Boston really softened my hatred of all things Boston, and it's now really just confined to the Red Sox. So as I'll write more about next week or the week after, I went to Boston last month to go to the N.C. State/Boston College football game.

I'd heard of this song because it was Jonathan Papelbon's entrance song at the end of Red Sox games, but man, they played this song non-stop during the BC game. Every few minutes toward the end of the game. And dammit if the beginning of this song doesn't get me fired up. It went immediately onto my running playlist.

"Time of the Season," and "She's Not There," by The Zombies

I know I've mentioned how I'll dance to almost anything, but "Time of the Season" -- whew. I can't help but dance in my seat or in the shower or walking the dog or wherever whenever I hear this song. So fucking great. I love how grimy it sounds, you know? Awesome. And "She's Not There" isn't quite as grimy, but I just love the sound. This is 60s rock done right, my friends. Soulful, gritty funk. I am all in. Shit, I'm dancing on the couch right now listening to them. Can't help it.

"Wagon Wheel," by Old Crow Medicine Show

I'm almost ashamed to admit this, but I'd never heard this song before this week. I knew of it, obviously, having spent a considerable portion of my life in Raleigh, where it's kind of a staple for obvious reasons (listen to the lyrics). But even then, I found it because I was youtubing Mumford and Sons and came across a cover they did of this song. This is one of those songs I can put on and just chill. I love the laid-back, folksy sound.

I have no memories of this song, but hearing it already makes me think of hot summer nights back in North Carolina. It's humid and sticky and the stars are bright in a way only North Carolina knows. And this song is playing and the sweet tea is the only thing making the night bearable.

"Into the Mystic," by Van Morrison

This song man. Another song built for me to dance to like crazy. What a perfect piece of music. What a voice, too. Just listen to him let it rip at 2:34. I want to rock your gypsy soul. Let's GO. I could listen to this song on repeat for the rest of my life.

And I'd never really listened to it before this summer. I listen to Tony Kornheiser's radio show every day. Well I download the podcast and listen to it while I walk Allie. This is TK's favorite song. His show is a sports/talk show, but he plays a song before each segment. One day this summer, he played this song, leading into a segment, and he let the whole song play because he loves it. And then I loved it, too, because, well, listen to it. You can't listen to this song and NOT groove. Yes, I know how white I sound. Suck it, Trebek. Great, great fucking song.

If you made it down this far, wow. That's a great job by you. As always, thank you SO much to everyone who reads. I very much appreciate the comments you give me one way or another. Have an awesome weekend. I know I will for damn sure, starting tonight. Let us GO.

-BG

Hey. Thanks.

2011-12-07T06:44:00.002-05:00

Yeah. I know I'm a couple weeks late on this, but Thanksgiving happened while I was on my blog vacation. Naturally, I have some thoughts.

It's no secret 2011 hasn't been my best year -- although it did rally something serious starting at the end of October. Well, when you go through rough times, you learn a lot about yourself and your friends and the people who care about you.

I've definitely got that. I learned more this year than I ever have before -- about humility, about perseverance, about trusting my instincts, about not being afraid of accepting help, about the importance of a positive attitude, and so on and so on.

Finally, I feel like I've made it through the storm. I feel so good, and there are innumerable things for which I'm incredibly thankful. Since I didn't write anything on Thanksgiving, I figured why not now?

Fair warning, though. It's about to get real up in this piece. So in the spirit of Thanksgiving (two weeks ago), I couldn't have made it through this year without the following things (some very obvious, some maybe not so much), albeit it an incomplete list:

My Family -- My dad slipped me a $20 bill every time he saw me. My mom sent me home with food every time I saw her. My grandfather was so upset when he heard about my job back in January, he sent me a card with a check for $50 in it. Seriously. That happened. Is it getting dusty in here? I mean. There aren't enough words.

My Friends -- You guys. For reals. You're all ridiculous, and I don't know what I would have done without our weekly (or more often) debaucheries this summer and fall. You were there with a kind and encouraging word when I needed it and with a disparaging word when it was necessary haha. And you continue to be awesome.

Fridays at the Bottom Line -- The best happy hour in DC. It's tough to beat the $1 beer specials. We can go in there and all get drinks for like $25 total, which would cover like three drinks anywhere else in the District. Many a ridiculous night has originated at the Bottom Line, and I hope for more to come VERY shortly. Like this week, I hope.

Running -- Reluctantly crouched at the starting line. Engines pumping and thumping in time. The green light flashes. The flags go up. Churning and burning, they yearn for the cup. You're fired up right now, aren't you? The first few lines to "The Distance," by Cake. It's the first song on my running playlist every time I run. Since April, when I started watching what I eat and exercising intensely, there have been times where I was simply overwhelmed. And nothing cleared my head, got the blood pumping or burned the energy better than a solid four-mile run. Whenever I go a few days or weeks without running, that first run back is a rush of excitement, and I always remember how much I love it now. It's so funny because I hated running until I forced myself into a half-marathon two years ago. Since then, I've run two 5Ks, and I registered for a second half-marathon here in DC in March. CAN'T WAIT.

Losing Weight/Being Healthier -- You may have heard, but I've lost more than 40 pounds since April. You know what never gets old? I wore pants yesterday I couldn't even pull up to my waist just a few months ago. Never mind buttoning them, I couldn't even get them up to my waist. And I wore them comfortably yesterday. Incredible. I was wearing XL shirts just eight months ago. Now, I wear mostly mediums. I have a size medium coat. What in the world. This time last year? I was almost 230 pounds. I weighed in Monday night after my run at 186, which is even more of an accomplishment given how I spent the months of October and November up and down the East coast. More on that next week.

Dancing -- Dude. I never knew how much I loved it until this past summer. But, man, what an unbelievably freeing and exhilarating time. Play a little Jackson 5 ("I Want You Back," especially) or, really, any 60s music, I'm totally in. Oh who are we kidding...I'm good with anything. Lulz.

My Job -- First and foremost, I straight-up love my co-workers. You guys are brilliant and hilarious, and I could not be more excited about this opportunity. It challenges me in new and exciting ways every day, and I'm learning something new seemingly by the minute. What more can you ask for?

My Best Friends -- Jon, you are like a brother to me. We've been friends for, what, 17, almost 18 years now? Incredible. You have a way of cutting right to the point in exactly the way I need to hear it exactly WHEN I need to hear it. I often, unwisely, do not heed your advice (just as we both know I probably won't this time...LULZ), but, rest assured, I know I probably should haha. And it is always most appreciated. Sometimes I just need to go down magnificently in flames, consequences be damned, you know? C'est la vie. And Mike. There may be no stranger "bromance." Despite the fact that we have only hung out in person maybe four times total, I don't think it's an exaggeration to say I have talked to you more than anyone else this year. Disturbingly parallel. Whatever happens with one of us, I can know without question the other has either already done it or will be doing it shortly. Lulz, indeed.

Last and, most certainly, not least, the past five weeks -- I mean. What can I say? Simply amazing. Thanks, "Lola." Always.

-BG

Still Bull Dancing

2011-12-05T06:58:00.003-05:00

So! How are things?

It sure has been a while since I've written here -- all for very good reasons, I assure you. I believe it was Benjamin Franklin who said, "Holy shit, what a ridiculous few weeks."

I wholeheartedly agree.

If you've read this blog at all lately, you know I started a new job a little more than a month ago. When I started writing back in June, I settled into a routine of writing just after lunch on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays.

Well, I'm obviously not going to write while I'm at work. In addition to being wildly inappropriate, I also don't even have time to think about it haha. But that's neither here nor there.

I started writing this blog a few years ago, but I never had a real purpose behind it. I'd post every few days or weeks -- nothing exciting or noteworthy. Then the job thing happened. Then I kind of woke up from the slump I'd been in all winter. Then the break-up happened.

By the time June rolled around, I had a lot of feelings and stuff. You know. When that happens, I feel compelled to write about them. So then the blog had a purpose. I wrote about my weight-loss adventures (which I should update soon, actually), my experiences playing softball in the spring, summer and fall, the job search and my general thoughts on life, love and just getting through the days. It was cathartic. It was an exercise in getting to know myself better and learning what was important to me. It helped more than I ever imagined it would.

And to my everlasting joy and surprise, people seemed to want to read about it.

So much of what I wrote from the beginning of June through the end of October was building toward something. Whether it was approaching my weight-loss goal or finding a new job or any number of other things -- it always felt like an impending culmination was out there.

And then it came. Finally, it came.

Jubilation doesn't even begin to describe how I felt on that day and how I continue feel, really (for many, many reasons now). But that whole thing was such a release for me, and it seemed like the entire point of why I was driven to write, I felt like there was less to say for a while.

I mean, I got a new awesome job, working with some really excellent people, and I'd lost more than 40 pounds -- what could I write about? I felt less motivated to write. You know, less uncertainty and all that.

But I've found I missed writing about nonsense haha. I really like just writing about what's going through my head at any given moment. It's been a truly fascinating experience to go back through the archives and read what I wrote in June, July and August, especially. It's a snapshot into my mind, and it's incredibly interesting for me to see back to that time, which feels like a lifetime ago at this point.

Yeah so I was going to write down some thoughts on Thanksgiving here, but looking how many fucking words I've written already just talking about where I've been. Incredible. Anyway.

What have I got planned now? Well, here are a few things I'd like to write about in addition to my, you know, usual rambling nonsense:

Boston trip a few weeks ago
Weight-loss update
A few very belated Thanksgiving thoughts
More music posts (Google Analytics tells me not many people other than myself like these, but, you know, whatevs haha)

So yeah. I figured I'd give this another go. I'll try to write ahead of time at night and on the weekends, and I'll do my best to stick to my usual Monday, Wednesday, Friday schedule. Hopefully you'll all still be interested in reading, and we'll see what happens!

Talk to you soon, for SHO.

-BG

I Love Everybody

2011-10-21T16:45:00.001-04:00

Yes, I still do love everybody. What a week. My God, what a week.

It started on Monday with my job offer. Then, for the next three days, I marinated in the glow of a pure happiness and joy I hadn't known in quite some time.

It's funny. I built up the moment of receiving the job offer for so long, I began to wonder if it could ever possibly live up to what I envisioned when it actually came. I came so close to an offer three other times before this one. I had my celebration queued up and ready to go. I was ready to explode. And then, all three times I was denied.

The build-up and anticipation for this was seriously unbelievable.

And then the offer finally came. And it was everything I thought it would be and more. Just ask Allie, who witnessed me running through the house like a maniac, screaming like a banshee and attempting to make snow angels on the carpet after reenacting the scene from Jerry Maguire I linked to on Wednesday.

That celebration will really continue Friday night, when I go meet some friends downtown. It's someone's birthday, but I don't know her at all haha. Katie invited me and a few others we know just because we're fun, and we're always down for pretty much anything.

Anyway, we're starting at a place called Stoney's. It's on P Street near Whole Foods. I've been over to that area before, but I've never been to Stoney's. I'm sure it'll be fine. I already told Katie this, though. If the night doesn't end at Rumors for some dancing, I'm going to be VERY disappointed. This is as happy and energetic as I've ever felt. And that, my friends, is saying something.

Dammit I can't wait!

So! The first day at work is in the books. I'm pretty sure they'll invite me back for a second and third, so that's a great success.

The verdict after day one? Wow. 100 percent worth the wait. All the talk about "the right situation will come along" sounds like a cop-out to make you feel better when you miss out on something else. But after learning about this place and what I'll be doing, it sounds pretty accurate so far. The people are so friendly, and they seem so good at what they do. The work will be interesting and challenging, and there will be a ton of opportunities to do a lot of fun things. I'm so excited.

And the commute, driving in rush hour on the beltway? It took 30 minutes less, cumulatively, than it took me to ride the metro to work downtown. Incredible. I'm sure there will be days when it's beyond awful, and it takes much longer. But day one was a pleasant surprise.

For the first time in a long time, I am 100 percent at peace, happy and content. Physically, emotionally, mentally, financially -- I'm finally good in all phases of the game. I'm eating better than I ever have. I'm in better shape than I've ever been. I don't need to list all these things again. I feel like a broken record sometimes haha. I'm just so fired up and happy I don't know how to process it sometimes. Not a bad problem to have, if I do say so myself.

The weekend will be predictably awesome, too. Flag football games on both Saturday and Sunday mornings. N.C. State vs. Virginia on Saturday, McFadden's for the Panthers game on Sunday. Dammit I love everyone and everything right now.

Life is as good as it's ever been, and the outlook is only for it to get better. I am so, so lucky.

LET'S GO!

-BG

What's Next

2011-10-19T17:04:00.002-04:00

Oh boy.

Seriously. I am the exact opposite of Peter from Office Space right now. Every day of my life is better than the day that came before it. Every day you see me or talk to me is the best day of my life. Life is so, so very good!

I have been giggling like a school girl for almost three solid days now. I love everybody! This is pretty much an exact replication of how I reacted on Monday after hanging up the phone upon receiving my offer:

Not Gonna Cry
Jerry Maguire at MOVIECLIPS.com

YEEEAAAH BUDDY.

What's Next?

Well, tomorrow is my first day of work. God I really can't wait. CAN'T WAIT. I am going to dominate so hard.

I immediately canceled my move-out notice, and I will sign a new lease tomorrow. I know I may need to move at some point, but honestly, I can't emphasize enough how much I don't want to worry about that right now. Baby steps. One thing at a time. I like this apartment a lot, and the commute isn't going to be that much longer than when I rode the Metro. At worst, if the commute sucks, I'll deal with it for a while, and then look at some other living arrangements then.

I can finally book my flight for Boston next month now that I know from what city I'll be flying. A bunch of us have tickets to the State/BC game -- a true battle of who could care less, to quote Ben Folds. But nonetheless, it'll be an awesome trip with both DC and Raleigh friends heading up there. Plus, I have a cousin who lives nearby! Gotta go get down in Beantown.

While I plan on waiting and getting settled at the job before I do anything, I will absolutely begin my search for a band to join with MUCH excitement. I'd like to see how the first few weeks at work go, but I will be crafting my Craigslist ad before too long! Hell, I may just post the blog post I wrote about it over the summer.

The biggest challenge will be holding onto my fitness and eating habits while working all day every day now. I'll just have to wake up early enough to walk Allie and run or hit the gym before I leave. I just so much prefer to work out in the morning than in the afternoon. I love the feeling of an awesome workout, but I like to get it out of the way and feel the energy rush throughout the day. Like today, I ran four miles this morning, and I've felt awesome all day. Although there are certainly extenuating circumstances for that as well! LET'S GO.

I'm going to have to work hard to maintain my food discipline, too. I'll need to bring my lunch a minimum of three days a week. Since hitting 185, I've lost hardly any weight at all. Some of that is due to fun trips to Raleigh and Charlotte, to be sure. But I've also noticed my pants getting looser and looser in the interim. So it's not all that I'm not losing weight. I could just be toning and tightening up. I mean, geez. My new 34"-waist jeans that I was so excited about just a month ago were LOOSE on me last week, despite holding steady at around 185. What in the world!

I'll need to get my old dog walker back on retainer, too. There are going to be nights where I don't get back until later than Allie is used to. But she really seems to like the woman who's walked her in the past, and she's not too unreasonably priced, so it seems worth it. She'll come walk Allie for 30 minutes or so and feed her for me. Not bad at all.

So the blog. Obviously, I won't be able to devote time during the day to writing anymore. Honestly, I cannot believe I've managed to keep up with posting three times a week since early June with very, very few exceptions. I have no intention of stopping now either. I've gotten into a rhythm, and I really enjoy writing for whomever decides to stop by and read. What I plan to do now is write my posts the night before and just post the link during the day. I'm sure the new blog routine will take some getting used to, but it'll work out just fine.

Weekend Roundup

You may have read about my less-than-awesome drive last week. Turns out I completely busted BOTH wheels on the passenger side of the car. The car place ordered one wheel because they didn't know both were wrecked. The back wheel was wrecked on the inside, which they didn't know until they took the wheel off. To which I'm compelled to ask, "Why didn't you do that before ordering parts?" But I digress.

They called me on Friday to say it would be done by closing. Then they called 20 minutes later to tell me about the second wheel. The second wheel was supposed to arrive on Monday. It did not. The guy at wherever they were getting it from somehow failed at putting the wheel on the UPS truck, and it didn't arrive until Tuesday afternoon.

Anyway, the rest isn't that important. Both wheels eventually arrived. Both tires eventually arrived. And everything was put on the car. A good time was had by all.

I finally got home last night around midnight. What a week.

Oh and Kirk and Liz's wedding!

Wow what an awesome wedding. Incredibly beautiful and unique location. Excellent food and dancing at the reception. Old friends I hadn't seen in forever. The unbelievable experience of seeing my old friend Paul dance. I've never seen someone control a dance floor like he did Saturday night. It was really something to see.

I've got nothing else. I'm so incredibly giddy right now. Tomorrow's drive in the morning rush will be the best drive in the history of mankind. I can't wait!

Next time we speak, I will no longer be unemployed. GREAT SUCCESS.

LET'S GO!

-BG

EMPLOYED.

2011-10-17T16:18:00.002-04:00

Our long national nightmare is over!

I've been waiting to write this post for a long time. I've been waiting for this celebration for a long time. I mean, a loooong time.

This morning, I received a job offer from a PR firm in the area, and I will be starting my new job on Thursday! LET'S GO!

To put this situation in perspective, the lease at my apartment runs out at the end of October. For those of you for whom math is not your specialty, that means I was going to have to vacate my apartment in 14 days.

Needless to say, I canceled that move-out request. I may need to move at some point, but I don't even want to think about that right now. I'll see how this goes for a little while, and if it doesn't work, I'll reassess later.

I may or may not have (but definitely DID) reenact Andy's rain scene from Shawshank in the shower this morning. I am overwhelmed with so many feelings right now. Relief, joy, excitement, anxiousness. I don't even know how to process everything I'm feeling. So great.

I love everybody right now!

It's been a hell of a time the past nine months. The late winter and early spring was a really, really rough time for me because of the unemployment thing. It led to me becoming a little too depressed for my own good. I gained way too much weight. I stopped caring about a lot of things. I directly blame that for ruining some things I would have preferred not being ruined. Don't get me wrong; I know it's on me. I let a bad situation get to me, and it threw a wrench into quite a few things, which is really a shame given how awesome I've been since.

But!!

I am so thoroughly thrilled to say I don't have an OUNCE of negativity in me anymore. I am 100 percent optimism and energy. As I've happily documented on this blog, since mid-April, I've been a completely different person. Just take a stroll through the archives to see the transformation.

Since then, my life has been so completely amazing. I've met some incredibly awesome people, who I'm ridiculously pumped to call my friends. I've started playing softball and flag football. I'm going out with my friends like twice a week. I've been to Raleigh and Charlotte a few times and to Savannah. And I'm going to Boston next month. And, oh yeah, I've lost more than 40 pounds and counting.

So much good has been going on, and I've been so completely happy. Only one thing has prevented me from calling this the best time of my life: I didn't have a full-time job.

Literally everything else about my life was better than it had ever been before -- except the job situation.

Now, that is no longer the case. I am so excited about this job. It's a perfect opportunity for me to get in there and prove myself again. I cannot emphasize enough how ready I am to run through walls to get things done. I am so fired up.

It has been such a roller coaster this year. Including phone interviews, I've had more than 20 or 25 interviews. I've been a finalist four times. I've gotten so close so many times. It's heart-wrenching to get that close only to be denied and sent back to the beginning of the process.

But that is all in the past now. And God DAMN that feels good.

I cannot wait to go out downtown this weekend to celebrate. I've been holding this one in for months now. I am absolutely going to humpty dance all over downtown DC, so get ready.

Life is so, so, so good. And it's only going to get better. The one thing holding me back from being in the best shape of my life physically, mentally and emotionally is no longer an issue. My God I am going to tear shit UP now. Watch out for BG, my friends. Nothing can hold me back now.

Seriously, thank you to EVERYONE who has helped me through this. My family, friends and friends' families -- I couldn't have made it through one of the most trying times of my life without you. You were there to distract me, to offer an encouraging word (or a disparaging word, depending on the circumstance...lulz) and to listen to me vent more often than I can even count. Thank you from the bottom of my heart. And if you are in the area this weekend, you BEST come out to celebrate this with me. It will be soooo incredibly worth it.

Let's go, friends. LET US GO.

-BG

Oh What a Night

2011-10-13T17:05:00.000-04:00

So I had kind of a NIGHT last night.

As you may know, I planned to drive to Charlotte yesterday. Kirk and Liz are getting married on Saturday night, and Friday night, some friends are going out in Raleigh for Mike's birthday. Well, I wanted to get the seven-hour drive to Charlotte over with and then just drive the short 2.5-hour drive to Raleigh on Friday.

Well, I went to my interview yesterday morning, which I think went pretty well. I got home afterward and packed a few bags. I left my apartment around 3 p.m.

It was raining, so there was more traffic than usual. Just a miserable day, of course. But I got through the beltway and got to 95 without issue. I ended up making it to Richmond in 2.5 hours, which is a pretty good time -- it's typically a two-hour drive if you can hit it with no traffic.

It rained off and on, not particularly hard, but enough to be an irritant. I passed through Richmond and made it 85 in pretty good time.

A little while later, I was approximately 15 miles from the North Carolina border on I-85 south in Virginia. If you don't know, that stretch of highway is practically desolate. There are no lights, no gas stations, no restaurants, no hotels, nothing. If there aren't other cars around, it's difficult to see too far in any direction around you.

But it had stopped raining, so I didn't think anything of it. I was finally able to set my cruise control and relax a little. The only other car around me was several hundred yards ahead in the right lane. I was driving in the left lane.

All of a sudden, I saw something in the road. Because of the darkness and lack of lights or cars, it was too late by the time I saw it.

BA-BOOM BA-BOOM.

Oh good. I knew immediately the front right tire was done. I managed to pull over to the shoulder to assess the damage. Not only was the right front tire done, but the rim of the wheel itself more closely resembled Pac-man with his mouth open than a complete circle.

I looked toward the back. The back right tire also looked a little worse than I would have liked.

I called my parents to let them know what happened. I called AAA to get a tow truck. Then, not knowing what else to do, I called my friend Mike. To reiterate, Mike and I have hung out in person exactly twice, and neither of us particularly remembers the first time all that well. The other time? The insanity in Raleigh last month.

Our friendship prior to last month was entirely over Gchat. Lulz. And yet, he was the first person I thought to call haha.

I didn't know what was going to happen. I didn't know where I was. I knew I was still about an hour, maybe an hour and a half from Raleigh. I figured I'd get towed to some nowhere town in Virginia, and Mike would have to pick me up there.

Oh, also, I had Allie with me. So the poor dog is lying down in the backseat, super confused about everything. What a mess.

I waited on the side of the road for 30 minutes before the tow truck arrived. He hopped down and asked where I wanted to go. I said I didn't know because, again, I had no idea where I was. He said, well we can go to Bracey, but there aren't any hotels there, so I'll take us back to South Hill, just a few miles back north and you can find something there.

I told him it didn't matter, because I had a friend in Raleigh who agreed to pick me up.

Thankfully, the driver -- Roger, God love him -- was quick on his feet. "Well, if you want to go to Raleigh, AAA allows for free towing if it's less than 100 miles away."

I had no idea. So I did the math in my head quickly: 15 miles to the state line, probably another 40 or 50 miles to the exit I typically used, then maybe another 15 or 20 to where Mike lived. It would be close, but it seemed doable.

OK, let's do it. He loaded up the car -- thankfully, it was a flatbed, because the cab only had two seats and Allie is too big for that. I opened the windows in the car, and she must have figured it was just a normal car ride, because she ducked down and went to sleep after a few minutes.

I swear. That dog. I need to write a post about her. I've never known such a chill, laid-back dog before. She's the best. She rolls with it better than most people I know.

Anyway, Mike was relieved not to have to drive to the middle of nowhere last night. I was relieved the car was at least going to be in Raleigh, where I was familiar with the area, and where it's a manageable trip to/from Charlotte in case I need my parents to give me a ride so I don't miss the wedding.

Plus, holy hell. It could have been truly disastrous and tragic. I blew out two tires on one side of the car and somehow managed to keep control of the vehicle. Not only that, but if there had been cars around me? My God. Even when shit happens, I continue to be extraordinarily lucky.

So there you go. What a night. Mike met me at the car place where I left my car for the night, and he let me drive him to work today so I could use his car to go back to the car place to deal with this nonsense.

I'm not angry or annoyed. I'm a little inconvenienced, to be sure. But what can you do? Shit happens, man. C'est la vie. Keep calm, and carry on. And other sayings.

The car guy called me a while ago and said he ordered two tires and a new wheel. The tires are available today, but the wheel won't come in until tomorrow. All told, tomorrow is considerably better than I was expecting.

It's going to end up costing more than $550 for parts, labor and tax, but hey. Shit happens. Neither the dog nor I got hurt despite a situation that, in retrospect, could have easily led to serious injury.

Like I said, what can you do? We'll deal with it, and keep moving. I'm still looking forward to a fun weekend both here in Raleigh and in Charlotte! It's going to get nuts. CAN'T WAIT.

This will probably be the last post for the week, so I'll see you back here on Monday!

-BG

Remembering Grandpa Julie

2011-10-10T17:29:00.000-04:00

It's hard to believe, but today marks 11 years since my grandfather on my dad's side passed away.

I was a freshman in college, and I'll never forget the phone ringing early one morning. Half asleep in my bed on the eighth floor of Metcalf Hall, I answered the phone, and my mom told me the sad news, "I'm sorry, but Grandpa Julie passed away this morning."

I remember not knowing what to do. I didn't know how to react. Family members had passed before, but none who were particularly close to me. Not like a grandparent. He was the first.

I didn't cry, not for a few days. It wasn't real, though. I had no concept of what "a death in the family" was supposed to feel like. I'd never felt one before. I still had friends all around me. I was still on campus. Nothing really changed for me in the immediate present at the time.

My parents drove up from Charlotte and picked me up in Raleigh, and we hit the road to New Jersey. Strangely, I remember almost nothing about the drive to New Jersey and the immediate aftermath of arriving. I don't remember where we stayed. I don't remember seeing my grandmother for the first time after we arrived. It's all gone, until the morning of the funeral.

I remember the car ride to my grandparents' condo in Woodbridge. I immediately grew attached to the song "In My Life," by the Beatles. I listened to it exclusively on repeat the entire day, and for months afterward, I couldn't listen to it at all because it reminded me of that day.

My emotions finally caught up to me when we got to the funeral home. We hadn't seen him yet, but the act of arriving at that place triggered it. I was inconsolable the entire time we were there before the funeral actually started. Finally, to break the tension I undoubtedly had a hand in creating, either my father or one of my uncles came up to me, and, as only one of them could do, said, "Listen, I know you're upset, but it's not like you can hop in the coffin with him."

Lulz.

It was funny then, and it's funny now, so don't feel bad if you chuckled. I certainly did at the time. I was better after that.

Anyway, this post is not so much about that as about him.

He was super outgoing and super friendly. And he always seemed happy and content wherever he was.

The very last memory I have of him, he called me in my dorm room. I believe he was in the hospital at the time, but someone had just given him a Backstreet Boys CD. Like you do. I know when I think of a 77-year-old man, I think of the Backstreet Boys, too.

But he had never heard of them, so he called me to do some research on them.

"Hey Bri, I just got this CD. I don't know these people. What kind of music is it? Should I like this?"
"Haha. Yes, Grandpa, you should like this. It's fun, peppy music. It's like dance music. It's really fun, and you should listen to it."

So he did. How can you not love that? haha.

The other lasting memory I have is one of my family's favorite stories about him. My uncle used to live in Atlanta, and one year, my parents and grandparents went down there to visit him and his family. We all went to the Coca Cola museum one day. I've been there a few times, and it's a pretty cool trip.

Well, the thing with Grandpa Julie was you always had to keep an eye on him -- not because he couldn't handle himself and he needed to be taken care of, but because he had the tendency to just put his hands in his pockets and wander around, checking things out.

He was very laid back, and he liked to walk around and check out his surroundings. So we're at the Coke museum, and we're walking around. Sure enough, we lost sight of him.

We're asking each other who saw him last, where was he, what direction was he going. We weren't panicking or anything; we knew he'd turn up like he always did.

Finally, after a few minutes of our own wandering around in search of him, the doors to the theater where they show old Coke commercials and films opened. Out strolled Grandpa Julie with his hands in his pockets and a smile on his face.

"Grandpa, what happened?"
"Well, I was walking around, looking at everything, and I found this room with the screen. When I got to the other side to leave, the doors closed and the lights went down, so I just sat down for a few minutes."

Of course he did.

And I'll always remember how my grandparents had their own little game of Marco Polo in every store we ever visited. Because of my grandfather's penchant for wandering, they often got separated in stores. What happened next never failed to crack me up.

From one side of the store (or, in most cases, one aisle to the aisle next to it), you'd hear them shout to each other, exactly like a game of Marco Polo:

"Etta!"
"Julie!"
"Etta!"
"Julie!"

And hit repeat on that chorus until they found each other again. Hilarious.

So yeah. Sorry it got a little sad up at the top; it's just such a vivid memory for me, I felt compelled to write it down. It's still sad, of course, but after 11 years, it's much easier to remember and smile about the happy memories than that day.

And even 11 years later, I can still hear his one-beat laugh that broke the silence and traveled above the din of every room in which he found himself, either accidentally or on purpose. It seemed to come decibels louder than the rest of his laugh, "HEH!" And you know, I can't remember what his laugh sounded like, other than that. But I'll never forget that.

It's so funny -- the things that stick with you over the course of time.

Eleven years today. Incredible how fast time goes. Anyway, he was as much of a character as one person could possibly be. And it's truly hilarious to see my father picking up more and more of his mannerisms as he gets older. And it's truly terrifying when I catch myself picking up the very same mannerisms as I get older.

We're all destined to become our fathers, I suppose. But that's not always a bad thing.

We miss you, and we love you, Grandpa. Always!

-BG

Doin' the Bull Dance; Feelin' the Flow

2011-10-07T15:32:00.001-04:00

First of all, let me tell you something about the traffic here.

Holy. Hell.

So last night, I met a girl in Alexandria for some drinks. Alexandria isn't exactly close to where I live, but then again, almost nothing is except for Jersey Mike's. Not the point.

Anyway, it's only 30 miles. We were meeting at 7, so I knew I'd be driving in some rush hour traffic, and I'm just so terrified of being late, I decided to leave at 5 p.m.

I figured, worst-case scenario I'll get there 30 minutes, maybe an hour early, and I'll just make friends at the bar, watch TV and wait for her to get there.

Well. Not so, my friends.

It took every minute of two hours to get there. I walked in the door at 7:05. It took me a solid hour to get to the GW Parkway, which is only 14 miles from my apartment.

Due to an accident on the GW Parkway, it took ANOTHER hour to go the remaining 15 miles. Incredible! I expect some traffic when I get on the beltway around that time. I'm fine with it. This was something else though. Two hours!

It's OK. Not even the traffic could get me down after yesterday afternoon. I had a job interview, and I believe it went very well. Shortly after I left, I was invited back for the next round and writing test. That's all I'll say here, but feel free to message me and we can discuss further!

To say the least, I was feeling GOOD. As I posted online, "Doin' the bull dance; feelin' the flow. Workin' it." I had my iPod blaring and my windows down in the car in an effort to attract as many strange looks as I could. It was as pleasant a two-hour traffic jam as it could be haha.

So that was yesterday.

As has become par for the course lately, there is an extremely exciting weekend planned so far. I'm about to get ready to go downtown. It is seriously amazing outside right now, and we decided we need to be drinking beer outside someplace. HOW CAN I ARGUE WITH THAT?! So we'll make a pit stop in the dungeon known as the Bottom Line because we LOVE that place and it's also hard to argue with their Friday $1 beer happy hour. But we'll definitely move on to a place with an outdoor set-up after that.

In an effort to stave off cravings for drunk McDonald's at 3 a.m., I'm going to walk over to Jersey Mike's before I go out so I can leave a sub in the fridge to satisfy my need for food late tonight! Great success!

And tomorrow morning is flag football! We're playing Boston at 11 a.m., and the weather looks to be perfect again. I'm excited to see what our team can do. I was really impressed at the first game I went to two weeks ago when we played one of the best teams in the league.

Following that is an all-day party for a friend of a few people I've met through the NCSU sports I've been playing. He's moving away. I don't know him at all, but Katie invited me, and who I am to turn down an all-day party, involving several different bars, football, hockey and dancing? Exactly.

Sunday is McFadden's again for the Panthers game!

One of those days I'm going to have to throw in a six-mile run. I ran five miles on Tuesday, but I've held off on the second run this week because of a little soreness in my hamstring. It's pretty much fine now, but I didn't want to push it. So I figured I'd give it a few days to rest and then go again on the weekend.

I'm going to need it, too. HUGE week doesn't even come close to describing next week. My God.

A softball doubleheader on Tuesday night, giving us another chance to sweep two games and move to 5-1 on the season. I feel so good about our team, man. I really do. We're really starting to come together. Then, another interview bright and early Wednesday morning with the place from yesterday. Seriously, it sounds like a ridiculous opportunity to do a lot of different things I've wanted to do but haven't had the chance, things I'm good at and everything in between.

Then I'm heading to Charlotte. Then back to Raleigh on Friday to go out for Mike's birthday. We will control the dance floor all night. No doubt. Then back to Charlotte on Saturday morning for Kirk and Liz's wedding that night. It's going to be so, so awesome.

I just feel so damn good. Like, seriously, the Yankees were eliminated last night, and I don't even mind all that much.

It's so hard to feel anything but unbridled joy these days. It really is. Life is good, friends.

Let's go. Let's go, indeed.

-BG

Hooray Weather!

2011-10-05T16:23:00.001-04:00

Finally!

Awesome weather has returned to the DC area! For the better part of the past two weeks, at least, it's been awful. Cold. Rainy. Cloudy. Dreary. Blegh.

But yesterday was different. Sunny! High temperature in the 60s!

This week, I decided to bump up my mileage for running. For the past month or so, I'd been running four miles on Tuesday and Thursday, and then running five miles on the weekend (whichever day I didn't have to wake up early for whatever sport was happening).

I figured it was time to up the difficulty and run five miles on Tuesday and Thursday and six miles on the weekend. So yesterday was the first weekday I was going to run five miles. When I woke up to walk Allie and felt and saw how excellent the weather was outside, I was immediately pumped. Already, "The Distance" was humming in my head, and I just couldn't wait.

And oh man. It was a fantastic run. I ran every bit of the five miles and finished in just more than 46 minutes. While nine-minute miles may not seem impressive, it's important to note I had to really bust my ass to finish ONE mile in nine minutes last year. Now, I'm running all five miles in right around nine minutes each. Miles 1 and 2 were in the 8:30-8:40 range because I was pacing myself to try to run the entire time. Mile 3, as I've mentioned, is a lot of uphill, so I'm slower there. But still. Clear improvement.

It's also important to note if I can finish my next half-marathon with nine-minute miles, I'll finish in under two hours, which would be a 20-minute improvement over my first race. Needless to say, I'm really excited with my progress so far.

And, again, finally it did NOT rain on a Tuesday. Seems like that's the first time in a month. We've only been able to play one softball game, despite the season being a month old already. Before last night, we were 1-1 on the season. We lost our first game -- a game we should have won, but we had a bunch of errors in one inning that allowed a bunch of runs to score. And we picked up a forfeit victory last week.

We had two games last night against the same team. Allegedly, according to Andrew, this team was previously undefeated. Well, we beat them twice, 8-7 and 9-8. Let's GO.

I am compelled to mention our team almost entirely the same team that went 2-13 in the CAN softball league over the summer. Well, we won as many games last night as we did in that entire season. But not without making it interesting.

The first game was tight throughout. We were winning 6-5 going into the bottom of the final inning. We were the home team for the first game and the visiting team for the second. All we had to do was hold them to win. Of course, they scored a run to tie the game.

In the bottom of the final inning, we loaded the bases with two outs, but a harmless pop up ended the inning. The top of the first extra inning, their first hitter hit a ball so far we didn't even bother chasing it. Home run. They were up 7-6. We managed to hold them there, though.

Then we finally came through and scored two runs in the bottom of the inning to win. Dale scored the winning run on a throwing error, which is something we're usually accustomed to happening to us. So it was nice to be on the winning end for once.

We led the second game by a decent margin for most of the game. We played solid defense throughout, and scored runs in almost every inning. One of the better games we've played in either league. Up until the last inning.

We were up 9-5 going into the other team's last at-bat. We changed pitchers for the last inning because he wanted a save haha. He then loaded the bases with no outs to bring the tying run to the plate. In his defense, he yanked himself from the game right then haha. He knew what was at stake.

Evan got a quick out, but we were still facing a bases-loaded situation with one out. A couple of hits and errors later, and it was a 9-8 game. They had players on first and second base with one out.

Their next hitter smacked a liner right at Brent at shortstop. He grabbed it and saw the runner at second off the bag. His throw was a little low, but Jen broke out a Mark Teixeira-like scoop at second, beating the runner back to the base and securing the win. What a finish.

We're 3-1! I can't imagine any teams being all that much better than the team we played last night. Also, the improvement we've shown since the CAN league is incredible! I knew it would happen, and I totally called it this summer. We have so many people who are such solid players; we just needed to play together more often.

I didn't have a great night offensively. A couple of hits, a run scored. Nothing noteworthy. But I played first base for the entire first game and 2/3 of the second game. Wow, I loved it. Like, a lot.

I loved joking with the opposing players when they reached first. I loved being involved in some way in almost every play. I was able to field a couple of grounders cleanly and make some solid plays with the pitcher covering first. I missed a couple of scoop opportunities, but I blocked a couple of others from getting through.

Although, I did come away with a nice bruise on my left index finger. Our infielders really have to throw it hard to first to beat the runners, and one time I felt a throw from Sean hit my finger inside the glove a little more directly than I would have liked haha. Aaand bruise.

Anyway, I'm totally going to campaign to play first base in every game I can. Loved it. Let's go Pack! Keep it rolling now!

So yeah. Thank God the weather has turned for the better this week. It's supposed to be LEGIT awesome throughout the weekend, too. It's going to be a HUGE next few days, tomorrow especially. Feel free to IM me and discuss it if you'd like. Suffice it to say, I'm pumped.

And then Friday, there are preliminary plans to hit one or more of our favorite bars downtown. Great success.

Saturday, flag football in the morning, and a ridiculous day planned because a friend of Katie's is moving away. Katie promised me the day, which includes stops at several bars, WILL end in dancing. GREATER success!

And next week? Whooooaaa boy. Raleigh on Friday night to go out for Mike's birthday. It's also Laura's birthday so she should definitely make it out, too. And then Charlotte for Kirk/Liz's wedding on Saturday? Wow. WOW. That's a lot of dancing potential. GREATEST success!

CAN'T WAIT.

-BG

Another Summer's Gone

2011-10-03T15:28:00.001-04:00

Fall is undoubtedly here. The air is brisk. Leaves are beginning to cover the ground everywhere I walk now.

Another summer's come and gone, and what a tumultuous summer it was for me. I won't go into those details again. If you've been reading here at all, you know what's happened over the past few months.

Life-changing, to say the least. Some bad, some beyond amazing.

Growing up, I always loved the summer. What kid doesn't? School ended. Beach trips. Pool parties. Playing outside all day, every day. Non-stop sports. Water gun fights. Building tree houses. And my birthday is in the summer, too.

I mean, come on. That's awesome.

As I get older, I find myself gravitating toward fall more and more for a variety of reasons. The heat breaks, and the windows stay open. Running outside doesn't feel like I'm being waterboarded. College football is back. I can smell the first hint of fires in fireplaces around the neighborhood.

And I always connect the fall with falling in love. The last three girls I've seriously dated all began as fall romances.

I know the entire natural world feels that way about the spring, but when have I ever done things by the book? Don't get me wrong, I love the spring, too. But for the past seven or eight years, the fall has always felt different and special to me.

When the weather first gets cool in the fall, it smells different. And when I smell the first hints of fall air, I remember long walks around campus at night, staring at the stars for hours on end. Lying in the grass, contemplating the mysteries of the universe until almost dawn.

When the colors of fall invade the foliage, I think of long drives with the windows down, just to be in the same place alone together, feeling the cool air rush all around us with nothing but trees along the side of the road.

Lying on the cold cement of the bleachers from the old stadium on campus with our breath forming in puffs, looking out across the parking lot and wondering what it was like 50 years earlier when they still played football there. Breaks my heart to know the bleachers aren't there any more. Progress ain't always so great.

Or that first night we met for drinks just to say hello. A cool drizzle was falling, and I was so nervous my heart was in my stomach. I wore the nicest shirt I owned to work that day. Despite the increasing chill in the air, I could feel the heat in my cheeks as my head spun when I saw you walk up. I didn't know whether to hug you or shake your hand. I don't even remember what I did. I can't imagine how awkward whatever I did must have been. And then meeting over drinks turned into almost five hours of awesome conversation, dinner and the promise of so much more.

I guess it's pretty obvious I'm a romantic at heart, through and through. Is it any wonder I love the fall so much when these are the things that come to mind?

The relationships all ended for one reason or another. Life gets in the way, as it is wont to do. There are certainly less-than-happy memories as well, but these are the things that make me happy -- these are the things I remember.

These memories always bring a smile to my face, no matter how things may have ended up later on. I'm sure it's just been a coincidence that has led to them all occurring in the fall. But because of that, the fall brings a rush of joy with it when it sweeps in with rustling leaves.

This isn't sad story at all, so please keep that in mind. Fall is fast becoming my favorite season, though, and when it rolls through with it's assault on the senses, a lot of happy memories come with it -- moments forever frozen in time for which I have nothing but pleasant feelings.

Fall, it's good to see you again, old friend, and already overflowing with so much promise and excitement in so many different ways. Can't wait to see what you have in store for me this year.

-BG

The List

2011-09-30T17:07:00.000-04:00

I'm overwhelmed with the desire and the compulsion to get out and do things. I have a tremendous amount of energy, and I find I must be out doing things most of the time now. I actually get antsy now if I stay put for too long.

A while back, I asked on Twitter and Facebook for blog ideas, and Erik's dad suggested writing about things I've always wanted to do but haven't yet for whatever reason. So, credit for this idea goes to Mr. H. I've adapted it a little bit. The job situation threw off a lot of things I wanted to do and ruined a lot of plans I had. But it's time to stop using that as an excuse. I'm perfectly capable of doing whatever the hell I want to do anyway.

The focus of this list isn't so much things I've always wanted to do but haven't yet, it's things I absolutely intend to do going forward over the next six-to-12 months or so. These may be things I've done before but not in a while or things I haven't had the chance to do yet.

In either case, here's a list of 10 things I will accomplish in the coming year. Not all of them may be spectacularly interesting to you, but they're things I want to do. Make your own damn list if you have a problem with mine!

In no particular order:

1. Half-Marathon

I will run another half-marathon. The Bermuda half-marathon I found is likely a pipe-dream. It would just be really expensive to get myself there, no matter how worth it the race might be.

But there are others! Mike and I are currently discussing a DC race in March -- the Rock 'n Roll Marathon/Half-Marathon on March 17. It starts and finishes at RFK Stadium, and the course is throughout downtown DC. Basically, it's awesome.

The race is a Saturday, so we could kill the race, and then wear our medals out when we go out Saturday night. Now to work on Nick so he'll run the half with me. Mike will run the full. No thank you, sir. I did my first half alone, so it would be fine either way. But we'd need Nick to go out Saturday night -- no question.

Training would start by the end of December. I love the idea of a March half-marathon. I don't love the idea of training throughout the winter, but c'est la vie. It will help keep my ass from refatting up, for sure.

Also, not only will I run another half-marathon, I will beat the time (2:19:51) from my first half-marathon.

2. Warrior Dash

I will complete a Warrior Dash. As I mentioned in a post earlier this month, I have my sights set on a race in south Florida at the beginning of December. One of my sister's best friends wants to run in it, and I'd love to do it as well.

It's essentially a 5k for the mentally unstable, and it includes rope climbs, mud-pit crawls, leaping over flaming logs, etc. You know, the usual. So, so great. I really can't wait to do one of these.

Plus, you get a viking helmet for completing the race!

3. Join a Band

I've also written about this on the blog before. Once the job situation is cleared up, I plan to scour Craigslist to find a band looking for a drummer. I want the band to be a bunch of relaxed, drama-free people who want to play some fun music that gets people dancing. Some original songs, some cover songs. Let's just have some fun.

I really, really want to play live music in front of an audience again. What a rush, man. I miss that, for sure.

4. Skiing

I went skiing for the first time in my life a little less than two years ago with the ex-girl and some friends from the ex-job. It was magnificent. It was exhilarating. There aren't enough good things to say about it.

I fell down, because of course I did. I went too fast. I had no idea what I was doing. It was awesome. Awesome!

I will go again this winter. Who knows, maybe I can get some friends together and pull off an actual ski weekend. How ridiculous would that be? Very ridiculous.

5. New York

New York is my favorite city in the United States. By far. My extended family lives close by, and I have some friends who live there as well.

I want a weekend in the city with everyone who can make it. I want to go to the top of the Empire State building again. I want to see Ground Zero again. I want to go to a Yankee game again. I want to go to the top of the Statue of Liberty.

Yes, I want to be a moronic tourist. And then I want to go out until the bars close at 4 a.m. (ATTN: NICK, MIKE AND EVERYONE. WE MUST DO THIS.).

Or I want to go for a weekend with some of my DC friends. Why not? It's only a few-hour drive away.

I haven't been to New York in a while. Maybe two years? Too long. Let's do this.

6. Cousins Weekend

I wrote extensively about my weekend in Savannah with my uncle and cousins. It was one of the most ridiculous weekends I've ever had.

We will do it again. Jeb and I already began preliminary discussions about the next weekend. We think April-ish might be the best time for it since the weather is mostly good anywhere then.

We have a few ideas for other cities, but we also kind of feel like a Savannah sequel would be pretty awesome.

In any case, beware. A pack of Grossmans will invade someplace this spring and cause scenes of debauchery all over the place. LET'S GO!

7. Look Good

My weekend in Raleigh set me back a few pounds, but it wasn't crazy. I'm so, so close to my goal weight of 180 pounds. It's unbelievable. When I set the goal, 180 seemed so far away -- an impossible pie-in-the-sky number I'd never reach. Now I'm within five-to-seven pounds of the goal.

I've said it before, but I won't stop at 180. My updated goal will be more body-fat-percentage related than weight-related. When I was up near 230 pounds back in the Spring, my body fat was 30 percent. Yikes.

I've gotten it down to 22 percent since then, which is an awesome improvement. But there's still work to do. I'd love to get down to 17 percent. That's my ultimate goal. Really, it's about fitting comfortably into smaller clothes, which I've been doing a LOT lately. I'm down from extra-large shirts to medium shirts in some cases. And I've recently downgraded from 38-inch jeans to 34-inch jeans.

Still work to do. Can't get satisfied or complacent. Gotta push as hard as I ever have. Time to crank up the intensity in the gym.

CAN'T WAIT.

8. Run More 5Ks

If you've ever completed a race of any kind, you know how insane it is. Doesn't matter what the distance is. Running a race gets the adrenaline and the blood pumping like nothing else. After I absolutely kicked the ass of my last 5K, I want to run more.

I just love the race atmosphere. And competing against myself and pushing myself to do better than I did last time. It's a hell of a drug.

So why not run more 5Ks? No real good reason not to! The half-marathon training program I use calls for a 5K race about halfway through, so I'll aim for one around then. It also calls for a 10K race three weeks before the half-marathon, so I'll also look for one of those!

I'm so excited right now haha.

9. Camping

I haven't been camping since I was 14 years old. I remember loving it then. I went with a couple friends and one of the friend's parents.

We ended up breaking the tent somehow. I'm not sure what we did, but I know we were not successful in constructing the tent. We also made it impossible to be successful constructing the tent somehow. We ended up putting the tent exterior on the ground to sleep on and hanging a tarp in the trees above our heads so we were covered in some way. Lulz.

I'd absolutely love to go camping again. A decent tent isn't even that expensive. You can get an OK tent for like $60 at Dick's.

Sounds like an awesome weekend to me. Bring some friends, some alcohol and hang out in the woods? Yes and please.

Also, it would give me a chance to take part in one of my absolute FAVORITE pastimes -- staring at the stars. I can (and have, by the way) lie down and stare at the stars for hours on end. I'm fascinated. Always have been.

Even now, if I walk outside at night, I instinctively look up just to see what there is. Unfortunately, living so close to the city, there isn't much. If we went camping far enough away, I bet we could see some kick ass stars.

10. Kayaking

I've been kayaking a couple of times with my family on big family vacations with aunts, uncles and the aforementioned cousins.

I remember humorous situations involving my sister refusing to paddle anymore, leaving me to propel the two-person kayak on my own. And large insects/spiders falling into the kayak with us. I care less for the insects.

But the kayaking itself! It's a tough workout, man, but I remember loving it. There are a shit-ton of rivers around here. I bet it's possible to kayak in them.

DC friends, seems like it would be a good way to burn some of the calories we take in on some weekend nights, no?

There are other things I'd like to do, like visit California, spend some time in Europe, go snorkeling again, SCUBA, etc. But it seems irresponsible to do some/all of those things with the job situation uncertain. Baby steps first. I'm excited about every item on this list though; I know that much.

Once the job situation becomes clear, perhaps I'll update the list with things that will be more possible then.

Until then, I can't wait to start checking things off.

Do you have any interest in doing any of these things with me? Seriously, please let me know! We'll make some plans, and knock out some of this list.

Thanks for reading, as always. See you Monday!

-BG

Wednesday Rambles

2011-09-28T17:05:00.000-04:00

It's going to be hard to top my single life post. According to Google Analytics, the blog received more visitors on Monday than any other day since I've had it. The post is already the fourth-most clicked individual post, which is crazy because it needed only one day to eclipse some posts that have had weeks to accumulate clicks.

Do you remember those old IMChaos links you could put in your AIM profiles, and it would tell you exactly which screennames clicked on it? Damn I wish Google Analytics worked that way haha. Alas, it does not. It cannot tell me who clicks my posts. So fear not, blog stalkers. Also, I love all of you for clicking anyway, so whatevs.

There'd be no point in writing if no one read it, so I'm just glad people find whatever reason they may have to read. And a HUGE thanks for that!

So I got to run my four miles in the rain again today. Kick. Ass. Also, I kicked the run's ass. Ran four miles in 38 minutes -- my second-best time ever on that distance.

Normally when I run, I go really hard for the first mile because I'm trying to finish a mile in under eight minutes. I'm getting there. I think my best mile time right now is 8:07? Either way. The problem with that is it takes enough out of me that by the time the uphill mile 3 rolls around, I have to walk for a few minutes, which really sabotages my total four-mile time.

Today, I decided to take it easy, run casually and try to get a decent time. I still finished mile 1 in 8:42 -- not bad at all for taking it easy. I was able to run the first three miles without stopping, which is impressive because half of mile 3 is straight uphill.

Turns out the strategy worked, as I finished in 38:34. Damn good day!

Although I do have a slight groin situation going on. I don't think it's pulled (THAT'S WHAT SHE SAID), but something isn't right. I might postpone my third run this week until Saturday morning. I'll stretch hardcore for the next few days and see where we are this weekend.

I have to make sure I can play flag football! We're playing Maryland on Sunday morning, and we have a great chance to get a big division win.

We narrowly lost to No. 2 Michigan this past weekend, 20-13. We had the ball with a chance to tie or take the lead with no time on the clock, but the fourth-down pass fell to the ground. We have a LEGIT flag football team, though. CAN'T WAIT to make some noise in the league this year.

Also, since when did Tuesday become the official rain day? This is, like, week FOUR of our softball season, and we've played exactly ONE game due to rain outs and cancellations. C'mon now.

So Rosh Hashanah starts at sundown tonight. If I were a better Jew I could tell you what that means, but, alas, I'm not, so I can't. Besides, I'm technically not at all Jewish, since my mom is Catholic. But you know, as that T-shirt I saw last year said, I'm Jew-ish.

It's the Jewish new year, and apparently it will be the year 5772. So Happy Jew Year to you and yours. I've got nothing else to say here. Lulz.

I went to Giant and bought one of the Jewish memorial candles you light for loved ones. It was 53 cents. I think I can swing that. You light it at sundown, and it burns for 24 hours. It's for my grandfather, who passed away when I was a freshman in college.

He deserves a post on this blog, so I'll probably write one for the anniversary of his passing next month.

Jon texted me today to let me know his parents recently purchased a condo on a lake in Charlotte. Their downstairs neighbor? Pia Sundhage, the U.S. women's soccer coach. Naturally, being the excellent friend he is, he's going to talk to her to try to get me set up with Hope Solo. Obviously.

This much is inarguable: I am, today, one step closer to marrying her than I was yesterday. Don't stop believin'.

So that movie "50/50" comes out this weekend. I'm pretty sure I've talked about it here a few times, so I wont rehash my thoughts on it. But all the trailers I've seen have made me really want to see it. And the song in the trailer, "Do the Panic" by Phantom Planet, is so, so good. Love it.

Anyway. Sorry this post was so terrible haha. My groin hurts. That's my story, and I'm sticking to it. Lulz. I'll try to be funny on Friday; I promise.

Again, thank you a million times to everyone who stops by to read this blog. I just love writing so much, and I hope you get even a fraction of the enjoyment out of reading it as I get out of writing it.

Life is good, friends. Life is really, really good.

-BG

The Single Life

2011-09-26T17:13:00.001-04:00

Here's a fact about me that is both absolutely stunning and absolutely true: I've never really been single.

Over the past 14 years, I've been engaged (twice) more often than I've been single for longer than a couple weeks (once). I'll pause here for that to sink in. LULZ.

Yeah, so THAT happened.

I've had relationships, and those relationships have ended; but, more often than not, I slid into another relationship within a couple of weeks -- if that long, in some cases. I like to joke that I'm a serial monogamist.

Casual dating and sleeping around has never really been something I've been particularly interested in or adept at making work. I'm much more suited to serious relationships. And I don't think there's necessarily anything wrong with that, especially since I'm aware of it, and I take steps to try to manage it haha. But it's definitely how I am.

The ex-girl and I split some months back now, and a strange thing happened to me. I was consumed, not with finding another girlfriend, but with getting my shit straight. I'm sure that's a normal reaction for most people, but in high school and college, I always just wanted to find another girlfriend. It was always my gut instinct.

And as Rob Gordon says in High Fidelity, "I've been listening to my gut since I was 14 years old, and, frankly speaking, I've come to the conclusion that my guts have shit for brains."

I mean, seriously, brief aside: how brilliant is that movie/book? Love it.

So yeah. There you go. Previously, after a break-up, all I really wanted was to find a girlfriend because I didn't particularly like being alone. But really, who does?

Like I said, this time felt different. For the first time, I absolutely didn't care about talking to girls or trying to go on dates or whatever. Don't get me wrong, I gave it a few half-hearted attempts over the past few months, but it became clear I wasn't into it. I had no interest in trying to date someone else. At all.

Perhaps it was my gut having its first good idea since I was 14 years old. I don't know.

I know what you're probably thinking. This is a post to convince others (and myself) that it's OK I don't have a girlfriend and I promise everything is OK and please believe me!

Couldn't be further from the truth, and I believe I have a convincing argument.

First of all, it's been the unanimous opinion of every friend I've seen recently that they cannot believe how happy and energetic and full of life I am now. Exact words are usually something like, "Wow, the difference between talking to you now and talking to you four or five months ago is incredible. You seem happier than I've ever seen you." Four or five months ago was pretty much the lowest point I'd ever been at, if you'll recall.

That tells me everything I've been working so hard on these past few months has been totally and completely worth it and successful.

Second, spending serious time working out and watching what I eat has been one of the best things I could have ever done for myself. Look, obviously I'm not saying I didn't do these things because I was in a relationship. That's nonsensical.

But would I have felt the same urge, desire and motivation to push myself as hard as I continue to push myself if I were NOT single? I'm not sure. I do know that being single gave me a LOT more time to spend lifting weights, walking Allie and running.

And let's be honest, you can say "hey sweetheart, how do you feel about chicken breast, steamed veggies and tuna for dinner?" only so often. When you're with someone, even when you cook together, it's SOOO easy to fall into unhealthy eating habits. I have had my share of that. Plus, there's going out to dinner and dates and etc. You know how it goes.

I needed to be extreme with my food choices for a while to instill good habits and discipline. I'm in a much better place with that now. I make much smarter decisions with food now than I ever have. I eat less food now than I ever have. God I'm so happy with this haha. I'm just so much healthier than I've ever been, it's ridiculous.

Next, going out with my friends as much as I have been. Again, I'm NOT saying I couldn't have gone out with my friends when I wasn't single. That's illogical. Of course I could have. But you know. Let's be reasonable. There are only so many times when you can say, "hey sweetheart, I'm going downtown to drink with my friends three times this week, cool?" I'm just saying. That would probably wear thin on ANY significant other after a while, and probably understandably so. But at the same time, I needed it. Big time.

As I (jokingly, of course) said to Nick in Raleigh, life can be a lot of fun when you don't have to worry about disappointing and/or embarrassing a girl haha. That's clearly NOT serious, but you know what I'm saying. It's probably not as easy to go home and have the following exchange, "So what did you do tonight?" "Oh you know. Danced like an ass for four hours."

Finally, did you read what I wrote up there? I've been engaged twice, and I haven't been single since I was approximately 15 years old. I think some time to myself to figure out my own shit was a little overdue, don't you?

As my friend Ashlee said to me, it's hard to find out who you are when you find yourself as half of a whole for so long. Well said! And true!

Before this summer, the longest I'd been single since I was 15 years old was less than six weeks. And even then, it wasn't really six weeks of being single because we never stopped speaking, hanging out or living together. So you know. There's that.

I have never taken the opportunity to look at myself, to improve on the things I felt needed improvement or to figure out what I truly want. I am 29 years old, friends. I'm a grown-ass man, dawg. It's been well past time for a while now for a little self-analysis and reflection.

I'm not saying I have it all figured out. It's only been, what, four months? But I have a much better perspective on myself. I'm in SUCH a better place mentally and physically right now. It's difficult even to comprehend where I was back in April.

The improvements I've made since then -- I mean, wow. There really aren't words for it. My energy level is through the ROOF. So much so, in fact, that J. Mike referred to dancing all night as "pulling a BG." I'm nearly at my goal weight of 180 pounds (from an all-time high of almost 230 pounds), which will only be a pit-stop on my way to 170 or 175 or even 165. Who knows.

I am comfortably running at least four miles three times a week. And I'm running five miles on the weekends. I made ridiculous improvements on my 5k time a few weeks ago. I'm now looking toward making similarly significant progress on my half-marathon time of 2:19:51.

I've been setting personal bests in one-mile, two-mile, three-mile and four-mile times almost daily for weeks now. I've almost got my one-mile time under eight minutes. My two-mile time is hovering right around 16 or 17 minutes. I recorded my best-ever four-mile time last week before I went to Raleigh.

I said GODDAMN it feels good to be a gangsta.

So. All of that is to say this: the past four months or so. Being single, being alone by my own designs and of my own volition for once and NOT trying to hop into another relationship is the best thing that's ever happened to me.

Like I said, I don't have it all figured out. But I have a much greater understanding of who I am and what I want -- things I'd never really bothered to consider before. All that running allows for a lot of reflection and thought.

Now, all of THAT is to say this: I think it's finally time. I feel like I'm ready to see other people and finally put all of my rediscovered awesomeness to good use, no? Although my new perspective on things is also most definitely telling me we'll take things slow this time as compared to, say, every other time in my life. Lulz.

It's been four months, and I've spent a hell of a lot of time working on myself. Feels like a good time to put myself back out there.

Let's go, friends. LET. US. GO.

-BG

Mailing it In

2011-09-23T16:42:00.001-04:00

Look, I'm not saying I'm going to mail in this post, but I'm not NOT saying it either. So you know. There it is.

Here's the deal: I get sick like once a year. It's a cold that lasts for a little while and then it goes away. And I sort of feel it coming on right now. You know that cloudy-head feeling and sort of sore throat deal? Yeah. Fail.

Is this related to my insane weekend in Raleigh? It could be. I went harder in Raleigh than I have probably since my trip to Savannah back in June. Who knows.

So prepare for a little random, stream of consciousness today!

This weekend feels like a couch weekend. After last weekend and last night, I wouldn't mind a little relaxing and recovery. Tonight is a rest night, for sure. Gotta head this potential sickness off at the pass.

And it's raining again. We're supposed to play flag football on Sunday. This is the CAN league, so it's the N.C. State flag football team (like my N.C. State softball team from this summer).

The team was really good last year. Ended up ranked no. 8 out of like 60-65 teams, I think. We won our first game last weekend 34-0 over South Carolina. Obviously, I was in Raleigh, so I didn't participate. This weekend, we're supposed to play No. 2 Michigan though. I hope the rain stops long enough so we can play.

And then don't rain anymore! I don't want any more softball games to be rained out! We're supposed to play Tuesday night. *sigh. We'll see.

So last night, we hit up Front Page for happy hour before going downstairs to Buffalo Billiards to watch the State game. Let me tell you why happy hour specials are awesome: four beers, $11 bill, including tip. That's tough to beat, friends.

I don't want to talk about the State game. Except to say this: ATTENTION DEFENSE AND OFFENSIVE LINE -- THE SEASON STARTED FOUR WEEKS AGO. SHOW UP.

I sort of blame myself for the two losses so far this season. I've worn my two-time national champions shirt for two games this year. Yup. The Wake Forest and Cincinnati games. Might be time to retire this shirt for game purposes. I was going to wear the kick-ass long-sleeve shirt I bought in Raleigh (that I wore to the South Alabama win), but it was just too warm for long sleeves last night, no matter how thin and comfortable the shirt may be. Next week, I'm not risking it. I'm wearing that shirt regardless.

We had a great group to watch the game though. Probably had 50 State people show up. So that was good anyway. Really though, the only way to watch a State game is at a bar. Watching the team just makes you want to drink to forget most of the time, so it helps to cut out the traveling and just start at the bar.

Matty's playing rugby tomorrow against Georgetown, but if it's raining, I probably won't make the trek down to watch that. Not as much fun to stand and watch in the rain as it is to run or play in the rain.

Tomorrow night, however, we're going to go see Moneyball! I never read the book, but I know about it, obviously, and the sabermetrics teams use to evaluate players. I fully support sabermetrics. I think stats like RBIs and pitcher wins are ridiculous measures of a player's worth because they are completely dependent on OTHER players and not the individual you're trying to examine.

Plus, Aaron Sorkin wrote the screenplay for the movie. I will see anything Sorkin has a hand in writing. If it came out that he was writing the screenplay for the next Sex and the City movie, I'd be there on opening night. He's responsible for two of my favorite shows of all time -- The West Wing and Sports Night. I'm pretty excited to see this.

I'll be surprised if we don't end up at a bar after the movie, but there's no chance I'm going like I did in Raleigh. A couple drinks, and then home. Because if we DO have a flag football game, it's 11 a.m. on Sunday, and it's a little bit of a drive from my apartment.

Otherwise, Matty and I will head to McFadden's for the Panthers game at 1 p.m. I gotta say, I'm incredibly surprised there are enough Panthers fans in the DC area to designate a bar as a "Panthers bar." But there it is. McFadden's is a Panthers bar. Who knew. I'm not a diehard Panthers fan like he is. I'm mostly indifferent on the NFL. I love watching football, but I don't have ONE team I live and die with by any means. I loosely follow the Jets and the Panthers.

Brief health update: After three days in Charlotte and three insane days in Raleigh, I gained a couple pounds back. Nothing crazy and nothing unforeseen, and undoubtedly worth it. But back to the grind this week and next, big time. Feel great, folks. Feeling really great.

Have you seen the previews for the movie 50/50 with Seth Rogen and Joseph Gordon-Levitt? I may have talked about this before. I don't recall. Whatevs. Anyway, JGL's character gets cancer. Rogen plays his friend, and it appears to be about how they deal with it.

Every time I see a preview for this movie, it looks better and better. I really want to see it. It comes out next weekend. But I mean. There's no chance JGL's character lives, right? He has to die at the end of the movie, doesn't he? I just don't know. One of the reasons I want to see it is because some of the conversations the two guys had in the previews were strikingly similar to conversations and interactions I had with Erik. I got the chills when I first saw the previews.

I'm afraid of this movie hitting too close to home, essentially. But I don't know. It looks so good. I think we can all agree this would be a poor decision for a date movie, though, right? Haha of course.

I foresee myself seeing this movie and bringing plenty of tissues. You know, for the emotions.

You know, I really love the phrases "xxxx is the worst" and "the game is afoot." I think the first one comes from The Office. Michael was always very fond of saying how Toby is the worst. And the way he said it with such disdain and disgust really cracks me up. Plus, it's so definitive. That's the worst. Love it.

The game is afoot. Whenever I hear this it reminds me of those awesome SNL Celebrity Jeopardy sketches with "Sean Connery." It's just really great. It's definitely NOT the worst. I believe I said it a few times this past weekend. Very appropriately, too. And I think we should all try hard to work it into our daily speech as often as possible. There's just no downside to that.

Anyway, I'm pretty excited for a relaxing, low-key weekend after the past couple of weeks. It's been beyond awesome, but even I need a break every once in a while -- ridiculous energy levels notwithstanding. Seriously though, the past few months is the most fun I've had since college. Which is pretty much what I knew would happen. Lulz.

Once again, thanks to everybody who, for some reason, reads whatever it is I feel like writing. Thanks for the comments and messages. It means the world to me.

Back on Monday!

-BG

That Just Happened Part 2

2011-09-21T16:51:00.002-04:00

Did you somehow miss the exciting first part of the story of my weekend in Raleigh? Check it out here before reading on.

So! When we left off with the story, we were turning in around 5 a.m. We'd all had quite a bit to drink, although I quickly learned Nick and Mike are extreme lightweights. Mike had four beers and was nearly unconscious. Nick didn't have much more and was worried about feeling awful Saturday morning.

What in the world guys!

Anyway, 9 a.m. rolled around on Saturday and I was UP and ready to go. I walked Allie and got ready, and then I waited to get up with Nick so we could gameplan for the rest of the day. Predictably, it took a while. Weaksauce.

We finally rendezvoused at lunchtime. The game was at 6 p.m., so we had plenty of time to grab some food and tailgate for quite a while.

This seems like a good place for the story of acquiring tickets. Obviously, I'm no longer a student. But for a while, I still had my student ID, so I could just find a student to get me a ticket, and flash my student ID to get in. Well, first of all, I no longer am up to speed on the whereabouts of my student ID. Second, I know fewer and fewer students every year.

When I told Nick I was coming back, I asked him to please get me a ticket with everyone who'd be going (and we had a fairly substantial group). He said it wouldn't be a problem. That was last weekend.

Monday rolls around. Tuesday rolls around. Nothing. Hey Nick, ticket update? "We're totally fine." Nick, I need some reassurance about this. I'm driving an awfully long way to get to this game. "I have the best reassurance ever for you: SOUTH ALABAMA (meaning it shouldn't be hard to find tickets to this game because of the team we were playing)." Nicholas, that does not help me.

He kept telling me it would be fine and not to worry. So I stopped asking. Asking wasn't going to get me anywhere anyway. We didn't have the tickets in our hand until 2 p.m. on SATURDAY -- the day of the game. In retrospect, I'm glad I stopped asking about it haha. Truthfully, if I still lived in Raleigh, I wouldn't have cared about getting the tickets on that timetable. But all the driving made me nervous.

Anyway, we met up and headed to Wendy's for lunch, where I got a grilled chicken sandwich (because I'm watching what I eat...lulz), fries and SWEET TEA, which I can gleefully report was readily available everywhere. We recounted the stories from Friday night and filled in the newest member of the team, Chad, who replaced John in the car with Nick, Mike and me.

Chad was instantly a fan of everything that happened and couldn't wait to come out with us Saturday night.

As we got closer to the stadium, we realized we had neither tickets nor beer for tailgating. Nick and Mike went to meet the guy who was selling us the tickets. Chad and I hopped out of the car at the intersection of Hillsborough and Blue Ridge. There's a gas station across the street there, so we went and bought beer. It was kind of like a game of Frogger with us trying to cross the street.

Well, Mike and his four beers from the night before made it impossible for him to finish more than ONE beer at the tailgate. Nick did a little better, but he was also not feeling well from the night before.

We met up with Justin and a few of Chad's friends. And one of Mike's friends, Eileen, who was out with us the night before, came to tailgate even though she had no ticket for the game, nor did she plan on acquiring a ticket to the game. Also, she walked three miles just to tailgate with us for a few hours. Hardcore. Major props. Then again, tailgating at N.C. State is kind of a way of life. Nothing comes close.

Tailgated for a few hours. It was relatively chilly and light rain fell almost the entire time. My long-sleeved State shirt proved to be a brilliant decision. Justin was totally clutch, too. He brought a small HD TV with a box that connects to the cigarette lighter in the car, so we got to watch football while we tailgated without a ridiculous generator situation.

No point in talking about the game. Check out the ESPN game recap for that if you want. It was raining and sloppy, and we won by more than 20. A GOOD TIME WAS HAD BY ALL. Here's a photo I took from where we were standing. I really love our stadium. Man.

We didn't bother going to our seats. Another friend of ours, Dennis (D-Burt) has season tickets and NEVER sits in his seats. He and his buddy Doug just stand in the concourse near the big scoreboard. It's actually a pretty solid view, so why not? This way, it doesn't matter where your tickets are. You end up with the people you want to be with anyway. Oh! and I took a video of the team entrance with my blackberry, so pardon me if it sucks, but here it is anyway.

While at the game, I ran into J. Mike, another Tech sports alum who we hadn't seen in a long time. We agreed it was necessary for him to come out with us that night.

Got back after the game, showered and got ready. I didn't want to wait for Nick to go back to Durham to do the same and then come back, so I cabbed downtown to meet Laura, and I actually got to see Danielle and Adam for the first time in like two years. I think the last time I saw them was the very first Bark for Life event we did the day before my half-marathon. So Oct. 2009. Crazy. They lived in Spain for like nine months. Kick ass.

So we met at Mecca, which I'm told is the oldest restaurant in Raleigh. Awesome! Seriously, any place that has a framed portrait of FDR over the bar is A-OK by me. Had a drink there and then went to meet Laura and her friends again at Busy Bee. I've heard a lot about Busy Bee from friends in Raleigh, and it was pretty awesome. Tough to beat $2 cans of High Life. Also, I had a swedish fish shot for the first time ever. It really does taste like swedish fish. That could get dangerous.

Nick, Chad and their friends arrived, and we just kinda sat around at Busy Bee for a while. I feel like we probably wasted too much time there, but it was fine. Around 1 a.m., Nick and I looked at each other and pretty much said, "I just wanna dance," at exactly the same time. It was getting late. We needed to get moving. Literally.

Laura, who is pretty much a hipster haha, said we had two options. There's a place where the people would look like Nick and me (The Hive, where we were Friday night), but there's a huge line to get in; or a place where the people would look like Laura (Neptunes), but there probably wouldn't be a line to get in.

We chose the latter, and got in after not too long. Laura was right haha. J. Mike was waiting for us there, and I'm not sure it was possible for us to visually stick out more than we did. But the music, man. The music. It was kind of a 60s/Motown/funk kind of thing, and it was just unbelievable. It was exactly the kind of vibe I was looking for that night. Seriously amazing.

Laura described it best when she said it was like a scene out of Dirty Dancing. You couldn't really dance fast to it. You just had to groove (and yes, I know how white I sound right now. Suck it.). God I just loved every second of that. We didn't have much time to dance there, but I really made the most of it, I think.

J. Mike had the incredible foresight to take a picture of it. It's a little blurry because, well, I was dancing and it was dark. But it's too good not to share.

It was around this time when Justin, Nick and J. Mike began to wonder how many energy drinks I must have had given how hard we went the night before, how late it currently was and how much energy I was displaying on the dance floor haha. They couldn't accept that I just had that much energy pretty much all the time. But I did, and I do. Apparently, they all feel like I should spend time being in energy drink commercials. I'll take it!

Anyway. Excellent night. Lots of drinks, friends I hadn't seen in a long time -- great success. Must be done again soon. Saturday night was mild compared to Friday night. I was asleep by 3:30 or so.

Woke up the next day, feeling good as always. I took Allie to a dog park downtown, where she promptly sat down next to me or under a table. Allie is one of the smartest dogs I've ever encountered, but I really think she fundamentally does not understand the purpose of the dog park. Or maybe she just uses it for mental stimulation. Or maybe she just doesn't like dogs who are strangers. I don't know.

She had two beagle friends when she was younger, Ella and Lady, and she always loved running around and playing with them. She loved playing with our family dog, Spunky, too. Who knows. After the dog park, I went to Laura's house and hung out and had a few drinks with her and her roommate. Allie and Laura's dog Rainer got to run around their yard some more before we hopped in the car for the 4-5 hour drive back.

I made the brilliant decision to call ahead to Lilly's and pick up a pizza on my way out of town. Great success on that one. Thankfully, there was no traffic, and we made it back in a decent time. SO great. Thanks to everyone, seriously. Amazing weekend.

And that's all she wrote for my weekend in Raleigh. I'm sure I've left out some things I did not intend to leave out, so feel free to let me know via messages or comments or whatever. All in all, it was a perfect weekend.

I couldn't have asked for a better time seeing all my friends, and I absolutely must get back soon to do it again.

Also, standing invite to everyone to come to D.C. whenever you can, and we'll make sure we go just as hard here as we did in Raleigh. Man. Just awesome. LET US GO.

-BG

That Just Happened: A Raleigh Recap

2011-09-19T16:27:00.005-04:00

I spent the later half of last week in North Carolina, visiting family and friends -- Wednesday through Friday morning in Charlotte and the remainder of the weekend in Raleigh.

Charlotte was excellent, of course. I got to see my parents and some of my oldest friends. I got to rock out on my drums a good bit. It was, generally, solid.

There really are not a whole lot of exciting details to say about that though haha. It was an excellent few days, and I'm excited to go back next month for Kirk's wedding.

Raleigh, on the other hand. Whew. As my texts, blogs, Facebook status updates and Tweets said, I was expecting a ridiculous weekend. I never could have imagined just how ridiculous it would be. I'll talk about many things here, but suffice it to say there is also quite a bit I will never mention in a public forum. Ever. That just happened.

This may require two parts. We'll see. Here we go!

So when I left my apartment on Wednesday, it was 85 degrees. Relatively hot. Humid. You know. The usual summer weather. When I woke up in Charlotte on Friday, I discovered Fall had arrived overnight.

That's fine and all. I like Fall. Well, I love Fall. But I was not wardrobily prepared. And also, I don't know if you're aware or anything, but I've lost a shit-ton of weight over the past few months -- 42 pounds to be exact. I haven't worn jeans since I was a fat-ass. They no longer fit! WAY too big for me. They'd fall down after taking barely a few steps, and the belt caused such ridiculous bunching-up it was just time for new jeans.

When I got to Raleigh on Friday, my first stop was the Go Pack store to buy a long-sleeved State shirt for the game on Saturday, which was supposed to be cold and rainy (it was, more on that later), and my second stop was the mall to buy jeans.

I bought jeans with a 34-inch waist. Let's. Go. I haven't been able to wear jeans that size in six or seven years.

Anyway, so I got situated and I was ready to go. I heard from Nick, and we made our plans. We planned to hit this bar called Foundation because our friend Laura works there. The group started as Nick, his roommate John, Mike and me. Mike, as I've mentioned, has become a close friend of mine through talking on Gchat every day, but this was the first time we ever got to hang out in person. Lulz.

We got our hugs and greetings out of the way and hopped into the car to go downtown. It was drizzling a little bit, and it was not really warm at all. We got downtown and found parking, and I called Laura to find out where Foundation is because none of us had ever been there.

I don't want to cause trouble, so I'll just say Laura was unavailable to hang out on Friday night haha :-). Mike helped us find Foundation anyway with his iPhone, and we decided we'd order a round or two of drinks before heading to the next stop.

I had a Manhattan (great success!), and we all took these shots called Carolina Sunsets. I couldn't tell you what's in them to save my life, so there you go. Some of Mike's friends from work showed up, and we had a pretty solid party going now.

It was then we agreed it was time to dance.

A brief aside about dancing: I had NO IDEA how much I loved dancing until very recently. I mean, from my stories from my cousin's wedding a couple years ago and various random nights out, obviously I knew I enjoyed it, but this was another level.

We made our way to The Hive around 11 or so. It was still pretty early, so it wasn't very full. We immediately went over to the dance floor and commanded the area until almost 2 a.m. It was beyond insane. Lots of drinks -- beers, whiskey, shots, let's go -- lots of fun.

Friday night really helped me realize how insane my energy level is now. Some of my friends have been commenting lately on how I seem to have a ridiculous amount of happy/fun/positive energy. I mean, is there any doubt it's completely tied to losing 42 pounds and working out six days a week?

I mean, we didn't stop dancing for three solid hours. I danced in the middle of a circle on the dance floor. What in the world? WHO AM I? So incredibly awesome. I really have to say, Nick, John, Mike and I know how to break it down. It was nuts.

A theme of the weekend seemed to be various people marveling at my energy level haha. And how they couldn't believe I was able to keep it up for as long as I did and at such high levels (THAT'S WHAT SHE SAID). But seriously, I was completely fired up all night, and I couldn't get enough dancing.

So John and Mike disappeared around 1:30 to find some other friends who were out. Nick and I stayed to continue dancing and drinking with some girls Nick had started chatting up who were in the aforementioned circle with us on the dance floor. We were under the impression Mike and John were going to bring the friends back to The Hive to continue dancing until it closed.

When it became apparent that wasn't going to happen, Nick and I wandered outside into the rain to find wherever Mike and John were. I think they were at Raleigh Times. Anyway, obviously neither Nick nor I knew where that was. So we asked this random guy named Wayne where to go, and he totally pointed us in the exact opposite direction.

Thanks a lot, Wayne.

As we were walking, we encountered a bachelorette party full of girls from Wilson. They were looking for their stretch Hummer limo. We ran across the street to ask them if they knew were Raleigh Times was (obviously not, since they were from Wilson, though we didn't know that when we decided to ask them). Instead, a few of them ran up to me, grabbed me and asked me to tell this creepy guy to leave them alone because he was following them despite repeated requests for him to stop.

Oh lord.

I don't particularly remember saying anything to the guy, but he left them alone. It must be because Nick and I are such a strikingly intimidating pair. Ha. Anyway, the girls then insisted on Nick and I following them to the Hummer to go to Wilson with them. Like you do.

For reasons completely passing understanding, we did not get in the Hummer. Instead, we got chili dogs. Again, like you do.

We eventually found Mike and John after nearly 30 minutes of walking around in the rain downtown. We were able to take shelter inside, but it was well after 2 a.m., and the bar was closed. Fail.

We left and found the car and ended up having another beer and hanging out at a friend's house for an hour or so after that. The fog of "you better believe I'm not disclosing these details on a public forum on the Internet" prevents me discussing this night further.

But oh boy. That just happened.

We made it back around 4:45 or 5 a.m. and hit the sack so we could do it again on Saturday. We had to tailgate and check out some State football before going out again Saturday night. It was going to be a long day!

That'll do it for part 1. Part 2 later!

God. This weekend was just so, so unbelievably awesome haha. Let's GO.

-BG

North Carolina

2011-09-15T16:08:00.002-04:00

Sorry for the missed post yesterday. I spent pretty much all day driving to Charlotte. And then since I'm driving to Raleigh tomorrow, I probably won't post tomorrow. So this will be all this week. But! I am hoping to acquire enough material this weekend for some really great stories next week. I'm also hoping I'll be able to share that material publicly. We'll see how that goes haha.

I think it'll be worth it.

Anyway. If you're reading this, you probably know I was born in New Jersey. Northeast New Jersey to be exact -- approximately 20 minutes from New York City.

My family lived in New Jersey until I was 11 years old. In 1993, my dad took a job in Charlotte, and we moved away. It was devastating at the time, but that's a story for another day.

I consider myself a northerner. I always have. If you listen to me speak, you'll undoubtedly hear twinges of a northern accent. It's inescapable. Two years ago, my brother and I were driving to New Jersey to visit some family. We stopped at a toll booth, and the toll operator said hello, and I responded, "hey how you doin?" I didn't think anything of it. I didn't say it in an unusual way -- it was just the way I say things.

When we pulled away, my brother looked at me and goes, "Jesus, what's up Vito? What the hell was that?"Apparently, it came out in a very thick northern accent. I didn't mean to! It's just the way I speak.

And, of course, most of my favorite sports teams are New York-area teams. New York is my favorite city in the country. Etc., etc.

The point is, I self-identify as a northerner. I always have, despite having lived in North Carolina for 15 of the past 18 years -- more than half my life and more than the time I spent living in New Jersey.

The past two years, however, I've lived in the DC area -- definitely NOT the south. And now that I'm away from North Carolina, I find myself missing it more and more the longer I'm gone.

I guess I shouldn't find that to be so strange. I did almost all of my actual "growing up" in North Carolina. I went to middle school, high school and college in North Carolina. I worked in North Carolina. Almost every significant life event of mine up until now happened in North Carolina.

It's tough to explain. After spending so much time in downtown DC over the past couple of years, it just feels dramatically different being in North Carolina. I'm certainly not going to make any claims about one being better than the other or anything like that. That's ridiculous and pointless.

But I know I feel good when I'm in North Carolina. It feels like home to me. The air feels and smells different -- especially in the fall. The pace is certainly more in tune with my easy-going, laid-back nature (although I do really enjoy the faster-paced DC lifestyle). Also, they have sweet tea here. Everywhere.

I'll always think of myself as a northern guy transplanted to the south. But being away for the past couple of years feels like it has drawn me closer, and I miss it. Don't get me wrong: I love living where I live, and I don't intend to move away. Despite my intensely laid-back and relaxed nature, I feel like a city guy. So DC is extremely appealing to me.

But you know. North Carolina has its advantages, too. Especially this time of year. The humidity is fading, the air will be turning crisp and the leaves will start to turn soon. Fall in North Carolina is some kind of special experience. And the football. I have no problem admitting this: there is nothing like experiencing college football in the south. It's just different here. Definitely better, and that's factually correct.

So yeah. I'm pretty excited to be spending the next several days back home in North Carolina. I'm super pumped about spending time with friends I haven't seen in way too long. It just feels good here, man. I like it.

Brief Weight-Loss Update

I weighed in at 185 today before running, which is a loss of 42 pounds. I'm only 5 pounds away from my original goal weight. Incredible. I can't believe how far I've come. I can't believe how good I feel. I'm not going to say I look good, but I will say plenty of others say it for me and to me, and goddamn THAT feels good.

I can't imagine I'll stop at 180 when I get there. I haven't checked since last week, but my body fat percentage was still hovering around 22 percent -- down from more than 30 percent back in April. But I'm not satisfied with 22 percent. I want to get to 17 percent, ideally, but definitely less than 20 percent. Keep on truckin', my friends. No choice.

I ran another four miles today, and it was my best four-mile time ever. I did it in 36:38 this morning -- just more than a 9-minute mile pace. I don't have a stopwatch or anything, so to keep track of my pace, I have a playlist of running songs. I note the time of the song that's playing when I reach each mile marker, and then I figure it out when I get home based on how much time elapsed on the playlist.

So today, it went like this:

Mile 1: 8:31
Mile 2: 8:51
Mile 3: 10:46
Mile 4: 8:30

Mile 3's time is dramatically higher because I walked for around two minutes when I reached the two-mile turnaround point. The last quarter-mile or so of mile 2 was straight uphill, so when I got to the two-mile point, I gave myself a breather. After walking briefly, I picked it up again and ran the entire way home.

Some perspective: last year at this time, I needed more than 32 minutes to finish 3.1 miles. This year, I finished four miles in just more than 36 and a half minutes.

It's been a good day. Love seeing progress on the scale, in how my clothes fit, in the mirror, in my fitness level and running ability. I just can't imagine feeling better physically than I do right now. But I know I will as I keep this up.

And then combine that with going out with some of my oldest friends tonight -- some of whom have known me since I was 11 or 12 years old. And then this weekend of debauchery in Raleigh? Oh my god. You know what's coming now.

Man, let's GO.

-BG

Wisdom Teeth Surgery Made Me Feel Like The Godfather

2011-09-12T16:35:00.002-04:00

This story is dedicated to my friend Jon, who will be having his wisdom teeth removed next week. Fear not, good buddy. I had a relatively easy time of it. Read on and relax!

It started during my sophomore year of college. Well the pain started then. For as long as I can remember, my jaw always clicked when I had to chew anything large or tough (i.e. a bagel or pizza crust, etc.). But my sophomore year of college, it really started to hurt.

I went to the dentist, and they did their X-rays. There was no discernible reason for the pain, except that it might be my wisdom teeth trying to come in. He wasn't 100 percent sure that's what it was because they were particularly impacted yet, but it wouldn't have been unheard of for that to be the cause.

I wouldn't say I'm scared of surgeries. I certainly don't care for them. I mean, who does? But I know a couple things. One, if you're undergoing some kind of surgery, anesthesia is usually involved. Two, anesthesia often makes people sick enough to vomit.

I do not vomit.

So I wasn't nervous about the surgery itself or the potential pain involved. The thought of possibly vomiting though -- couldn't handle it. Full of nerves about that.

We scheduled the surgery for May, right after I got back home from school for the summer to give me plenty of recovery time. My parents took me to the surgery since I wasn't going to be able to drive due to be under the influence of some heavy painkillers (more on that later).

I got into the back room, and they were getting the IV ready. Now, in addition to being, well, unenthused about the idea of vomiting, I am also less than fond of needles and shots (despite having a tattoo and wanting another).

The IV definitely made me more nervous than anything. The nurse gave me a stress ball to squeeze to get my veins pumped up for easy access. She stuck me with the needle, and I hated every second of it. I know it doesn't hurt that much -- it's just a mental thing I've had since I was very young.

She said to start counting backward from 100, and I don't believe I even started to say the first number before I was out.

I don't remember being woken up at all. The next thing I remember is the nurse helping me down the hall to my parents. Apparently, I was very concerned about a bad dream I had while I was out. I do not recall any of this, but I had a nice discussion about it with the nurse, according to the nurse.

Anyway. So the nurse helped me into the hallway to my parents. My parents got me into the car, and here's where things got interesting.

I mean, to say I was feeling good is a huge understatement. I don't remember what the specific painkillers were, but the David After the Dentist Youtube video is pretty accurate.

For me, it was less confusion over whether or not I was taking part in real life -- it was more I thought I was Don Vito Corleone.

The situation was compounded by the massive amounts of gauze I had to keep in my mouth for various reasons. So I was sitting in the car with my jaw jutting out because it was stuffed with gauze, and the painkiller haze filling me with absolute glee. Trying to talk like Don Corleone was a very natural next step.

It was then I proceeded to give my father several offers he couldn't refuse. And although Don Vito didn't say it, my best advice of the day was telling him to leave the gun and take the cannoli.

Well, at least I thought that's what I was saying. Turns out what I was actually doing was mumbling incoherently because the drugs had robbed me of my senses.

The only reason I know what I was saying is because, somehow, my mother understood me. There's just a biological link between mothers and children that obviously never goes away. I'd say something, my dad would look at me, dumbfounded, and my mother would answer me.

At that point, he'd look at her and say, in his understated way, "How the fuck did you understand what he just said?" To which she'd say, "You mean you didn't understand what he said?"

"No, of course I didn't. He's mumbling incoherently."
"Oh, I understood everything just fine."

Well then.

Some version of that continued for the rest of the drive home. I'd mumble something in my Don Corleone character. My mother would laugh. My father would be exasperated until she translated for him. I know beyond doubt they absolutely regret not having a video camera on that drive home.

To my everlasting delight, I never experienced any of the nausea of which I was so nervous before the surgery. I was still confined to soft foods for a few days. KFC mashed potatoes, ice cream and ginger ale ruled the house for quite some time after that.

I never experienced any significant pain or swelling or sickness at all. The worst thing I had to deal with was the annoyance of not being able to eat what I wanted. Also, the dissolving stitches they used. As parts of the stitches dissolved, other parts would detach and just hang free in my mouth.

Again, nothing painful. It was exactly what was supposed to happen, but man it annoyed me.

Oh, and there were holes in my mouth where the teeth used to be. I had to fill a syringe with a salt water solution to rinse them out after every meal. Let me tell you. That got old with the quickness. I say syringe, but I didn't have to inject anything anywhere. It was more to direct the water flow where I needed it to go. (Sorry that's a little gross, but it really wasn't as bad as it might sound.)

Within a few weeks, I was back to eating whatever I wanted to eat. The stitches dissolved and disappeared. I stopped needing to rinse my mouth after meals.

And, what do you know, the pain stopped. I guess dentists know something after all.

All that is to say this: Jonny, don't worry. It'll be fine. The worst thing I can say about my wisdom teeth surgery experience is it was a moderate annoyance. No pain, no swelling, no sickness, nothing really all that negative. It will be just fine!

So there you go.

Some miscellany, briefly:

I weighed in at 188 again today, which is a great relief after this weekend haha. I'm loving running more and more every time, and I'm going to transition to a Tuesday, Thursday, Sunday running schedule since the half-marathon training schedule I use calls for Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday and long runs on Sunday. I will be ready this time.
And the rib is FINALLY painless! Completely painless! First time in five weeks! So that means back to the gym for some weight-lifting. Let's go!
Our new softball league starts with a doubleheader under the lights tomorrow night! We have games at 9 p.m. and 10 p.m. CAN'T WAIT. New rule this season: no diving for balls.
I'm planning on going to Charlotte on Wednesday morning for a couple of days before heading to Raleigh on Friday. Charlotte friends, holla!
RALEIGH ON FRIDAY! I haven't seen some of you in entirely too long.

Life is so, so good, friends. Let's go!

-BG

Weekend Outlook!

2011-09-09T16:17:00.001-04:00

Warning: rambling ahead.

Ladies and gentlemen, the sun! For the first time in FOUR days.

Let me tell you about this rain. This week, I was supposed to have my first game in our new softball league on Tuesday night. Canceled because of rain. Then, all the rain we've had over the past 36-48 hours has caused the National Park Service to cancel all park activities for the whole weekend, which means N.C. State's first two flag football games against Johns Hopkins and Iowa are washed out.

Oh well. I got a lot of rain running in this week. And I mean, that's nice and all, but I'm tired of the rain!

So! Running recap for the week: I ran 13 miles this week -- four on Monday, five on Wednesday and four more today. Today's run, whew. When the weather says 100 percent humidity, go back inside and sit down. Seriously. On the brightside, I lost enough water weight to hit 185 on the scale today. That's not official or anything, but it sure is fun to see. :-)

Well, it's Friday, so that means tonight will be spent downtown with many of the usual suspects. A bartender a couple of my friends know pretty well at our favorite bar -- the Bottom Line -- is working her last shift tonight because she's moving to Key West. Couple that with their usual Friday happy hour specials of $1- and $2-beers, and there's really no way we can avoid it.

Although I may make a pit stop at another place first with my buddy Evan because, as I told him, he makes compelling arguments and I wish to subscribe to his newsletter. Lulz.

Tomorrow! The first official alumni group game-watch of the season for N.C. State football! We're going to get together at a bar in Arlington to watch the Wake Forest game. CAN'T WAIT. I know I've said this before, but it is so great to be surrounded by N.C. State people.

Sunday! NFL Sundays start again! I'm going to see if a few of my friends are watching games anywhere. My brother and I had a pretty sweet bar near Foggy Bottom where we watched games last year, but it's kind of small. And you might get stuck on a tiny, non-HD television for your game (I know, #firstworldproblems). So if we can find another good place, that wouldn't be the worst.

Looking back over the weekend's plans, it's a good thing I ran the 5K on Saturday and 13 more miles over the past week. Because that's going to be a lot of drinking. Hey oh! I'll take it. We have a really ridiculously good time.

In other words, awesome weekend coming up. Really can't wait.

Job front: I ended up not getting that job I was talking about over the past few weeks. But I applied to, like, 25 more jobs this week, and a few of them are really, really solid leads. So I remain optimistic and hopeful as ever! Life is good, my friends. Life is good.

Some posts I'm thinking about writing over the next week or two: a story about my wisdom teeth surgery in honor of my friend Big Jon, who's having his out pretty soon; a reflection on being single, how I've never really ever been single before (lulz) and how it's actually been really awesome for my mental and physical health haha.

Also, I have definitely decided to go to Raleigh next weekend. So, friends, mark your calendars! My only real requirement: I must go to Lilly's Pizza at some point. Like, I need it, OK?

See you soon, kids!

-BG

More Running, Warrior Dash and a Raleigh Trip

2011-09-07T13:16:00.005-04:00

When I said yesterday that I planned on running four miles today rain or shine, apparently I lied. I ran FIVE miles today in the rain.

It was glorious. I could tell immediately it was one of those days where the run was going to feel really good.

"The Distance" cranked up (Reluctantly crouched at the starting line...) and goddamn it gets me hyped just thinking about it now. But I felt a surge of energy immediately. It was barely drizzling, but it quickly picked up to a steady rain about three-quarters of a mile into the run.

I really can't emphasize how awesome it is to run in the rain. I was on a straight and level path for a bit, so I just closed by eyes, put my head up and let the rain hit my face. So, so good. On the path I run, the second mile is a LOT of uphill. It usually wears me down pretty good, and I'll often stop and walk for a couple minutes when I reach my two-mile turnaround point.

But today felt different. I mapped out what the turnaround point would be for a five-mile run last year for my failed half-marathon training, although I was never able to run it. I remembered where it was though.

I hit the two-mile point today, and I was coasting, man. I felt not fatigue. I felt no soreness. I just felt good. So I kept going. I stopped to walk for two or three minutes at the 2.5-mile turnaround point just because it was the first time I'd really tried to push it to five miles total since my half-marathon back in Nov. 2009.

After that brief rest, I ran the rest of the way back, only stopping for red lights at crosswalks. Made it back in 48 minutes. Not bad at all for my first five-mile run in almost two years.

I've been talking to one of my sister's best friends in Florida a lot more lately. I met her and her husband when I was in Florida for vacation with my family last summer. Awesome people.

So we were talking last night about my 5K on Saturday and how awesome it was, and she asked me if I'd ever heard of Warrior Dash. I only very vaguely knew of it. But some quick research informed me that it is, essentially, a 5K for the mentally unstable. Naturally, I'm extremely intrigued now.

Check out that website and tell me that doesn't sound beyond awesome, and I'll tell you you're lying.

They do a bunch of locations, and depending on the course, it's between three and 3.5 miles or so. But look at those obstacles! Rope climbs over walls, wading through waist-deep water, rubber jungles, army crawling through the mud, jumping over flaming logs. Dude.

Plus! Look at the awesome viking/warrior helmet you get!!

I don't even have words. I simply must do this. So my sister's friend was talking about how she wants to do one on Dec. 3. If I can get my ass down to visit my sister that weekend, I will be running in the Dec. 3 Warrior Dash in South Florida.

And, oh yeah, they give you beer at the end of the race. Like I said, a 5K for the mentally unstable, and I happily count myself among them. I am so excited about the potential of running this. You don't even know.

I'm absolutely going to dragoon my sister into coming along to take photos of what I'm sure will be the most ridiculous finishing photo EVER of her friend and me. Oh my God. I need to do this haha.

On a completely unrelated note, the dog and I are looking to come to Raleigh the weekend of Sept. 16-18. I'm currently in talks with a kind soul who has offered to host us, but if there are any other volunteers who don't mind me and a well-behaved 5 1/2-year-old (i.e. not a puppy anymore) 70-pound border collie/black lab crashing for two nights, let me know! I will buy beer/dinner/something to compensate you for your troubles.

See, I need my NCSU football fix, and I don't want to wait much longer. Also, Raleigh friends, I want to see all of you. Even if I have to schedule you in 15-minute increments. I need it. It's been far too long for some of you.

You are on notice! Not this weekend, but the next weekend!

LET'S GO!

-BG

5K Race Report and the Running Bug

2011-09-06T13:37:00.001-04:00

Dude. Hell yes.

I killed my 5K this weekend. Like, blowed it up real good.

A little back story.

Last summer, I thought I wanted to run another half-marathon. Well, I did want to run another one, I just wasn't anywhere close to the shape I needed to be in. At all. I hadn't been running as much as I should have been, and I hadn't been keeping up with my diet, well, at all.

But I'm stubborn. So I took my fat ass (approximately 30 lbs overweight then) and tried to force it.

After two and a half weeks of running, I, predictably, hurt myself. I pulled my hamstring, and it was not good. It was still hurting me back in the spring when I first started playing softball. There was no way I could continue training without hurting myself worse.

The then-girlfriend and I found a 5K right in my neighborhood that was going to take place in early September, and I decided I needed to run it. I was so disappointed about hurting myself and quitting training that I needed something.

So we ran it. I ran the whole race, but not very well. My hamstring hurt throughout, but it's time to be honest with myself. The hamstring was not the reason for my problems. It was because I was in terrible shape. I was, quite frankly, fat -- at least 30-35 lbs overweight by then -- and there's no way I could have run a good race.

I finished in 32:06 (a 10:20 per mile pace). I was OK with it. I guess. I blamed the hamstring for the slow time. But we all know what the reason was now.

You may have heard, but I've lost, like, 40 pounds since April. I weighed in at 188 today (Boom.). What's up 180s? Haven't seen you in a while -- like five or six years, actually. Don't worry, I'm only passing through on my way to the 170s though.

So given my new-found fitness, I'd been looking forward to this year's Kentlands 5K for several weeks. I started looking up the schedule and registration in July, and I was just generally pumped.

Saturday finally arrived. I put on my Underarmour compression shirt, my newly purchased Nike running shorts and I could feel the adrenaline start pumping already. (Side note: it is stunning to me that I feel comfortable enough and, honestly, look almost good enough to pull off running in only an Underarmour shirt. I did NOT see that coming a few months ago. I'll take it!)

I wanted to push myself, so I got in line with the 8-9 min/mile pace group (I ran with the 9-10 min/mile pace group last year, and still couldn't keep up). I'd been running four miles a few times a week for a while now, and I could finish my first mile in just more than 8 minutes, but my pace slowed after that. I knew the adrenaline and race atmosphere was going to help though. I wanted to shave at least a minute off of each mile, so I figured finishing in around 29 minutes would be a good enough improvement for me to feel satisfied.

I started two minutes after the gun time (due to other pace groups starting before mine), and I was off. Maaan let me tell you. Races are something else. VERY easy to get addicted to it. When I hit play on my iPod and "The Distance" by Cake started. Whew. I got the chills. I was fucking pumped. I must have looked like a complete idiot air-drumming while I ran. Suck it.

The Kentlands neighborhood is pretty hilly. I walk Allie through it twice a day, so I'm very familiar with the roads. If I had to guess, I'd say at least a third of the race is uphill, including a lot of mile 3.

When I got to mile 1, the clock said 10:11, so some quick math told me I was doing pretty well on pace. I got some water, almost entirely missed my mouth because I didn't stop running and continued on.

The last third of mile 2, leading up to the clock was uphill. It was tough. I don't remember exactly what the clock said, but I knew I was still on a pretty solid pace. I stopped for five seconds to drink some water. I counted to five and took off again. There was a brief downhill period, but I knew we were coming up to the main street where I walk Allie. It was straight uphill for approximately half a mile.

Andrew W.K.'s "Party Hard" came on right as I hit the bottom of the hill, and I just said, you know what? Fuck it. Let's go. I pushed it. I pushed it like I haven't pushed myself in a long time on a run.

When I got to the top of the hill I thought I was going to throw up. And, strangely, it felt pretty good. Something about getting yourself to a point where your body is like, "please no more," and you say, "fuck you, let's go." I felt it during my half-marathon, and I felt it again for the first time since the half-marathon on Saturday. I want more, man.

The steep uphill climb led into a nice downhill break before the final stretch. I caught my breath as much as I could, and I prepared myself. When I hit the bottom of the hill, I was going to go all out through the finish line. I needed to make 29 minutes.

As I entered the homestretch, "Monkey Wrench" by the Foo Fighters came on, and I punched it up another gear -- well, whatever I had left anyway. I wasn't going to miss my goal because I didn't try hard enough or run hard enough.

I started seeing stars, and I was having trouble breathing by the time I sprinted across the finish line. But I saw 29 right there on the clock. Made my goal. Felt good, man.

Then the fog started to clear from my head, the stars started to dissipate and it hit me. Wait a second, I didn't start until two minutes after the clock started. My official time might be much better than that.

So I waited, and they posted the results. 26:57 (!!!). I broke 27 minutes. Man. LET. US. GO. I love everybody.

I found the official results online over the weekend. I somehow gained a second, but I'll take 26:58. My pace was 8:41. I love it. I'm hooked. I couldn't run ONE solitary mile in 8:41 a few months ago, never mind average 8:41 over more than three miles. I improved on my total time by more than FIVE minutes. I improved on my pace by almost 1:40 per mile. So while the total time may not be impressive to, you know, competitive runners, I think we can all agree that's some ridiculous improvement.

I was talking to my friend Lindsey about my 5K and the half-marathon she was about to run, and I mentioned something about another half-marathon for myself, and she said, "uh oh, you've got the bug." And it's totally true. The more you run, the more you want to run. Running in a real race makes you want to run in more races.

I found a half-marathon in Bermuda in the middle of January. I absolutely need to do it. I feel called to it and compelled to do it. Training would start in about six or seven weeks. It obviously won't be cheap, but if I can find a way to do it, I need it. If it's not that one, it'll just be another one. Maybe in the spring. I need to run another half-marathon now. I feel a competitive fire back in me that I haven't felt in way too long. I am fired up man.

I am in decent shape now. I can handle the training in a way I never could have before. I felt absolutely NO soreness after the 5K. I ran another four miles yesterday, and I'll run four more tomorrow, rain or shine. I can't wait to start training for another half-marathon again.

But mostly, I really can't wait to just get out and run some more.

"Reluctantly crouched at the starting line,
engines pumping and thumping in time."

Man, let's GO.

-BG

Dear Erik

2011-09-02T09:00:00.000-04:00

Two years is a long-ass time my friend. It's strange because on one hand, I can't believe how fast two years has gone, but on the other hand, it feels like an eternity since I last saw you and spoke to you.

There are no words. I miss you like crazy every day. I think about you every day. It hurts so much, man. Even more so around this time of year. Seven years ago we moved into our suite in Bragaw. Seven years. What in the world.

You should be here so we can talk about all the insane shit that happened in those few months we lived there. I mean, did we pack some times into those four months, or what? Jesus. I can still hear your bass shaking the dorm walls. And I can still see you sitting there reading somehow in the face of jet-engine-level noise.

We should be able to go to East Village and take blue crush shots until we can't remember our names. We should be able to go walk around Bragaw and remember all of our nonsense. Like that night when we all walked over to the baseball field and hung out on the field. Fuck, dude.

I could have used some of your tough-love advice lately. You always had a way of just cutting right to the heart of the matter. You'd call me out if that's what I needed, and I probably needed it this time haha. It's been a hell of a few months, buddy. Hell of a few months.

You know, I look at the picture of us from my grad school graduation celebration, and I see your bright smile so full of life. It makes me so angry that you were taken away so young. It's not fair. When Danielle called me two years ago, whew. One of the worst phone calls I've ever gotten. I collapsed in my room. I went to work and sat in my office with the door closed and cried all day.

Fucking cancer, man. It's the worst. We've had a team in your name for the past two years in the Bark for Life event the American Cancer Society runs, and we're doing it again this year. No one will ever forget you or your fight, and if we can raise any money to fight this bullshit disease, then let's do it. I am making it my mission to get back to the area and actually walk this year.

You know what? That's enough of the sadness. Pretty sure you would have punched me in the stomach already if you were here and I was acting like this. So I'll close with some fun memories.

I'll be thinking about my 26th birthday at East Village, where you kind of assumed the responsibility of making sure I had no recollection of the evening. For the most part, great success, my friend. I only very vaguely remember the drive to your apartment (don't worry, I wasn't driving). And then, passing out on your couch and waking up the next morning in my bed somehow. Hey oh.

And your surprise birthday party in May 2009 at Danielle's house and the "HAPPY BIRTDAY" cake. Well done, cake decorator.

Or how about that time we went to the NCSU/Miami football game back in 2004 when College GameDay was on campus, and we printed up thumbs up/down signs to bring to the game.

We were sitting on opposite sides of the stadium, so we used the signs to see where we were. Pretty sure we used a lot of thumbs downs that night.

I have to say, I would have loved to see how ridiculous things would have been if you could have visited me in DC. I can't even imagine haha. Anyway, you better believe I'm throwing down some Jack-and-Cokes tonight.

Love you and miss you forever, my friend.

-BG

P.S. If anyone wants to check out Erik's Bark for Life page, head over here. If you feel moved to donate, thank you from the bottom of my heart. If you're in the Triangle area on Sunday, Nov. 6, bring your dog and come walk with the team. I hope to see you there.

GAME WEEK

2011-08-31T17:09:00.000-04:00

Ohhhh snap. It's N.C. State football game week!

Man, I really cannot wait. I'm so pumped for this season. In spite of all the drama surrounding the heart-breaking departure of Russell Wilson, I think this could be a solid season. I really do.

And here's the thing about Russell Wilson. I love him. I hope he wins the Heisman, and I'll be a Wisconsin Badgers fan all season because of him. But it was a lose-lose situation.

Tom O'Brien is trying to manage a program for the present and the future. Wilson was drafted in the fourth round of the MLB draft and was given a nice signing bonus -- $250,000, I believe. He was undecided about continuing to play football.

His backup last season, Mike Glennon, was the no. 3-rated quarterback coming out of high school a few years ago. If Wilson came back, Glennon might have transferred elsewhere since he only has two more years of eligibility.

So O'Brien was faced with a scenario where Wilson is the assumed starter, leading to Glennon transferring, and Wilson still could have chosen to play baseball. O'Brien didn't know Wilson definitely was playing football this season, and he wouldn't have known the answer before it was too late. He could have been without a quarterback this season or next season. How many years would that have set back N.C. State?

Rather than risk that scenario, O'Brien decided two years of Glennon was a safer bet than possibly one year of Wilson and who knows what next year. Obviously, now that we know Wilson is playing football this year, this all looks very silly. But remember, we didn't know that then.

Anyway, Wisconsin is on ESPN tomorrow night to open the season. I will gladly watch and cheer for Wilson. If I had a Russell Wilson jersey, I'd most definitely wear it. Let's go Russell!

All that said, it's hard not to be excited about Glennon's potential. For now, I'm choosing to trust in O'Brien and his ability to develop offensive linemen and quarterbacks. No reason not to at the moment.

Now the schedule for this season sets up very nicely early in the season for breaking in a new starting quarterback.

09/03/11	vs. Liberty
09/10/11	at Wake Forest
09/17/11	vs. South Alabama
09/22/11	at Cincinnati
10/01/11	vs. Georgia Tech
10/08/11	vs. Central Michigan
10/22/11	at Virginia
10/29/11	at Florida State
11/05/11	vs. North Carolina
11/12/11	at Boston College
11/19/11	vs. Clemson
11/26/11	vs. Maryland

Looking at the schedule, my most pessimistic prediction is 5-7, and my most optimistic prediction is either 9-3 or 10-2. Nothing between those two extremes would surprise me. I won't bother picking individual games, but looking at the first seven games -- I'm not saying we'll win them all, but that's as manageable a start to the season as you're going to get.

The defense is going to miss Nate Irving something serious. That was one bad, bad man. But I feel good about the potential of Terrell Manning and Audie Cole to fill in for Irving in terms of being the soul of the defense.

I just really can't wait to get back to Raleigh for a few home games and some LEGIT tailgating. I've seen some games at a few places around the ACC, and I have to say, there is absolutely nothing like game day at Carter-Finley. The tailgating, the energy flowing through the crowd, the electricity in the stadium, the team entrance -- dammit I'm getting fired up.

I will leave you with two N.C. State football videos that will undoubtedly fire you up as well. The first is the "Three-Levels Deep" video that's been circulating Facebook and the message boards for a few weeks.

The second is maybe my favorite entrance video we've ever had. Yes, I know "Boom" is not a great song, but it definitely works in this video.

Maaan. If you're not fired up for some State football right now, you have no soul.

Go. State.

-BG

Accountability and Affirmation, Baby Part 4

2011-08-29T16:27:00.006-04:00

I mentioned this briefly last week, but it warrants repeating: 2011 has been one of the most challenging years I have ever faced.

Almost everything that could go wrong has gone wrong and in spectacular fashion. For the first few months of the year, I let it all get to me. It was awful. I felt awful. I didn't want to do anything. I didn't do anything. Again, awful.

Since then, however! World of difference! The way I have lived since mid-April is the reason I can't really say this is the worst year. It hasn't been THAT bad, really, aside from, you know, one glaring thing. And the job situation.

In the end, I have my health. That's more than a lot of people can say. Not only do I have my health, but I'm healthier and in better shape than at almost any other point in my life. And oh boy have I been working on my health.

So! This morning, after walking Allie but before running my four miles I weighed in at 190. AFTER the run, I weighed in at 188, but running four miles will lead to some water weight loss and not actual weight loss. Still, it's pretty fucking amazing to be within shouting distance of the 180s, which I have not seen in at least five years. Especially considering I was within shouting distance of the 230s just a scant four months ago. *Shudders*

Anyway, I will say I'm officially 190 now. Incredible. I'm only 10 pounds away from the goal I set for myself. I've lost 37 pounds! That's ridiculous!

When I really started to get going with this, my friend Mike told me I'd get down to my goal weight and then not want to stop. He went through a similar weight-loss at one point, and he said he ended up losing another 20 or so pounds after reaching his "goal."

Well, I have to agree. Don't get me wrong: I am super pumped about everything -- the way I feel, the way I look, how great I've been at watching what I eat, how I've been able to keep up with my gym routine. Great success. But I still have eyes. And I can look down and see what's still remaining. I've still got 10 pounds to go before the goal weight, but I might want to go another 10 or 15 below that. We'll see!

So here's my belt. Four months ago (and for a couple months before that), I was regularly using the second-to-last hole on the right (i.e. from needing a bigger fucking belt). Now? I'm on the last hole on the left (i.e. from needing a smaller belt)!!

And I'm going to need a new belt soon! This one is still OK for now, but there's room to spare when it pull it all the way to the last hole. Maybe I'll make my own hole there before I buy a new one. But you know. BOOM. Feels good, man.

You know what else is awesome? I'll tell you. Do you know what an Adonis belt is? Well, you know the muscle lines that begin right at the hips and slant down and inward? I HAS THEM. Well, I have the beginnings of them haha. In my life, I've never seen these on myself before, so this is pretty huge breaking news.

It's when you see visual evidence like that that reminds you why you're doing this -- nothing better. I've talked about it before, but it feels like a shot of adrenaline. It is AFFIRMATION, BABY. You know you're doing something right, and it's worth all the work and discipline. My God is it ever worth it.

One of the regrets I had was I never knew what my body fat percentage was. Well, this weekend I finally bought a scale that also calculates body fat percentage. AND I found a formula online that calculates body fat percentage based on your body mass index (BMI). Well, the website where I track everything, sparkpeople.com, has a handy tool where you enter your height and weight, and it tells you your BMI.

So using the formula, I figured out I had a body fat percentage of approximately 30 percent when I was 227 pounds. Now, I have no way of knowing how accurate that is, but as a ballpark starting point, it'll do. What that means is 30 percent of my body weight was fat. Gross. Man.

After I ran today, I stepped on my scale. Body fat percentage today? 22.5 percent. I've cut 7.5 points off my body fat percentage in four months. The American Council on Exercise has a guide for what a person's body fat percentage should be. For guys, obese is 25 percent and up. Average is 18 to 24 percent. Fitness is 14 to 17 percent.

Obviously, when I started, I was firmly in the obese category. I mean. Yikes, you know? I've moved myself down into the average category now, so that's awesome. Ideally, I'd like to get to 15 or 16 percent. After the past four months, I think I could get down to the athlete category (6 to 13 percent), but that just doesn't seem like much fun. I'm Italian, man. I gotta eat some fun food every now and then.

If I can get to the fitness category, I think that'll do just fine for me. But we'll have to see how it goes, of course. If I get down to 175, 170 or 165, and I'm happy with how I look and feel, then that's cool, too.

So yeah, it gives me another metric to use to track my progress, and I'm thoroughly excited about that.

Also, I've taken to running outside again. I've been sticking to the treadmill for a variety of reasons. But Saturday, when we were getting the outskirts of Hurricane Irene, it was so pleasant outside. A cool breeze and a cool, light rain. It felt so good. It was ideal for running in the rain, which is something I've found I quite enjoy, unless the temperatures are in the mid-50s like for my half-marathon.

And I did. I ran four miles on Saturday evening, and it was the single most enjoyable run I've had in a long time. It just felt so damn good. Also, last year, I ran a 5K in my neighborhood. Like, I could walk to it. Well turns out, that 5K is this coming Saturday. My friend Laura was talking to me about wanting to run in a 5K in her hometown, and it reminded me of this one. So I registered for it!

Now, since I've been running on a treadmill for a few months, I figured I should run outside for a little while just to make sure it's not a shock. I ran four miles on Saturday and four miles today, and I'll run another four miles on Wednesday. Then I'll take a break and just wait for the Saturday-morning race. CAN'T WAIT.

A couple other things:

I spent much of Sunday downtown with Matty P. We went to lunch at Chipotle and then saw Harry Potter 7-2. Loved the movie, but I'm a big HP fan. At Chipotle, for the first time ever, I could not finish my burrito. I ate two-thirds of it, and I just couldn't do any more. My stomach is shrinking I guess, right? Hell, I'll take it. I do find I just don't feel the need to eat anywhere close to as much as I used to. Who loves it? THIS GUY.

Sadly, what was once my favorite T-shirt for just hanging around the apartment or running errands has now become rather billowy on me. I'm shrinking, and the shirt is too big now. I'm running into this problem a lot more often lately. #humblebrag

Tattoo update: If you've stopped by my Facebook wall, you've seen a multitude of friends expressing support for getting the Italian translation of "Let's go!" (Andiamo!) as my next tattoo. I spoke to my friend who is fluent in Italian, and she said the Google Translate version of "Keep calm, and carry on" is technically correct, but because of the phrasing, there's really no way to capture the meaning exactly. See? This is why I asked someone who knows the language. And you know what? I don't hate "Andiamo." My Raleigh friends and I say "let's go" all. the. time. It's an expression of excitement, optimism, glee and just generally feeling really fucking good. And honestly, it's much more my personality than "keep calm, and carry on." Like I said last week, nothing is imminent. Just thinking things through.

That's all I've got for now! As always, check back on Monday, Wednesday and Friday for new posts. I've done a pretty solid job of keeping to that schedule for a while now, and I don't anticipate stopping.

Thank you, thank you, thank you to everyone who stops by and takes the time to read, send me messages or post comments. I love each and every one of you for it.

-BG

I Want Another Tattoo

2011-08-26T17:01:00.002-04:00

That headline is not a surprise at all if you've known me for any significant amount of time. For those of you who do not know, yes, I do have a tattoo, as seen on the left. Even Blade thinks it's a pretty cool tattoo, as he's checking it out over my shoulder.

It's a Star of David with a cross in the middle. I have a necklace I've worn since I was very, very young that has that as the charm. Once I turned 20, I'd toyed with the idea of getting a tattoo, but I never really thought too much about it. Well, I began to realize the necklace would actually make a pretty good one because of how much it means to me. One day my sister and I decided it was time to get tattoos. My parents were totally on board. They took us to the place, paid for them and watched intently the entire time.

It was actually almost exactly eight years ago. We went sometime in August 2003.

And, yes, OK. I did pass out while I was getting mine done. IN MY DEFENSE, though, I hadn't had anything to eat that day, and it was really hot in the tattoo shop. And, oh by the way, shit hurts, man. They say it doesn't hurt anymore than a cat scratch. And, while that may be true, most cat scratches don't last for an hour. So you know, an hour. Anyway, I had a Coke, and they gave me a fan, and I was good to go the rest of the time.

While I was sitting down, the guy said, you're going to get addicted to this, and you'll want more, guaranteed. I called bullshit afterward. No way I'd voluntarily go through that again.

Well.

Just a few days later, I'd forgotten what it felt like, and I started kind of thinking about maybe getting another one. But my whole thing with tattoos is I always want it to be something that means something to me. The Star of David/cross has a lot of meaning to me. I'll never get tired of it, no matter how old I am.

I've never been able to think of something that would be equally special to me, so eight years later, I haven't gotten another tattoo.

When my grandmother died seven years ago, I thought I'd get something in remembrance of her. She was Italian, and her name was Rose. So I thought, why not the Italian word for rose? Well it turns out the Italian word for rose is "rosa."

And that means I would have had some random woman's name tattooed on me. That would have been fun to explain to anyone who saw it (especially girls). Because the only real way to explain that one is to tell the story of my grandmother's death and talk about a Debbie Downer.

So that was out.

Other than that, I haven't had any good ideas in the seven years since. But I've still wanted to get a second tattoo.

Now. It is NO secret that 2011 has been one of the more...challenging years I've ever had. It's been one kick in the nuts after another for the better part of eight months. Started in January, and it's hardly slowed down since.

Given all that, I am extremely proud of the way I've held on, made innumerable changes to myself for the better and even thrived in so many ways. In the face of some of the most difficult challenges I've ever had to face, I stood up, fought back and thrived.

The phrase "keep calm, and carry on" has gotten me through a lot. I've been saying it to myself a hell of a lot lately, and it keeps me focused and keeps me centered.

So, remembering the idea for the Italian translation of rose, I looked up the Italian translation of keep calm, and carry on. According to Google Translate, it's "mantenere la calma e continuare." And you know, the more I think about it, the more I like this idea.

Not everyone will agree, I'm sure. I already had a nice little disagreement with Katie on gchat about this haha. She's steadfastly against too many tattoos. Whereas my friend Laura is more of a fan of the idea.

I have a few thoughts here. I'm not a huge fan of cheesy, highly visible tattoos. To each their own, of course. If your tattoos are visible, and they mean something to you, that's awesome. I would prefer any tattoos I have to be easily covered for work purposes. And since this phrase means a great deal to me now, I feel like it would be appropriate, similar to the one I already have.

As for where it goes, I'm thinking either on the back of my left shoulder to balance the other one, or perhaps on my left bicep. That way, I could still very easily cover it for work, and I could still see it as well. I figure it would go lengthwise, going in the direction of my elbow to my shoulder. Not necessarily starting AT my elbow, of course, just that direction.

Thankfully, one of my sister's best friends is fluent in Italian. While I'm sure Google Translate does a good job, if there's any chance this might be inked into my skin, I'd like a second opinion from someone who, you know, speaks the language.

I feel like I should add I have no intention of getting more after this one (if I even get this one). Just one more, and I think I'll be good. Hell, it's taken me eight years to come up with an idea for a second. I don't have the energy to try for more.

So that's what I'm thinking right now. It's obviously not going to happen immediately or anything. But the more I think about it, the more I like the idea.

I'm interested in hearing your thoughts. Good idea for a tattoo? Bad idea? Good location ideas? Let me know!

-BG

MTV Challenge: Rivals

2011-08-25T13:20:00.001-04:00

On Tuesday, I was in the process of contemplating what I was going to write for Wednesday's post, and for a variety of reasons, I just wasn't feeling it.

Then, my friend Mike (of the blog, PPD, Rain) gchats me that he has a pretty solid idea for a blog entry. He wanted to do a running diary of the finale for the Rivals Challenge on MTV. "Do you want to do a joint post about it?"

Do I?!

Now, this show is most definitely a guilty pleasure of mine, so I knew this was a brilliant idea. We immediately agreed no one else would care about this but us, but they're our blogs, so screw it.

Funny story about Mike and me. We started out as just mutual acquaintances who played in the same fantasy baseball league. Then, we realized we're probably two of the biggest baseball fans we each know, so we started talking on gchat pretty much every day. We've gotten to be pretty good friends now, and we've only met in person, like, two or three times total. Lulz.

Anyway, we hopped on gchat last night for the 10 p.m. finale and talked about it for a good hour and 15 minutes or so. Below is the chat transcript, which starts at 9:55 p.m. and goes through around 11:10 p.m. or so.

The only editing I did was to remove unnecessary spaces and very light grammar corrections just to make sure it was, you know, readable.

So read up below, and be sure to check out Mike's blog, PPD, Rain, for his super excellent stories.

Brian: So we've got about five minutes before what I can only imagine will be the incredible finale to Challenge: Rivals. Gotta say, I'm not that happy about catching the last five minutes of Teen Mom.

Mike: Just let me know when I should turn...they are still talking about the "fatigue" game on ESPNU about the U. I think Mike Irvin just robbed someone.

Brian: I hated changing the channel off of that, they were just talking about when Irvin was challenging some hitmen to a gunfight. Interesting decisions and the people who make them.

Mike: OK off to MTV!

Brian: so any preliminary thoughts?

Mike: OK I think we should give odds. So the players are..Mike and Leroy, Kenny and Wes, Johnny and Tyler.

Brian: I think it's Johnny and Tyler's to lose. The previews last week made it seem like Wes hurts himself in this one, which, by the way, I'm all for. NOT a Wes fan.

Mike: well he was a pansy in a previous elimination challenge.

Brian: yeah see I hate that I've only seen the past two challenges. But here's the thing for me, I'm a HUGE fan of CT, and that's hard for me to say given his Boston connection. But he was just such a badass, I couldn't help myself

Mike: true. OK so I think Johnny and Tyler are the favorites

Brian: Agreed, but I'll be rooting hardcore for Mike/Leroy

Mike: yeah me too. I love Mike. he is the everyman. he hasn't done steroids, or at least he hides it really well.

Brian: plus, he's not in the ridiculous alliance. and here's another strike for Wes in my book. I may or may not be (but definitely am) in love with Cara Maria. I can't explain it, but there it is, and Wes gave her WAY too hard of a time for no reason

Mike: she looks like she hasn't showered in weeks. OK here we go!

Brian: heck yes. LET'S GO

Mike: so how about in the girls? you're obviously pulling for Cara Maria and Laurel

Brian: yes definitely, but it's hard to see how Evelyn/Paula aren't the favorites

Mike: yeah I hate Paula. I think I'm pulling for Jenn and Mandi

Brian: yeah I'm indifferent on Paula, but I also have a crush on Evelyn, who I'm told is a lesbian

Mike: yea it seems like I remember that, but I could have made it up. OK Johnny and Tyler look great in the kayak

Brian: ever been kayaking? kayaking is tough man. what a workout

Mike: yeah we just signed up for an adventure race that we have to kayak 11 miles

Brian: whew that's no joke

Mike: yeah we'll see

Brian: and now they have to carry boulders around. I would LOVE to be in the MTV meetings when they're coming up with this stuff

Mike: I would like to see how much roids these guys take to be able to run and lift a ton of things

Mike: I hate the memory challenges. I would be AWFUL

Brian: yeah that's ridiculous and then to have to run and do all that nonsense. I have absolutely no confidence in my ability to memorize the physical location of all those items in the campsite

Brian: look at Mike using his brain! breaking the rock to spread the weight around

Mike: yeah I’m liking their chances here. the memorization seems like it SHOULD be a strength of his

Brian: at some point, we have to consider this is just plain cruel, right? I mean, shoveling dirt into a wheel barrow

Mike: it's America’s 5th major sport!

Brian: haha and then Wes accidentally breaks the rock. what an ape

Mike: WOW building a tent

Brian: oh man. I don't believe I've ever successfully built a tent

Mike: me either. I've never been camping

Brian: WOW they have to go all the way back if they don't get the campsite exactly identical

Mike: and I'm completely okay with that

Brian: and commercial. thoughts so far?

Mike: OK at the first break I think this is not as crazy as ones I’ve seen in the past, but I like where it's heading. I think the memory challenge could be the difference maker

Brian: oh yeah

Mike: if Mike and Leroy get it...they will win

Brian: well we just saw the most physically intimidating female team (Evelyn and Paula) has to go all the way back and restudy the campsite

Brian: if Cara Maria can get over Laurel whispering in her ear how this is the most important thing in her life...geez, and you're totally right about Mike and Leroy. Mike knows he's not as athletic as the other guys, but he's got the brain challenges for sure.

Mike: yep

Brian: and you know Wes is going to screw up the campsite memory game. and we're back! here we go.

Brian: ah poor Cara Maria and Laurel going back

Mike: and Jenn is crying

Brian: Wes. my god. on what planet is walking around with broken pieces of rocks in your SOCKS a good idea?

Mike: I do love those rocks in his socks, and where are Mike and Leroy??

Brian: OK, I would be remiss if I did not express great joy at the uniforms the females have to wear

Mike: "who the f*** goes camping" love that

Brian: haha YES. let's go Mike and Leroy! Wow Jenn and Mandy's tent wasn't even standing completely

Mike: "everything wrong"

Brian: LET'S GO CARA MARIA AND LAUREL! oh man I am PUMPED. I love you Cara. and Wes and Kenny and Johnny and Tyler are getting sent back again. C'moooon Mike and Leroy

Mike: this is huge for them

Brian: there you go boys. next commercial break and Jenn is having a breakdown

Mike: yep. she's been breaking down for awhile. they are done

Brian: yup

Mike: 0 dollars

Brian: I mean, food poisoning. I can't believe she and Tyler are this far

Brian: now that last segment, the way it was edited – did Leroy and Mike have to go back at all?

Mike: I don't think so, but the other two did right?

Brian: yeah at least twice each I think, but it seemed like Mike and Leroy STILL got out in third with the editing on that

Mike: at least twice?

Brian: well, not MORE than twice. twice each

Mike: but maybe thrice?

Brian: can't rule it out

Mike: should we rewind and see?

Brian: nah, not THAT important

Mike: agreed.

Brian: I have to say, I like having the commercials to kind of reflect on what has happened so far, which is surprising. I expected to be annoyed #firstworldproblems

Mike: ok we're back!

Brian: oh my GOD. an eating challenge

Mike: I bet they have to eat it all. yep!

Brian: WOW

Mike: this is not going to end well

Brian: no way

Mike: food poisoning too

Brian: Cara speaking of "getting it and getting it and getting it and getting it.” THAT IS WHAT SHE SAID

Mike: hahaha

Mike: this is some heavy food too

Brian: I'm with Kenny there. I’m an Italian from NJ. I could totally do this if it were just isolated, but with the physical stuff afterward, no way.

Mike: as a 2-time Krispy Kreme challenge completer, it's tough

Brian: oh wow. Krispy Kreme challenge is LEGIT

Mike: Leroy and Mike still aren’t there yet

Brian: just showing up. I can't believe they were so far behind

Mike: yeah me either

Brian: I'm having some gagging issues over here

Mike: DING DING

Brian: I have not vomited in nearly 20 years. it's kind of a phobia for me now, but if I see it, hear it or smell it, I start gagging

Mike: I actually don't even mind it too much. I would rather do it then feel terrible.

Mike: oh gross. I liked TV better when they couldn't show this stuff

Brian: aaand I'm back. covered my eyes and ears for a bit

Mike: and Wes is down!

Brian: oh WOW that is seriously bizarre

Mike: oh my gosh

Brian: what in the WORLD is going on with Wes' knee?

Mike: I have no idea what that was, but he should be drinking some gatorade or something

Mike: GIVE THE MAN A GEL -- side note...those things are amazing and have gotten me through several races

Brian: I don't feel as good about Mike/Leroy anymore

Brian: and Kenny is carrying Wes. well then

Mike: I’m still putting Mike and Leroy in 2nd. Wes is such a pansy

Brian: I hate Wes. I like Kenny though

Mike: yeah me too

Brian: I had no idea what their beef was, but my sister filled me in. apparently Wes had a fiance and was a total DICK to her. and then Kenny slept with her or something. ON A CHALLENGE SHOW

Brian: hey oh

Mike: haha yeah I had forgotten that

Brian: that's a LEGIT rival thing. these others are all like, "so and so talked shit behind my back"

Mike: Ev and Paula look good so far

Brian: yeah man, they're setting the female pace, it seems. oh WOW. spending the night!

Mike: IN THE MORNING. let's go!

Brian: twist!

Mike: I’m really surprised they didn't make this last another week

Brian: I know! it seems like there is so much they could have shown. and let's be serious, I totally would have watched

Mike: of course. we would have done this 2 straight weeks

Brian: haha YES

Mike: and we probably would have half the readers next week. what's half of 1?

Brian: I feel like it's appropriate to point out right now that we understand we're the only ones who care about this at all. but when you suggested doing this, I was blown away by the brilliance of the idea

Mike: yeah people definitely aren't reading this anymore

Brian: yeah can you believe Nick is such an idiot

Mike: Does nick even read our blogs?

Brian: Doubt it!

Mike: not a chance

Brian: FRIEND FAIL

Mike: he's a top 10 friend for letting you down

Brian: then again, he can't be bothered to hop on gchat more than once every two weeks

Mike: yep

Brian: and we're back!

Mike: yes! sleep or stand. so they are pretty much making everything even. so what are the rules here?

Brian: WOW. sounds like they switch every hour. one person standing on the rock, one person "sleeping"

Mike: oh wow

Brian: wow...DQed. Jenn and Mandi. DONE

Mike: and DONE. Jenn has to be 35

Brian: when they have to stop a team because it would be too dangerous to continue...whew. hey this means Cara Maria and Laurel are getting some money! let's go!

Mike: so who are you betting on now?

Brian: man I don't know...this is a hell of a twist. completely resets the race

Mike: yep

Brian: oh my god. that's not a very big rock to stand on

Mike: nope. this is going to get interesting

Brian: ohhh I see. they switch when someone falls off the rock

Mike: oh ok

Brian: HECK YES Cara Maria. that's right, be satisfied because Wes sucks

Mike: Kenny is a bad partner by berating Wes

Brian: right. Wes is the worst. Wes wouldn't have even gotten that far if Kenny didn't LITERALLY carry his lame ass

Brian: I'm liking Wes less and less the more I watch. he can dish it out, but as soon as someone turns the spotlight on him. can't hang

Mike: his best moment was when it was him and a girl in a challenge....they went to the elimination every single week and dominated

Brian: gah I'm so upset it took me so long to get into this show. it's on the DVR schedule from now on though

Mike: haha

Brian: I have to say, I can't help but wonder how much more awesome this would be if CT were still going

Mike: I think Adam would have folded by now

Brian: probably so

Mike: CT would have carried him though

Brian: no doubt. dude is a serious monster. big fan of his

Mike: Leroy is a champ

Brian: I can't believe Leroy is thinking of food after that eating challenge. yeah Leroy will be LEGIT going forward

Mike: he's definitely earned some respect

Brian: that's a HUGE mountain. wow racing to the top

Mike: oh wow and only a 2-minute head start after winning the day before

Brian: after everything they did the previous day, and it only gives you 2 minutes? geez

Brian: C'MON MIKE, don't quit

Mike: Mike and Leroy are done

Brian: yeah I can't imagine them finishing in the money, but don't quit. TJ doesn't like quitters.

Brian: LET'S GO CARA

Mike: haha I’m indifferent in the girls

Brian: how long before Wes breaks down? soon, right? haha

Mike: you'd think so. wow Mike and Leroy are quitting!

Brian: damn but you know when TJ even admits it's OK to quit, it's going to be terrible

Mike: Mike was a beast this challenge

Brian: this mountain is ridiculous. I can't even imagine climbing this thing for a several hours

Mike: wasn't it like 4 hours?

Brian: YES

Mike: jeez

Brian: ridiculous. so here's what I'm thinking so far. I hate Wes, but I like Kenny a lot, so they cancel each other out. and I don't have any strong feelings toward Johnny or Tyler

Mike: yeah I hated Johnny in previous challenges. he and Kenny were together. they both put Wes in the elimination round every time

Brian: now with the girls. obviously Evelyn and Paula are a stronger team. they're built for success for the duration of a long challenge

Mike: I think it's a no brainer that they win but Paula has never won anything, so there’s that.

Brian: well and with the way this race keeps resetting and eliminating advantages, and with how strong a player Laurel is...she could absolutely pick Cara up for a short-term burst

Mike: haha I don't think they'll do that

Brian: haha I don't mean LITERALLY pick her up, but you know

Mike: WOW Johnny and Tyler

Brian: wow Johnny and Tyler find their key and start racing to the box at the top of the mountain

Mike: oh this is close

Brian: Coming down to the wire

Mike: this is definitely the closest I’ve seen

Brian: Johnny and Tyler take the win! I'm happy with that result

Mike: it's funny how they get so excited about 100k, 50k a piece. It’s a lot of money, but I mean that's not a great year haha

Brian: haha yeah not for what they have to go through. damn Paula and Evelyn take it for the girls

Mike: I mean it's worth 50k. I’d do that for 50k

Brian: yeah well I have a heights thing. I don't know if I could do it

Mike: for 50k? you would do it.

Mike: Ev and Paula are still hugging. kind of awkward

Brian: hey my girl Cara got second place. that's not bad at all. I'll take that

Mike: yep. you got to watch her for 2 months

Brian: exactly right!

Mike: here is the question...will you watch the reunion show next week?

Brian: YES. of course I will

Mike: I HATE the reunion shows. well mainly I hate the hosts

Brian: yeah that's hard to argue with. so any final thoughts on this season?

Mike: well I enjoyed it

Brian: absolutely

Mike: I loved the dynamic between the rivals but I felt like you said earlier...it was all very petty. no one really HATED each other. other than Kenny and Wes

Brian: maybe CT and Adam

Mike: yeah

Brian: they had some legit fights

Mike: CT tried to make up with him though. and Adam blew that last challenge

Brian: haha yes "are we friends yet?"

Mike: I don't know why CT didn't try and tackle Tyler

Brian: I know right. see my only CT experience was last year when they brought him in as a ringer for one of the Gulag elimination games. and he DESTROYED Johnny and Tyler

Mike: oh that was crazy

Brian: yeah so I really enjoyed this season. there wasn't nearly as much drama as I thought there'd be

Mike: yeah definitely

Brian: but when you are forced to work with people you supposedly hate and the prize is a shit-ton of money. it's going to heal some wounds

Mike: haha. this is true

Brian: well since only you and I will be reading this post down this far, we might as well wrap it up. this was fun...an excellent idea

Mike: I agree

Brian: maybe next time we'll pick something even FEWER people are interested in

Mike: we should never do it again haha

Mike: So before we go... how many clicks will we get and what is the average time people will view it total?

Brian: haha...well I think we'll get a normal amount of clicks because there are people who regularly read, and we might get a few cross-over clicks

Mike: I love those

Brian: I wish there was a way to track how many people read all the way to the bottom haha. no way it's more than 5 TOTAL across both blogs

Mike: yeah I’d maybe say less than that

Brian: WORTH IT.

Mike: YES

And there you have it. If you've made it down this far, wow. You are truly dedicated. You should leave a comment or something just so I know who actually read the whole thing haha. Congrats to you, and thank you, thank you for reading as always.

Back tomorrow!

-BG

Seeking a Band

2011-08-22T08:30:00.000-04:00

Marginally talented drummer seeks similarly semi-serious band for jamming and live shows

Likes:
6/8 time signatures
Triplet-note drum solos/fills
China crash cymbals
Splash cymbals
Off-beat hi-hat ska beats
Fun music that gets people dancing
Drum intro from "That Thing You Do"

Dislikes:
Not being able to use my double-bass pedal properly (read: at all)
Slow, super-serious, not fun music
Drama
Taking oneself too seriously

I spent Saturday night at a bar in Bethesda, watching a band that featured a coworker of my friend Katie. They were pretty good, and live music is always fun. Plus, I met a bunch more local N.C. State people who I'll undoubtedly be hanging out with a lot more often once flag football season gets started in a few weeks.

It was, predictably, beyond ridiculous, which is sort of becoming a theme when I go out with my friends now. I'll take it. Anyway, I had a really, really great time.

These guys were playing music. Just for fun. Just hanging out, playing a few songs in a bar with people watching and dancing and having a good time. So as I was watching this band play, it struck me. They're not doing anything I can't do.

Hell, I have done it. Not in a bar or anything, but I've played in a band. I've written and co-written songs. I've played in front of people. And the thing is, I'm better now than I was then, you know?

Here's my set. It's a great five-piece Pearl kit with some roto-toms (which, truthfully, I hardly ever use) that came with it when I bought it used from the music store where I used to work.

I've got 14" hi-hats, two 16" crash cymbals and a 20" ride. My wishlist includes a 10" splash cymbal and an 18" China crash, but those have been on my wishlist for going on a decade haha.

I've had it for probably eight or nine years now, and I absolutely love it. It sounds great for what I want to do, and it didn't break the bank to acquire it.

I know my skill level on the drums. I understand my limits. People who have heard me tend to tell me I'm pretty good, I guess. But, you know, what else are they going to tell me? I am less confident than they are, but I appreciate the kind words.

But I know what I can and cannot do behind a kit. I play to my strengths, and I don't try to do too much. I stick to what I know. And that's really the key. Don't overreach, do what you do and do it well. I feel like I can do that.

So what do I really want?

I just want to play some music, man. I want to find a band that plays a few gigs a month around the DC-area and mixes awesome covers with a few original songs. I want to find some people who are in it to have a good time and just play.

Because here's the thing: it was the most fun I've ever had, so why not? What on earth is stopping me? I mean, other than talent, drive and determination, of course. I kid, I kid. But seriously. What's stopping me? There isn't anything stopping me other than I simply haven't ever thought to try before.

Can you even imagine? Going to band practices and jamming with other people again. Playing live shows in front of actual audiences. Writing music again. I'm getting the chills just thinking about it.

A while back, I asked for feedback on what kinds of posts people would want to read, and Erik's dad suggested a post about something I've always wanted to do, but haven't and why. While I still plan on writing that post, playing music in a real band again would be A-No. 1 on that list. Why haven't I? No real good reason.

So there you go. I'm going to start looking around Craigslist for a fun situation, and I'll start contacting people as soon as this job thing is settled. Maybe I'll even post an ad using the description up at the top. I bet that would get a few hits.

To all my DC-area friends: do you know of a fun band looking for a drummer? Let me know! I'm totally in.

-BG

Speechless

2011-08-19T17:04:00.002-04:00

Funny thing about me: I'm very rarely speechless. Verbose may be the best descriptor ever used to describe me. Ask my friend Clark about the time I submitted a 1,200-word column on a football game I covered. It should have been in the 500-600 word range. Whoops.

I usually don't have a very hard time coming up with things to say or to write, and I have opinions about almost everything (even if I don't necessarily articulate them at every moment of the day [restraint, my friends -- a valuable skill]). Those are several reasons why I've always enjoyed being a "writer."

It's a wonderful outlet for when I have things to say (which is often), even if the number of people who care about those things can be counted on one hand (which is also often).

Imagine my surprise when I sat down to write for the blog today, and I had nothing. I don't have anything particularly funny or interesting to say (not that anything I ever say is particularly funny or interesting, mind you), which is both pretty funny and interesting to me, anyway. I have a list of 20 or so ideas for posts sketched out, but none of them really excited me today.

I'm honestly pretty shocked I've been able to keep up with the three-times-a-week writing schedule, with only a couple slips, for almost three full months now. Anyway.

So there you go. This post is about to get a little stream-of-consciousnessy. Continue at your own risk.

I was so blown away by the response to my story about The Cycle. Google Analytics tells me the blog received the second-most traffic yesterday behind only my (500) Days of Summer break-up post. That's so awesome. I loved writing that story yesterday. I seriously loved playing in a band, even if it was only for a brief time.

You know, maybe I should hop on Craigslist and see if there are any fun bands around here looking for a drummer. I'm not trying to join a super-serious, pretentious band or anything. I seriously doubt I'm good enough to play in a band like that. I just want to play some fun music that gets people dancing. I'm going to have to think about this one. Not a bad idea.

I just saw a new show on BBC America called "The Hour." Let me tell you this. I think it's going to be awesome. The pilot just aired a day or two ago. But it's set in 1950s England at the BBC as the network tries to launch a new news program.

Because of the time period in which it's set, it kind of has a Mad Men-esque vibe going on, which I'm obviously a fan of because I love Mad Men. McNulty from The Wire stars in the "Don Draper" role. My only gripe is BBC America is not available in HD (I know, #firstworldproblems). It's just really distracting on a 55-inch HDTV (#humblebrag, to continue the out-of-place hash tag trend). Oh well. DVR is set. I'll have to deal.

So last night, my friends and I went to Front Page for happy hour because they've got some pretty good specials there on Thursday nights ($2 Miller Lites, Corona and Corona Lights, as well as free tacos). I didn't get any tacos though. They ran out. I love when I can go out and have a really good time for like $16. And I like it even MORE when it doesn't lead to any weight gain the next day.

Yes, I weighed in for the third consecutive day at 193 for a loss of 34 pounds. I'll take it! I really wish my ribs would stop hurting so I can get back to running and lifting the way I want to. I'm just too scared to try anything in the gym with my ribs hurting the way they are.

I'm definitely taking it easy tonight because TOMORROW one of the Katies has a friend in a band, and that band is playing somewhere in Bethesda! It almost doesn't matter what kind of music it is. I just like to go listen to live music. It'll be a good time, for SHO. And then we'll likely go out somewhere after that. I most definitely cannot go out three nights in a row. So tonight is a TV/reading/walking the dog kind of night.

For privacy reasons, I have my Twitter settings such that you have to request to follow me (which you should totally do, by the way). In the past 24 hours I have received no fewer than SEVEN requests from obvious porn spam accounts. What in the world. So very strange.

Still no word on the job front, but my confidence is renewed! Google's Revenge will not allow me to speak about these things publicly, but feel free to gchat me/text me or something. I am hopeful and optimistic as ever.

Oh, my dog Allie walked into a tree today. So that happened. She gets in the habit of not looking where she's going when she sees other dogs across the street. She follows them intently with her whole head and pays no attention to what's in front of her.

Well on our walk this morning, there was a big German shepherd on the other side of the street, and Allie was, predictably, pumped about it. Well I'm so used to her going nuts for other dogs, I didn't notice she stopped looking forward. Then I heard a yelp and saw her snorting and making funny faces. Yup. She walked into a tree. Once she and I determined she was not hurt, it was actually quite funny.

I felt so bad for her. I think she was embarrassed. She didn't want to walk for a few minutes and just buried her head in my legs. Poor thing. She's fine, of course, and we were able to complete the walk successfully without another tree-crashing incident. Oh dogs. You never cease to amaze me.

Wow, look at that. I started writing this thinking I had no idea what I was going to write, and I've turned in more than 1,000 words anyway.

As always, thank you so, so much for reading and for the feedback you give me. People telling me they're reading, laughing and enjoying the blog is seriously amazing, and it always makes my day. I'll try to come up with something thoroughly entertaining by Monday. Until then!

-BG

Behind the Music: The Cycle

2011-08-17T13:01:00.002-04:00

I was a band geek in high school. I have no problem admitting that. I'm not entirely sure I'm not still a band geek. C'est la vie.

HOWEVAH! In addition to being a band geek in high school, I was also in an actual band. Believe me when I tell you this: it was awesome. Ready for the story? Good.

When I was in fifth grade, I knew I wanted to be in the school band. I'm not entirely sure why. I just knew it was something I wanted to do. Naturally, as I'm sure every boy wants, I wanted to play percussion. My parents were...less than enthused about the prospect of me banging on drums all day.

So I picked the clarinet. Pardon me while I adjust the tape on my glasses. Don't get me wrong, I thoroughly enjoyed playing clarinet and do not regret the choice, and by the time I graduated high school I was actually pretty good at it. But you know. There it is.

I always wanted to play drums in a band. When I was a freshman in high school, I made extremely loose plans with some friends from my neighborhood to create a band where I'd play the drums. Needless to say, it did not happen. For as long as I could remember, I'd air drum. I'd use pencils on notebooks. But the fact remained: I'd never played a real drum set.

Fast forward to my junior year of high school. I'm still playing clarinet. It was just after the marching band season, and we were at our end-of-year band banquet. My best friend Jon came up to me and asked, "Hey do you want to be in a band?" Yes I do, I told him. But I don't believe there's a place in a real band for a clarinet.

"No, you'll play the drums."
"Jon, I've never even been in the same room as a real drum set. I don't know how to play."
"That's OK. I'm going to play guitar, and I don't know how to play that."

Well then. We were off. We recruited a bass player (Jay, who actually played trumpet), a keyboard player (Lindsay, who actually played flute), a trumpet player (Andrew, who, in addition to playing trumpet, owned a drum set and actually played very well) and a trombone player (Chris, who actually did play trombone).

And yes, I do still have those red drumsticks in the picture.

So we became a band. Andrew was kind enough to bring his drums (at which he was, to reiterate the point, quite good) for me to use, since I didn't have any. The first time I ever sat behind a real kit was our very first band practice. And trust me when I tell you this: it most definitely sounded like it. Look, there's a 0 percent chance we were any good when we first started, but we had something going for us. All six of us had been in band forever, so we were all extremely musically inclined. We picked up our parts fast. Well, as fast as 16-year-olds are going to pick them up.

We were trying to come up with a name, and we joked we should call ourselves Wash Cycle. Our first album would be "Rinse," naturally, and our second would be "Tumble Dry." Our greatest hits collection would be called "Suds." It was hilarious at the time.

And then I stopped and said, "well, what about just The Cycle? Why couldn't that work?" And just like that, it stuck. We were The Cycle.

We practiced every week. We all found we loved just jamming and playing together. Eventually (finally), I convinced my parents to buy me a drum set. Another guy from marching band was selling his old kit, and I was able to get a decent CB set for like $200. It wasn't going to win any awards, but it had all the pieces. At that point, I just needed to play.

It was so much fun. You don't even know. I got some excellent noise-canceling headphones and started playing along to my favorite songs at the time (a LOT of Reel Big Fish [not much has changed], Blink 182 and Boston, if I remember correctly) just to get a feel for playing. I never had any lessons, so I was just figuring it out as I went along.

The band party took place in December 1998, and we continued to play throughout the winter and spring. For St. Patrick's Day that year, our marching band was invited to play in the St. Patrick's Day parade in DUBLIN. Yes, really. In my life, I cannot imagine seeing more people than I saw lining the streets of Dublin as we marched through. Once in a lifetime, man. Unreal.

While we were in Ireland, the band decided we needed to have our own "Abbey Road" photo. Like you do. However, we found the whole "taking a picture while we're walking across the street" thing to be prohibitively difficult in downtown Dublin. So we improvised by standing in front of a ridiculous church, still in Dublin. Sadly, I do not recall what church this is any longer.

A few things about the photo. We were exhausted because we'd just marched in the several-mile parade. Also, I don't know why Lindsay isn't there, nor do I know what Chris, Jon or I are looking at. And I can only assume Andrew just sneezed. Give us a break. We were 16 years old.

We recorded a handful of songs and played exactly three "gigs" in our brief career. The first was in Jon's backyard not long after we formed, with all of our way-too-excited parents in attendance. Awesome. And yes, there is video evidence of this, and I do believe I have the VHS of it somewhere around here. Actually, I believe I have video evidence of all three of our gigs somewhere. I'll have to find them.

Anyway, the second was over the summer of 1999. There was a contest/showcase in Concord, N.C., for bands involved with one of the guitar teachers at the music store where Jon and I worked. He heard we had a band and invited us to play. We played four songs, and I thought we really killed it that day (as T.J. Lavin would say [GUILTY PLEASURE ALERT!]). That was a fun day, even if we got lost on the way there.

The last gig was at the band party where we formed a year earlier. We took this one probably less seriously than we should have haha. I don't remember us being bad, by any means. We had actually gotten pretty decent playing together, considering almost none of us knew how to play our instruments when we formed. But you know, we were goofing around and just having fun.

I have to brag for a second. We did write one song, called "Let Me Know," that I love to listen to still today. It's on my iPod. I burned it to CDs when it was still cool to burn CDs for the car (it's not anymore, right?). And, considering we were 16 years old when we wrote it, I think we did a pretty damn good job. It's still the first song I play on my drums when I get a chance to play.

The great irony in all of this is 13 years later, Jon and I are actually pretty decent at our instruments now, and we haven't played together in years. Sigh.

Little did we know, The Cycle was the first of many things Jon and I would do together that would have been seriously awesome if we truly dedicated ourselves to them haha. More on those in future posts though.

In the meantime, we're always in the mood for a reunion. Nothing big. A few new songs. Mostly old stuff. So please don't hesitate to contact me for booking information.

Seriously though. There is nothing like the experience of playing music on stage (no matter the audience). It's an unrivaled adrenaline rush. Utterly exhilarating. If you can do it, I cannot recommend it highly enough.

I'm out. Back on Friday!

-BG

Updates!

2011-08-15T13:04:00.001-04:00

I wrote entirely too much last week. I wouldn't be surprised if most people didn't even bother to read it all. So let's just update a few ongoing things, shall we? We shall.

Ribs Update

Shit hurts, man. It's improving daily, but you know. I'm over it. I sneezed twice this weekend (BREAKING NEWS!), and the good news there is they didn't make me almost pass out. It's the little things, folks.

I definitely can't run. I tried. Bad decision. I'm hoping another week of rest, ice packs and painkillers will make it so I can get back to the gym next week. It's kind of driving me crazy that I can't work out.

For now, I'm limited to walking Allie four miles a day. In the meantime, there will be a lot of couch time with an ice pack planted on my ribs. Stretching it out seems to help, so there you go.

So interesting, I know.

Weight-Loss Update

For, like, a month there, it seemed like we were playing softball at least twice a week. You may be thinking, "oh hey! Lots of exercise! Nice!" And yes, that's true. But it also meant more beer and bar food than I'm usually accustomed to consuming. Aaaand it sort of led to a little more cheat meals than I'd like. But it's OK.

It was exactly as awesome as it sounds.

Thankfully, I'm holding steady at 194-195 pounds for now, which is a loss of 32-33 pounds since mid-April. I'll take it, man. I'll take it.

Today is all about rededicating to cutting out the nonsense food again, and as soon as I can get back in the gym, you better believe I'll be hitting it hard six days a week. For now, I'll just have to be satisfied with walking Allie four miles a day. It doesn't seem smart to try to work out with any kind of intensity with this rib stuff going on. Oh well. Soon!

The excellent news is I'm still on track to reach my goal of 180 pounds in the timetable I originally set back in April. The first couple of months went so well, so quickly, there was room for a bit of a plateau, even if it was more than a little self-induced. Just keep on, keepin' on, man. I'll get there. I know it.

Weekend Update

So I knew I liked Bottom Line, a bar downtown near Farragut Square. We'd gone there a few times during softball season, and it was my kind of place. I liked it immediately, in fact.

On Friday night, I met a bunch of friends there and discovered Bottom Line's ridiculous happy hour specials.

From 4 p.m. to 7 p.m., they have $1 Miller Light bottles. The price goes up to $2 from 7 p.m. to 9 p.m., and to $2.50 from 9 p.m. to 11 p.m. Pretty sure they go back to $1 at 11 p.m., too. That's incredible!

Got there a little before 6, so we got to take full advantage of the special price. It's just such a great place to waste some time. And, in case you missed it, $1 beers! From there, we headed to a place called Local 16, which is actually pretty close to my old Columbia Heights stomping grounds. Local 16 was all right and all, but two drinks there cost twice as much as the five I had at Bottom Line.

I know they were regularly priced for bars downtown, but I did not appreciate the juxtaposition haha. But there was a LOT more dancing at Local 16, and we all know how I feel about dancing. We left that place around 2 or so. By the time I got to sleep, it was nearing 5 a.m. Hey oh.

I went to sleep on Saturday morning the same time I woke up the Saturday morning before.

All of that goes to say most of Saturday was spent asleep. I walked the dog, ran a few errands and fell asleep. And it was magnificent. All in all, Friday was well worth it. Let's go.

Job Update

Still waiting to hear. As far as I know, I'm a finalist for the position I mentioned briefly over the past few weeks. I feel good, and I'm optimistic.

I think I may be hearing something in the next few days. C'moooon good news. I'm ready.

Football Update

Yes. So college football season is almost upon us, and a bunch of friends are planning a road trip to Boston for the N.C. State-Boston College game on Nov. 12. We first started discussing it during the ridiculous CAN softball tournament, and it seemed like such a great idea, so why not?

I've never been to Boston. Truthfully, I never imagined I'd ever go, nor did I particularly want to go, really. But whatevs. I've heard good things. I have a friend and a cousin who live there, and I have no doubt it will be awesome. I'm looking forward to it.

Plus, N.C. STATE FOOTBALL! Man, let's go.

Well that's still a pretty long post, but it's reasonable for me, I suppose. Until next time!

-BG

Not Illegal, but Frowned Upon Part 3

2011-08-12T15:17:00.005-04:00

Welcome to what I intend to be the exciting conclusion of the CAN Softball Tournament Saga. Did you miss parts 1 and 2? Check 'em out!

Part 1
Part 2

So my ribs. It is now Friday afternoon, and they have progressed from agonizingly painful to only sort of painful. Great success! Still hurts, but it doesn't make me want to lay down and go to sleep anymore.

Except for an incident Wednesday night. I'd discovered if I lay on the couch on my right side with my left arm extended over/resting on my head, I could breathe mostly pain-free. I was feeling better, and I got a little cocky. I felt a sneeze coming on, and instead of holding it in as I had been since Sunday, I let it come out.

Oh. My. God. It was so painful I actually got dizzy from it and had to lie down to keep from passing out. Incredible. So that happened. I'd never experienced the whole "seeing stars" phenomenon before. Yikes. Still improving though. We're getting there.

So we lost to Cornell, eliminating us from the tournament. Howevah! My goal going into the tournament was to win at least one game since there were going to be PLENTY of teams who couldn't say they won a game. I thought that would be a solid accomplishment, and we did it. Great success.

Our game was done by 1:30, and there were a ton of games still going on, so we moved our tent back from the dugout to the chairs we'd set up and commenced the drinking-and-relaxing portion of the tournament.

We saw some pretty exciting games that day, but really the best part was our tent was squarely in the shade with a clear view of the field. So we didn't need to move at all to watch games. It was fantastic. The beer was flowing, and the weather was excellent at the moment. Our tent was close to Central Florida's tent, and they had a cornhole set.

Lindsey had the brilliant idea to ask them if we could play. Cornhole for the WIN. It started off with Lindsey and Carnell against Brent and me.

Here's the thing about Lindsey and cornhole: she's a machine. She lands three bags on the board every round. It was incredible.

She was clearly the best player of the four of us who were playing at any give time.

I'm a much streakier player. I'll get one or two on the board each round. I very rarely miss the board entirely. But then I'll throw three cornholes in a row in the same round and make up for my streaky play. I just wish I could harness that power more often. Alas, I probably won't.

I did that in two separate games Sunday. Let's go. The first picture in this post seems to be my "IT'S IN THE HOLE" celebration. If you notice, Lindsey appears to be looking for something with which to hit me. Please, just not in the ribs.

But that could be in retaliation because Brent did throw a beanbag at her. And he missed and struck some kind Indiana folks under the tent behind us. Our bad! We brought them beer to make it up to them.

Lindsey and Carnell won the first game, and I mixed and matched partners for the rest of the afternoon. I believe it ended up with a 2-2 split between them and me and whoever was my partner at the time.

I love this picture because you can see my toss in mid-air. Excellent timing by Amy with the camera. This is probably very soon after Brent tried to peg Lindsey with the beanbag. Hey oh.

Sunday was just a really good day. I was feeling much more like myself (aside from the whole rib thing).

Hard to go wrong with the beer truck, hot dog/hamburger buffet, great softball games and cornhole. We were FAR from the only cornhole group going. There was a whole section of grass that sort of became the cornhole playing field (pictured below).

So! While we were playing cornhole, discussion turned to next season. We want to get jerseys for next season -- or at least T-shirts with some kind of printing on it. They don't have to be legit baseball/softball jerseys. That might get too hot anyway. We want numbers and nicknames on the back.

Lindsey and Brent started coming up with nicknames for people based on things from the season. Previously, I only wanted "BG" on my jersey because that's what most of my friends call me anyway, and I rather like it.

Then, Lindsey (maybe Brent? I don't know. Fuzzy memory) said she could see my nickname being "Late Night." Well that's a pretty kick ass nickname. It has to do with a few things -- two things specifically, I believe.

First, one night during the season at the Exchange, I lost track of time playing flip-cup and ended up missing the last red line train. It ended up costing me $60 to take a cab to my car from downtown. Second, obviously, going to sleep on Friday night at 2:30 a.m. with the 4:30 a.m. wake-up call the next day. I like it.

Other team nicknames and their reasons if I can remember them:

Evan: The Ripper because he totally clotheslined a girl while tagging her out at home on Sunday.
Brent: Right Eye because he needed stitches after getting hit in the face with a ground ball. Yikes.
Marty: Mimosa Marty because he promised to bring mimosas for us on Sunday and then did not. Fail, Marty. Fail.
Sean: Iceman. This one I'm not sure about. Thoughts?
Matt: Ghostface Killah because he is Irish haha.
Lindsey: Hoover because she is pretty damn solid at second base. But you know. There was drinking, and this one turned quickly. Yeah. Lindsey, if I'm in charge of the jerseys, we can probably work on a different name for you if you want haha.
Carnell: No-Show! Haha because he overslept on Saturday (though truthfully, I thought for sure it would be me oversleeping) and because he showed up for the last inning of our game on Sunday. Better late than never!

I think that's all the nicknames I heard. There may have been others, but I don't recall. Let me know though!

That's pretty much how it all went down. Carnell, Dale, Caitlin, Lindsey and I were the last ones remaining. We decided to go watch the intense Michigan/Penn State game going on. We played and lost to both of these teams this season. They were both really good teams, so this figured to be an awesome game. We actually sort of became friends with Penn State after we played them.

They have a girl on their team named Missy, and every time Missy saw us, she'd run up, make the wolfie hand sign and say how much she loved N.C. State. So we went down to support Penn State. Then the sky opened up. Thankfully, Georgia Tech was set up at the field with a tent, and we were able to get some shelter there.

It was a crazy rain storm, and it ended up leading to the cancellation of games for the weekend. They moved the rest of the game to this coming weekend. We don't need to go back out there though.

So, as you know, I was a huge nerd and kept track of my stats all season. Here's my final tally: 26-for-42 for a .619 batting average, 10 RBI, 7 runs scored and a slugging percentage of .857 and OBP of .613 for an OPS of 1.470. And I ended the season on a 10-game hitting streak, although there were only two of the 15 games I played in where I didn't get a hit. I'll take it!

Now I was just going on memory from each game, and in the time between the game and when I got home to record the stats, there was often heavy drinking. Those numbers represent my best recollection though. I promise.

We'll hopefully have plenty of opportunities to practice since many of the people on the team are looking into playing Fall softball in DC. That would be awesome. Don't get me wrong: I enjoy flag football very much, and I'm sure we'll all have a great time playing, but softball is my jam. I don't want to have to wait eight months or however long before the next season starts.

Now that the softball season is over, I'll be back next week with weight-loss updates. Briefly, all the softball that happened over the past few weeks led to more drinking and junk food than usual. I haven't gained any weight at all, which is awesome. But I'm still treading water at 194-195. And I'm hoping this rib thing will go away soon so I can get back in the gym and crank that up again. I might need to give it another week just to be sure though. We'll have to see how it goes.

Anyway, I'm out. Thanks so, so much, as always, for reading! Heading downtown to the Bottom Line tonight! LET'S GO!

-BG

Not Illegal, but Frowned Upon Part 2

2011-08-10T17:10:00.004-04:00

Miss part 1 of the CAN Softball Tournament Extravaganza? Read all about it right here!

I feel like I should explain why the title of these posts is "Not Illegal but Frowned Upon." This is a story that will probably only be funny to the 12 or 13 of us who were there this weekend, but when has limited appeal ever stopped me before? That's right; it hasn't.

So Dale (the coach) emailed the team to say that bringing our own alcohol to the tournament was at least discouraged if not forbidden. That turned into Evan saying, "I didn't know bringing our own alcohol was FROWNED UPON IN THIS ESTABLISHMENT."

So I was standing with Evan, Sean, Marty, Lindsey and Keith watching a game, and the pitcher threw an illegal pitch (meaning it was either too high or too low, etc.). The ump yelled out, "Illegal pitch!"

Someone in our group then quipped, "Well that's not really illegal, it's just frowned upon. Thanks a lot, bin Laden." Which you might recognize from this scene in The Hangover.

And I proceeded to giggle like a little girl for the rest of the day at the thought of the scene. And anytime anything happened, I proceeded to say "Thanks a lot, bin Laden," at every turn. I usually like to take jokes and run them into the ground as quickly as possible. I think the team will agree when I say: mission accomplished.

Also, I giggled like a little girl just writing out the story. Easily entertained? Easily entertained.

So there you go. Thanks a lot, bin Laden.

Now, the Michigan game! Yes, we lost. Michigan went 13-1 this season. Only 14-0 James Madison had a better year, so we knew it was going to be a tough game.

As I mentioned on Monday, we really did hold our own, including drawing four or five walks in a row in one inning, causing the only pitching change to take place in the middle of an inning I saw all season in any game. I think their pitcher walked in two runs, and the coach jumped out there quick and yanked him.

The rest of day 1 was spent lounging under our tent (as seen in the picture at the left, which was actually taken on day 2) and watching other games going on around the grounds.

With 69 teams in the tournament and only five fields, there was always another game to watch, which was fantastic. Not to mention the beer truck! Five taps on the side of a keg-filled truck. See the photo below. Pretty awesome.

The whole scene was just incredible -- like a giant multi-college tailgate where everyone was having a great time.

It was ridiculous, and the team already has a list of things we need to do for next year now that we've seen how things go.

Among the things we need: inflatable couch, baby pool, slip-n-slides, pitchers for beer so we don't have to keep getting up, some kind of stereo to play ridiculous music, our own cornhole boards, etc.

I have to confess: due to my staying out too late on Friday night and only have that brief two-hour nap before the 4:30 a.m. wake-up on Saturday, I was, shall we say, "out of it" for most of Saturday. I had three drinks MAX all day. I just couldn't.

Quite a few teammates commented how they've never seen me so subdued. I almost fell asleep several times Saturday. Some people were even talking about going out Saturday night. I couldn't imagine. It's astonishing I didn't fall asleep on the drive home Saturday.

I got home, took the dog out, showered and hit the couch. I was passed out by 9:30 p.m. Thankfully, I set my alarm before I passed out. I woke up at 6:30 a.m. right on the couch. I felt pretty damn good on Sunday morning, especially comparatively.

Sunday was a different story. Because of some rain Saturday evening, game times were pushed back. We were originally scheduled to play Cornell at 9:30 a.m., but it was pushed back to 12:30 p.m. Since we were there and ready for an early start, we just started drinking.

Dale planned ahead and brought a cooler of beer since the beer truck (shown on the left) didn't open until 10 a.m. At around 11:30 we got word from tournament officials that our game was finally scheduled to start soon.

I was already four drinks in, so I ran up and ate a quick hot dog and hamburger combo, and then Matt came through for me in the clutch with some Gatorade. We were ready for the game.

We'd already played and lost to Cornell once earlier in the season, but we felt like we could hang with them. Honestly, we played some decent defense during this game; it was our offense that stunk it up. We didn't get our bats going until the third or fourth inning, and by then, Cornell already had a lead on us. It was too little, too late.

Before the game, Sean, Evan, Keith, Marty, Lindsey and I were watching Villanova play and giving their second baseman props because she was diving all over the place for balls (that's what she said). We talked about how it's been so long since any of us had done it, and we're not sure we'd really like to lay out for a ball anymore.

Well.

It's the second-to-last inning. I'm playing right field, Dale is playing left-center and Jen is playing right-center. Normally, since most balls are not hit to right field, we liked to play the right-center fielder shallow to cut off some of the balls hit up the middle. That meant the right fielder (me in this case) had to cover a bit more ground. No problem. I was an outfielder growing up. I know how to get around and judge fly balls out there. I rather enjoy it a lot, actually.

Sure enough. Jen was playing shallow, and a ball is hit over her head. I saw it, and I thought I could get to it. So I took off. I was tracking it, and I could tell it was not going to be easy to get there.

The ball was coming down, and I knew I had to dive for it. I was running from right field back and toward center field, so as I dive for the ball, I'm kind of jumping into the air backward with my left arm extended. I felt the ball hit the tip of my glove and bounce away, and I landed hard on my left side.

I hopped up to make sure someone was getting the ball (Dale did), but I quickly doubled over because it occurred to me I couldn't breathe. And there was a ridiculous amount of pain coming from the ribs on my left side. Thankfully, there were no other balls hit my way during that inning, and I didn't need to take the field in the bottom of the seventh because Cornell won.

I won't say I've lost a step or two in my increasing age because that implies I had the steps to lose in the first place. Speed was never my game. But if I'd been even one step closer to where the ball landed when I started running, I believe I would have caught it. I might not have held onto it when I landed, but it would have been in my glove in the air haha.

I spent much of the rest of Sunday icing my ribs and in moderate-to-relatively-severe pain.

It is now Wednesday afternoon, and this is the most pain I've ever experienced. But! It only hurts when I move, speak, cough, laugh or breathe. So as long as I don't do any of those things, it isn't so bad. I recognize now how exceptionally lucky I've been. I've never broken a bone, never gotten stitches, never needed to go to the doctor for an injury, which is remarkable considering how active I was and how many sports I played growing up.

This is ridiculous though. There aren't enough painkillers in the world right now. If this isn't a cracked rib, I don't even want to think about how much that hurts. It's not necessarily excruciating, but this is still pretty terrible, which leads me to believe it's probably a really bad bruise (best-case scenario) or a possible cracked rib (worst-case scenario).

So, yeah. Great haha. Second-to-last inning of the last game of the season, and that's when I hurt myself. Figures. Almost made it the whole season. *sigh.

Anyway, this got a bit longer than I intended. I know; I wrote something and got a little verbose. Who knew?!

I'll pick it up with the conclusion in part 3 on Friday, which will cover our cornhole adventures and our team nicknames! As well as any other randomness that comes to mind while I'm writing, which always happens.

LET'S GO!

-BG

Not Illegal, but Frowned Upon Part 1

2011-08-08T17:19:00.001-04:00

Thanks a lot, bin Laden.

CAN Softball Tournament Part 1

So this past weekend was the Capital Alumni Network league-wide softball tournament. It was, basically, ridiculous.

I may have talked about it briefly last week, but this weekend was the most fun I've had in a long, long time. Bruised/cracked rib, notwithstanding (more on that later).

It all started Friday night with Katie's birthday at Public Bar on 18th St. downtown. I met one of the other Katies (yes, there are many -- three we regularly interact with, in fact) at Farragut North, and we walked over to Public around 6 p.m. Now, going into the night, we learned our first softball game in the tournament was scheduled to start at 7 a.m. Taking into account checking in with tournament officials and warming up, that meant we needed to meet by 6 a.m. at the field.

The tournament is held at the Goddard Softball Complex, near NASA. It's at least a 45-minute drive from my apartment. So I woke up at 4:30 on Saturday morning. Shoot me in the face.

So what did I do? I naturally stayed out until past midnight on Friday, and I didn't get to sleep until 2:30 a.m.

Katie's party was great fun, as always, and I'd never been to Public before. It's pretty awesome. It has a great roof-top patio, which was luckily quite pleasant on Friday despite it being August in a swamp environment. Evan made the wise decision to check out by 9 p.m., given the ridiculous wake-up call just a few hours away.

Major props to Lindsey and Carnell for not even showing up until after 10 p.m., knowing full well they had to wake up just more than six hours later. Although one of them was more successful than the other. More on that later haha.

Once midnight rolled around, I knew it was time for me to begin my trek home. I got to the Dupont station, and the escalators were out. Now. If you're unaware, the street escalators at Dupont are some of the longest escalators I've ever seen -- the kind where you get vertigo when you have to walk down because of how high up you are.

Multiply that by several drinks, and I'm just glad I arrived at the bottom of my own volition and not due to gravity.

I got on my train and tried not to fall asleep. The train arrived at the Bethesda station, where a station operator got on and announced, "if you stay on this train, you will be going back downtown."

Ah, shit. That's no good. Apparently all red line stations between Bethesda and Rockville were closed and out of service. I made my way upstairs to the street to find a fleet of shuttle buses waiting for the passengers. Except there are no signs on them, and they're not all going to the same stations. I got on one bus, and someone got on and announced, "if you're not going to Grosvenor or White Flint (I wasn't) you shouldn't be on this shuttle."

Mother of God.

Signs. Invest in them. Let us know where to go before we get on the damn buses.

I finally found the correct bus, and ended up at the Rockville station. I asked the driver, "aren't you going to go to Shady Grove, too?" He said, "No, you need to go wait on a train to get there."

It was 1:30 in the morning at that point. Train service isn't exactly prompt or frequent at that time of night. I could not envision myself waiting on a train to ride one stop. So I just hopped in a cab and got to my car.

I finally got in bed by 2:30, and set my alarm for my brief two-hour nap. The poor dog was so confused. She normally greets me all happy and waggly when my alarm starts going off. Saturday morning, at 4:30, she was still on the couch, looking at me with half-closed, sleep-filled eyes, as if to say, "you have got to be outside your damn mind."

Hard to argue with that.

After I took her outside, I got in the shower. Upon getting out of the shower, I see a missed call and a frantic text from Lindsey. Apparently Carnell is not quite as cut out for the rock-and-roll lifestyle as some of us haha. He was not answering her repeated calls or texts. Well, nothing to do but get to the field and keep calling. He did eventually make it!

It was still dark the whole drive there, and the sun only started to poke its head out when we met up to carpool to the field. We set up our tent to claim our spot and started warming up.

Because of our stellar regular-season record, we were playing in a preliminary round game against a team with a similarly stellar regular-season record. So 1-13 N.C. State took on 2-12 Delaware for the right to face No. 2 Michigan (13-1) in the winner's bracket.

Here's my thing: it was a double-elimination tournament, and we had as good a chance as any at winning a game in the tournament, which is something a lot of teams weren't going to be able to say. Let's take care of business and play up to our potential. We WILL win if we can do that.

It was actually pretty intense. It went back and forth the whole game. We jumped out to a 3-0 lead early. Delaware battled back and took a 5-3 lead. We fought back again and retook the lead at 7-5. Delaware tied it at 7, then took a 9-7 lead. We scored four runs in the top of the sixth to take an 11-9 lead.

Normally, we play seven-inning games, but because there were so many games that needed to be played, the ump said we'd call it after six innings if one team was ahead. So we went into the bottom of the sixth up 11-9 with Delaware needing three runs to win outright. Naturally, they scored two runs immediately to tie the score at 11. Then they loaded the bases with no outs.

Now, in slow-pitch softball, there's a mat behind home plate. If the pitch hits the mat, it's a strike. It's hard to consistently hit the mat. All they needed was a walk to win the game. The first batter swung early, and popped it up to shortstop. The second batter lightly tapped it back to the pitcher. Evan threw home for the force out. Bases still loaded, two outs.

The next hitter popped it up right to the left fielder. It was one of our best defensive inning of the season, and it couldn't have come at a better time. We faced bases loaded with no outs, and if a run scored, we would have lost the game.

Instead, we held them and proceeded to score four runs in the "one-pitch" rules in the top of the seventh. Basically, every pitch is either a walk, a hit or an out. If the pitch is a ball, you walk. If it's a strike or a foul, you're out. Intense.

Four runs and three Delaware outs later, we'd won our first game in the tournament. Man, LET'S GO. It was spectacular.

We won as many games in the tournament as we did all season, and it was so incredibly satisfying, especially after one of the Delaware players was being an asshole to our first baseman after a questionable call where she should have been called out. Whatevs. Victory.

After the game, we questioned the wisdom of swinging the bat at ALL during the bases-loaded, no-outs scenario. Chances are, Evan is going to walk ONE of the three hitters that were coming up. Just playing the odds, it's damn hard to hit the mat every time. And you had THREE chances to walk ONE batter and win the game! Take your chances on the strikeout and force Evan to hit the mat every time. As Sean said after the game, "Don't even bother bringing a bat to the plate. Force him to make the pitches." Alas, they did not do that. We won, 15-11, after scoring eight runs in the top of the sixth and seventh innings combined. LET'S GO!

After an hour break, we played No. 2 Michigan, and, predictably, lost. But we put a scare into them.

They were routinely destroying teams in the regular season, and they were probably expecting to roll us, too. But we led 2-0 after the first inning, and we were tied 4-4 after the third inning. They took a lead, but they were only up by four after the fifth inning. We put a little scare into them when the game probably should never have been that close in the first place.

Michigan eventually scored a bunch of runs, and won in the end. But we held our own pretty well considering how good a team Michigan was.

That'll do it for part 1 of the CAN Tournament Extravaganza. Coming later, the exciting conclusion, including my cornhole prowess, my possibly cracked rib and giving the team nicknames for our jerseys next season.

Good times.

-BG

Guilty Pleasures are Embarrassingly Fun

2011-08-04T15:43:00.004-04:00

First thing's first:

OH YEAH JERSEY SHORE YEAH.

Jersey Shore returns with its new season tonight! LET'S GO!

My No. 1 guilty pleasure at the moment is -- without question -- Jersey Shore. I know, I know. You're about to tell me how it's such a terrible show, and the people on it are so awful and Italian American stereotypes and etc. etc.

Here's my counterargument to all of that: Bite me.

I don't care.

I normally hate reality shows. The Bachelor and The Bachelorette make my skin crawl. The Real Housewives series gives me a stomachache just thinking about them. I haven't watched the Real World in 10 years. Never watched Survivor or the Amazing Race or American Idol or anything like that. I don't mind some cooking shows like Hell's Kitchen and Masterchef.

I have seen a few episodes of Dancing with the Stars with various girlfriends over the years, but let's face it, there are ample reasons to watch that show other than the competition.

Jersey Shore, on the other hand, I just can't get enough. I don't exactly know why. But I know I'm not alone.

Here's the thing, I find Pauly D to be completely compelling and engrossing. I will watch Pauly on any show he does from now on. And here's another thing: when they first started running promos for this show a couple years ago, I definitely did NOT expect the guy who looks most stereotypically like a douchebag to be the most down-to-earth and chill of all of them. But there it is.

The show is not without its downsides. I find almost all of the girls on the show to be terrible -- especially Sammi.

Sammi, stop messing around with Ronnie. He's obviously not that into you, and he's a slimeball, ok? How many times does he have to throw your shit outside before you take the hint that maybe you're not right for each other?

I find Snooki and her friend Deena borderline OK. They annoy me, but nothing like Sammi. I can tolerate their presence. Angelina was terrible. No redeeming qualities. I'm so glad she's gone. I am, however, a big fan of JWoww. She's pretty awesome.

As for the guys, I've already discussed my mancrush on Pauly. Vinnie is fine with me, too, and Situation, well. I don't know. I liked Sitch a lot in the first season, season and a half maybe. But his act is growing old for me. Ronnie just needs to stop. We get it. You treat Sammi like shit. You cheat on her, and then somehow convince her it's her fault. I mean. What can you say about him?

With all that said, not only can I not stop watching it, but I'm incredibly excited for it to start again.

Don't judge me. We all have guilty pleasures. I just find some of the embarrassing things I like to be funny. Jersey Shore is No. 1 on the list, but it is hardly alone.

I'm also a huge fan of the MTV Challenge. Like I said, I haven't watched Real World in nearly a decade, so I'm still playing catch-up with the people on it, but this show is fantastic. Bill Simmons calls it the fifth American professional sport, ahead of NASCAR, which I have a hard time disagreeing with, honestly.

I also own the following DVDs and Blurays: Bedazzled, starring Elizabeth Hurly and Brendon Frasier; Masters of the Universe, starring Dolph Lundgren as He-Man (heck yes.); The Sweetest Thing (a really terrible [read: awesome] chick flick); and The Holiday.

I make no apologies for these movie choices.

And oh my music selections. One time when I was back at Technician, I was driving to dinner with a bunch of people in my car. The Colbie Callait song "Bubbly" came on because we were listening to a mix CD I'd made. One of the girls in the backseat commented how she kept waiting for the fast guitars to start. But no. It was really a Colbie Callait song.

Riding in my car has always guaranteed a really...strange?...mix of songs. My mix CDs contained songs ranging from The Beatles to Belle and Sebastion to Reel Big Fish to Mariah Carey to Tim McGraw to Third Eye Blind to the Smashing Pumpkins to the Pixies to Muse to Lady Gaga and so on.

One other time, we were riding in my car, and the following two songs played back-to-back:

"Before He Cheats" by Carrie Underwood
"Always Be My Baby" by the aforementioned Mariah Carey

What could I say other than, "well this is embarrassing?" Yup.

Want to know some more embarrassing songs I have on my iPod? Of course you do.

Ashlee Simpson - Pieces of Me
Backstreet Boys - I Want it That Way
Beyonce - Single Ladies
Extreme - More Than Words
Kelly Clarkson - Since U Been Gone
Miley Cyrus - 7 Things I Hate About You
New Kids on the Block - Tonight
R. Kelly - Ignition
Shaggy - Angel

And that's nothing close to an exhaustive list of the embarrassing songs I like. Those are just the few that jumped out at me on a cursory trip through the playlist.

I would absolutely love to know what some of your guilty pleasures are. It may give me some more ideas of terrible things I need to listen to, watch or read. Because, as you can see, I love me some awful things.

Lulz.

-BG

Reel Big Recap

2011-08-02T17:04:00.006-04:00

I may have mentioned this last week, but the first time I saw Reel Big Fish was November 2000. I was 18 years old and super pumped to see my favorite band in concert. My then-girlfriend and I got to the House of Blues in Myrtle Beach two hours before the doors even opened.

We were among the first in line. When the doors opened, we sprinted to the front and lined up right up against the stage. Catch 22 played, but I don't remember the other two bands.

Anyway, being right up against the stage meant I was constantly on the edge of the mosh pit, which I've always thought was funny at ska shows, but they're there nonetheless. I didn't find it quite as moronic when I was a moronic 18-year-old.

I am less enthused about them now, which is just another way of saying, "I'm getting too old for this shit." If you've never been to the 9:30 Club, the lower level is open, and the second level has a balcony around the sides and the back. With smallish venues, you don't need to be super close to get a nice view of the stage.

So when the doors opened I ran upstairs and got a spot directly in the center of the balcony. All of that is to say I was close enough to see everything I wanted to see, but too far away for acceptable pictures since I was taking them with my Blackberry. I did take a few video clips with it, and they turned out surprisingly OK, but they're short because my battery kept threatening to die.

What can you do.

Anyway. This was my 10th Reel Big Fish show (twice in DC, twice in Charlotte, twice in Atlanta, twice in Norfolk, once in Winston-Salem and once in Myrtle Beach), and I'd say it easily ranks as the best one I've seen. They played a solid mix of all of my favorites, including some songs I hadn't heard live in nine or 10 years.

RBF and Streetlight Manifesto were co-headlining this tour, which means they were alternating who played last at each stop. I got lucky here because RBF played last, and they played for a solid hour and 45 minutes.

The new guy is Matt Appleton, a sax player who was in Goldfinger previously. I have to say, he nails the newly departed Scott's vocal harmonies perfectly, but the show just isn't the same without the witty banter between Scott and Aaron. Aaron still jokes with Dan (the only other guy on stage who's been in the band for longer than five years at this point) and a couple other guys, and it's still funny. But you know. Scott was always my favorite.

Still, great show. Thanks to my brother, Matthew P., for serving as my notepad during the show. I BBMed him the setlist as they played so I would have it for later, as well as a few notes I didn't want to forget. He wanted to be there anyway, so it was a nice way for him to live vicariously through my BBMs.

They opened with "Everything Sucks," which is such a great song to open the show. It's immediately clear what song it is when the drummer hits the opening tom shots, so the crowd goes crazy. And then the horns kick in. Really gets everyone jumping. They played "Sell Out," "Beer" and "Take on Me" as the encore songs. So, so good.

A few notes about the videos I managed to get: first, I am relieved you cannot hear me singing on them. Because I most certainly was singing as loudly as I can. Like you do. Second, sorry if they're a little bouncy because I was also dancing while I was recording. Of course I was. I think I did a pretty good job making sure it stayed at least a little steady.

And third, sorry the clips are so short. The battery was running dangerously low, and I didn't want to record too terribly long. And also, I wanted to stop recording so I could go back to singing and dancing. So there's that.

Here's the set list (with videos embedded when I have them):

Everything Sucks
Trendy
The Kids Don't Like It
In the Pit
Ban the Tube Top
Down in Flames
Why Do All Girls Think They're Fat
She Has a Girlfriend Now
Good Thing
Your Guts (I Hate 'em)
Slow Down
Brown Eyed Girl

Where Have You Been
Cannibal
Join the Club
Say "Ten"
The Set Up
Sayonara Senorita
SR (regular, punk, disco, country, metal)
Another FU Song
Sell Out

Beer

Take on Me

So there you go! It was just an awesome, awesome show. I think the whole ska thing really appeals to the inner band geek in me -- especially the live shows. When that wall of brass horn sound hits you at a show and they start hitting their high notes...whew. Gives me the chills man. It's just so hard not to dance around and have a good time. Love it.

Some other notes! Before they played "Brown Eyed Girl," Aaron had a little schtick for the crowd. "If you've been to a Reel Big Fish show before, you know we have many, many, many, many, many, many hit songs...(pause, crowd screams)...hold your applause...that we cover." Hey oh.

After they played "Why Do All Girls Think They're Fat," which I'm happy to say I recommended to you last week, Aaron explained, "that song was recorded on our very first record 'Everything Sucks' and then again on the 'Everything Sucks' major label issue, and then again on the 'Keep Your Receipt' EP and then again a couple other places and then we rerecorded it for our 2007 record "Monkeys for Nothing and the Chimps for Free," so I can understand why you might have a hard time finding that one."

"These are the jokes, kids."

So yeah. The 9:30 Club had signs up asking departing concert-goers to be respectful of the neighborhood and try to keep it down. And yet, the club was playing "Sweet Caroline" as we were leaving. Now, you can disagree about whether or not the song is any good, but you cannot disagree that it's a song people will sing and sing loudly.

So I thought that was an interesting decision -- asking people to try to be quiet as they played "Sweet Caroline." I don't make the decisions.

Excellent day all around. I'll probably only post today and Thursday this week. I know you're heartbroken. Crazy week keeps on truckin'.

LET'S GO!

-BG

LET'S GO

2011-07-29T09:05:00.000-04:00

I am on the cusp of good news. I can feel it. It's coming. Too much is going right for me right now for this not to come through.

First of all, I've weighed in two days in a row now at 195 pounds. Progress, my friends! That's 32 pounds down with 15 to 20 more to go. God I feel so good. I just can't even begin to express it.

Do me a favor and go to my Facebook page. First, stalk a few of my photos. Specifically, look at the ones from Christmas where I'm wearing my kick-ass abominable snowman shirt. And look at my Halloween photo where I'm dressed in a Yankees uniform.

Now, look at my latest profile picture, which was taken after a softball game this past Tuesday night. That's the first new picture I've seen of myself in a couple months. What a difference!! Jesus. Look how small I look! Wow.

I'd say I don't mean to brag, but I absolutely do mean to brag. Seeing visual evidence of progress is like a shot of pure adrenaline. All I want to do is kick even MORE ass now. Still work to do. Like I just said, I've got at least 15 or 20 more pounds to lose, and I really can't wait to get there. I feel so good. Wow.

What else is going on?

Well, tonight is the end-of-season party for our softball league where they'll announce the tournament seeds and pairings. Plus, it's $25 all you can eat/drink. Sold! Man, I hate that our season is already over. It went by so fast.

We have our league-wide tournament next weekend, but then we just have to wait for the next season to start. Well, that's not entirely true. I'm going to play flag football for the N.C. State team, too, and so are quite a few of the softball folks. But man I love me some softball haha.

Flag football will be pretty great, though. I've heard the State team has been around for a while and is actually quite good. Like I mentioned last week, I think a lot of our softball team's problems came because we had no continuity from last year. There was no team last year. I think we'll be much better next year now that we have a really great group of people to work with.

But the flag football team has been around for quite a few years and apparently regularly competes for the league title. That'll be fun.

And then Sunday is going to be fantastic. First, I'll be heading to Nats Park at noon for some pre-game pre-gaming, and then a 1:35 game against the Mets. Katie from softball decided she wanted to have a "Sunday Funday for No Good Reason." Well, I can get behind that. So I'll be heading down there with Katie and, like, 17 of her friends haha.

We'll buy the cheap $5 tickets and then just hang out at the huge bar in the outfield. LET'S GO!

Man I love going to Nats games. Plus! I'll get to see Jordan Zimmermann pitch. He's a really great young pitcher who sometimes gets lost in the Strasburgmania going on here. Zimmermann is legit though. In the next few years, if Strasburg can come back successfully and Zimmermann stays healthy, a 1-2 punch at the top of the rotation of Strasburg-Zimmermann will be pretty stout, man. Not bad at all.

The main event of the weekend, though, is 6:30 p.m. at the 9:30 Club downtown. REEL BIG FISH!! They are so much fun to see live. So much energy, such a great stage presence. Fun songs you can dance to, and since I know all the lyrics to all the songs, I will undoubtedly be screaming along, like you do.

I just can't wait haha. It's going to be a really great weekend.

Now, the impending good news about which I am extremely hopeful is I've advanced to the next stage with the company from last week. If you'll recall, I had a job interview last Monday, and they contacted me yesterday to invite me back for some more interviews and a writing test. Man, let's go.

So there you go. Almost everything is going right for me at the moment. If I can get this one more thing to go right -- wow. Jubilation.

The energy has been uncomfortably bottled up for more than four months now -- since I narrowly missed out after being a finalist for another position. I have to say, there's a chance I just spontaneously combust if/when I get the good news for which I'm hoping.

Bottom line: I feel good, man. Really good. Life is good. Good news is coming. I can feel it.

-BG

Reel Big Fish!

2011-07-27T17:38:00.000-04:00

If you know me at all, you know my favorite band is Reel Big Fish. Even if you don't know me very well, there's a really great chance you at least know about my affinity for RBF.

It dates back to my sophomore year of high school. Their song "Sell Out" had just hit it relatively big, and cracked the charts around the country. I, like literally dozens of others, bought their CD "Turn the Radio Off" because of that song.

I believe it was spring break of my junior year, and my family was driving to New Jersey. Back in the time before iPods, you actually had to bring these things called "portable CD players" with you in the car. And you actually had to bring a wallet full of CDs! CRAZY, RIGHT?!

Well I did. Charlotte to NJ is a solid drive, so I actually listened to the full "Turn the Radio Off" CD for the first time on that trip. I was hooked. I've purchased every release; I've seen them in concert nine times in five different cities. I'm a fan, you could say.

Which brings me to the point of today's post: Reel Big Fish and Streetlight Manifesto are playing the 9:30 Club in DC on Sunday night!

I can't NOT go, right?

So! I actually run into this a lot, but a lot of people either have never heard of RBF, or they've forgotten they knew that song once upon a time.

With that in mind, here's a primer of some of my favorite songs by both bands for the half dozens of people who read this blog who may go to a show on this tour.

Now, this is the 20th-anniversary tour for RBF, so they've said they're breaking out a lot of songs they don't typically play on tour, which is good news for people like me, who celebrate the entire catalog. Still, there are a few songs that will almost certainly be played.

"Take on Me"

Yes, this is a cover of the 1980s A-ha classic. But it's fantastic! They've taken to closing their shows lately with this song, which suits me just fine. Huge fan, obviously haha. This is seriously one of my favorite songs. As I mentioned a couple of weeks ago, this song was the reason I wanted to learn to play the guitar.

It's also one of my absolute favorites to play along to on the drums. It's a workout! Plus, I love the off-beat hi-hat hits that start the song. Winner.

And yes, I do know of that scene from Corky Romano, and yes, I do sing the falsetto parts of this song flawlessly. I am unashamed. Bring it.

"Sell Out"

This is their big hit. If you know Reel Big Fish, this is the song you've likely heard. They used to close their shows with this one, obviously, since it was their "hit." But they've actually opened the show with it the last couple of times I've seen them. It's still a great song, but I don't think it'd make my Top 5 or even Top 10 for RBF songs.

"She Has a Girlfriend Now"

There is a small chance you may have heard this song. It's a fun song, and among people who have only casually listened to RBF, it generally comes up as one they like. Based on a true story too! Aaron the Lead Singer had a girlfriend who left him for another girl -- pretty self-explanatory, actually. Catchy song, upbeat melodies, fun lyrics. Recipe for fun. I've seen them pull girls up from the crowd to help them sing if they don't have a female singer with them on the tour, too. Good times.

"Beer"

Among RBF fans, this generally comes up as the favorite song. Erik loved this song. A lot. Every time he rode in my car he would ask me to play this song haha. It's a winner, though, so I understand. Another really fun song to play along to on the drums. It's fast; it moves; fun drum fills.

"Why Do All Girls Think They're Fat"

This is a favorite of mine from a bit deeper in the RBF catalog. It's actually a pretty old song, with the first version appearing on an album in the mid-90s I believe. It was re-recorded for the album the band released in 2007.

As with most of their songs, it's just a lot of fun, and it's easy to get up and dance to it.

Now, Streetlight Manifesto is co-headlining this tour with RBF, so I'm not sure who's closing the show on Sunday night. Streetlight Manifesto features Tomas Kalnoky, who was the lead singer of another popular ska band, Catch 22. So if you hear songs by SM that sound a lot like Catch 22, it's because SM has a few former members of Catch 22.

And they also re-recorded one of Catch 22's more popular albums (their debut album, Keasbey Nights), which featured Kalnoky singing in that band, obviously.

I've seen SM twice before, and Catch 22 was actually playing on the same bill as RBF the very first time I saw them 11 years ago. I got to the show two hours early and was standing right up against the stage. I caught a drumstick from the Catch 22 drummer, and this weird guy next to me kept asking me for it.

Buddy, if you wanted it, you should have caught it like I did. So I put it down my pants. Like you do.

"Somewhere in the Between"

Man, I just really like this song. It doesn't matter how often I hear it. Just listen to it. You'll like it. Promise.

"Point/Counterpoint"

They sing the chorus so fast in this one! Ha. But really, they do sing it pretty fast, and I'm a fan. This was the first song of theirs I discovered. I generally look up the bands that play with RBF beforehand so I'm at least a little familiar with them. I happened to download this one first, and that's that.

"The Blonde Lead the Blind"

I really like the drummer in this band, and I like the way he plays the intro to this one. And, well, the rest of the song, too. So there you go. It's also a horn party. Good times.

So there you go. You're ready for the RBF/SM show this weekend. Now you just need to get your asses to DC and come with me!

-BG

Patience is Overrated

2011-07-25T16:12:00.001-04:00

It's been a trying several months. There's no other way to slice that one.

A couple of weeks ago, my friend Mike said to me, "Wow it just hit me. For basically all of the past six months, you've been just waiting for things to happen."

And yes. That's entirely true.

Between job searching, relationships, potential moving decisions and a few other things -- the past six months has been a series of situations where I LITERALLY cannot control what happens after a certain point. I do what I can do, and then I can only wait for the companies to get back to me, for others to make their decisions, for my apartment to tell me they've found someone to rent my place (thus kicking me out), etc.

It's actually kind of funny because if I had to point out a weakness of mine in the past, I'd probably eventually settle on how I tend to just roll with things. Sometimes, that's awesome. But sometimes, you have to just get up and make shit happen, you know?

I'd always been able to succeed by just rolling with the punches and going about my business. Now I've been in situations where I've been effectively forced to roll with the punches, and it's driving me fucking crazy.

Like, you have no idea.

I've always been extremely patient when it comes to my relationships with other people. And I've had no choice but to be patient and wait for these things to happen now.

I go on my interviews. I send my thank you notes. I follow-up later and make sure they have everything they need. But at some point, you simply cannot just keep contacting them. You have to let them go through their process.

Enter: patience.

Fuck some patience, man. I am ready to blow the fucking roof off of something. Anything. I don't mean that in an angry or negative way. I just mean I am ready to get up and make some shit happen.

I think that's one of the reasons why I've really thrown myself into this weight-loss and working out thing. I can't control much of my job search beyond sending out resumes and cover letters. But I for damn sure can get my ass into the gym and run and lift weights.

It's been one of the few things I've had complete control over lately. So I'm killing it. I've been fluctuating between 195 and 197 pounds the past couple of days, so that puts me almost 15 pounds away from my goal weight.

I am just so ready to get out there and really kick some serious ass at my next job. I am dying to make things happen on my own and not wait for them to happen to me now. I've been waiting for things to happen to me for six months, and I've had no other choice. I'm done with it.

And the really great thing about being 30-32 pounds lighter and having clothes fit better and more comfortably is I've LITERALLY never felt better about myself. Self-confidence and self-esteem are at all-time highs, and I will have absolutely no problem taking something by the horns and running with it.

I seriously cannot wait for the opportunity. I'm just so beyond excited for the chance to make shit happen and be done with this waiting game.

Let's go, man. Let's GO.

-BG

Softball is Too Much Fun

2011-07-22T18:25:00.000-04:00

Let me tell you about some softball!

I've briefly mentioned softball a few times since I resumed regular blogging back in early June, but I'd like to devote some more time to it today. Because it's incredible. I seriously cannot believe how much fun it is.

Listen, I'm a baseball guy. Baseball is my favorite. Always has been; always will be. Don't get me wrong; I love football, too. But I grew up with baseball. It's in my blood.

I played in rec leagues from the time I was 6 years old until I went to college. During the summers in elementary school and middle school, I'd go outside with my bat and ball as soon as I woke up and didn't bother heading home until I heard my mom whistle at dinner time and/or dark.

All that playing, I eventually got pretty good at it. I tried out for my high school team once as a sophomore. I didn't make it, but I was one of the last cuts. The team was also nationally ranked at the time, so I didn't feel too badly about it. I kept playing in the rec leagues, though, and that was plenty good enough for me.

That was most definitely the peak of my playing abilities. I could hit high 80s pitching. I had a pretty solid arm from left field. I wasn't the fastest guy in the world -- never have been, but I could get around the bases.

Well, here's the thing about getting older (and, also, not really working on those skills much after high school). That's all pretty much gone now haha. I went to the cages a few weeks ago, and I was just standing outside the 80-85 mph cage, and I could hardly see it, never mind hit it. I couldn't believe there was a time when I could hit it. I stuck to the 60-70 mph cages.

Softball has been a way to have all the fun of baseball in a more low-key environment. As I've mentioned before, this is an alumni network league, which means I play for N.C. State (which, by the way, makes it LITERALLY a million times more fun).

State didn't field a team last year, so we're really trying to get back on our feet this year and build some continuity going forward. In other words, we're not very good this year haha. As Evan put it last night, we're the best 1-10 team in the league.

We don't take ourselves overly seriously, and we always, always have a kick-ass time playing. And that's really the most important thing. We've played a couple of teams that took themselves too seriously, and they were major downers. Guys. This isn't the ACC. It's a beer league. Take it down a notch or two.

We've got a great group of guys and girls, and I think if we can keep the team together next season we'll be in much better shape -- not unlike the East Dillon Lions from season 4 to season 5 of Friday Night Lights. This season has been about finding a rhythm.

With such a new group of players (myself included, by the way), we spent the majority of the season just trying to figure out where everyone was best-suited to play in the field and in the batting order. Most of the teams we've played have been together for a couple years, so they had no adjustments to make, really. I really like our team though. We're really getting there.

Our problem all season as been slow starts. Typical N.C. State, am I right? We just lose our minds in the first two innings and dig ourselves a huge hole. If you look at about half of our losses, we ended up outscoring the other team for the last four or five innings in each game!

We're seriously not very far away from being a .500 team. It's a game of inches, and we're working our fannies off out there. We're getting there!

Naturally, being the huge baseball nerd I am, I've been keeping track of all my batting stats for the season. We still have three regular season games to go (a double-header tomorrow, and a game against Georgetown on Tuesday night), but here's my tally so far:

I've played in nine of our 11 games so far (I joined the team after it played its first two games already).
I've hit safely in seven of the nine, and I have at least two hits in five of those games. The only two games where I didn't get a hit came on the same day I hurt my arm, and it was agonizingly painful swinging a bat (and throwing a ball, for that matter).
In five of the seven games in which I recorded a hit, I hit safely in each at-bat, i.e. I never made an out.
I've got four doubles and two triples. The rest are singles. I'd really like to add a home run either this weekend or Tuesday night. I just missed one earlier this season (in a 4-for-4 performance in our 20-4 win over South Carolina).
I've scored five runs, knocked in another six runs, walked once and hit one sac fly.
My batting average is .625.
On-base percentage of .640.
Slugging percentage of .958.
And my OPS is 1.598.

And yes, I realize pretty much only Mike and maybe Nick will care at all about some of those (or even know what it all means).

What does it all mean? Not very much, really. It's just so much fun playing, and I like to know how I'm doing.

With our usual coach out of town for a few days, I've been helping to run things in his absence. It's been a lot of logistics in terms of making sure we have enough players, that we have enough female players (three girls for the first 10 players, and then one girl for every two guys after that) and enough alums playing (at least 75 percent of your roster in a game must be alumni).

Setting the line-up was fun though haha. It's all fun, really. I know. I'm a dork. This isn't the first time I've heard that.

Yesterday was rough though. If you don't get a permit for a field, you actually have to go and just sit on a spot on the National Mall to make sure you have a field. If you saw on my Facebook wall or Twitter yesterday, it was 98 degrees. But don't worry, it actually felt like 113. I was just sitting there with another teammate for, like, three hours waiting for the game to start. Sweltering doesn't even begin to describe it.

Tomorrow won't be much better. High of 101 (heat index of 112), and we've got a double-header against Cornell and Richmond from 1:30 until probably 4:30 or 5. I bought a huge case of water and a ton of Gatorade to bring.

I will tolerate no casualties on my watch!

Wish us luck tomorrow, and prepare the intravenous fluids!

-BG

Accountability and Affirmation, baby Part 3

2011-07-20T16:09:00.000-04:00

Milestone alert!!

So I know I said on Monday I was not going to mark the 197 as official because it fluctuated all weekend, etc.

But this is the third day in a row, so I'm going to go ahead and stamp it.

I HAVE LOST 30 POUNDS IN THREE MONTHS (!!!).

Three days in a row, I've weighed in at 197. Wow. Just a reminder: three months ago, on April 17, I weighed 227 pounds. Man, let's GO.

I've gotten a comment/question or two along the lines of: "Wow, you lost all that weight because of a break-up?"

Well, no. Not even close really. And here's why I think this is an important distinction: I did this for me. Not for someone else. Not because of someone else. If I didn't do this for myself, I'm not sure it would be sustainable. Using internal motivation rather than external motivation will lend itself to more permanence in the long run, no?

My "official" start-date for this was April 17, which is several, several weeks before the break-up in question. The bottom line is I looked at myself and was profoundly unhappy. And I knew I needed to change a lot of things for and about myself if I was ever going to be happy with myself.

And I am increasingly proud to say I have changed them. You'll have to pardon me if I repeat myself a little during this post, but I'm going to ramble and brag a little bit. You've been warned haha.

I can barely contain my excitement over how much better my clothes fit. There's this great Louis C.K. stand-up bit about how when you get fat, all your pants just hurt. You get bigger, but you don't buy new pants. You just keep forcing your increasingly fatter ass into the same pants, and it gets painful.

As I look back, well, yes that's true. I have this one specific pair of shorts, and it used to hurt to wear them just three months ago. I can now pull them on and off without unbuttoning them. I am epic win.

My belt? Three months ago, I was on the second-to-last hole from needing a bigger belt. Now? I'm on the last hole in the other direction! Another few weeks and I may need to buy a smaller belt. Good problems to have, folks. I am approaching the "I need to buy new pants" point in this. Good times.

OK, but seriously. Let's not get too far ahead of ourselves here. Getting down to 197 is wonderful, and I am super proud of that. But it is still considered overweight haha. I'm only 5'9" -- maybe I could pass for 5'10". Still have a ways to go, but progress for the win.

What has worked for me? Many of these things are common knowledge, but it's different when you actually, you know, listen to them.

-- You can't really overestimate how awesome jut a plain old can of tuna is. Just crack open the can and grab a fork. It's only 100 calories, but it's 20 grams of protein! I've taken to eating a can of tuna after lifting days in the gym because it's hard to beat that protein/calorie ratio. Plus, cans of tuna are only, like, a buck and super tasty. No mayo necessary!

-- Be obsessive. Seriously, write down everything you eat. I like to go to Noodles and Company from time to time because I really like their mac and cheese. Sometimes, I'll get a Dr. Pepper because I love Dr. Pepper. Well, you better be careful, because if you fill that 22-oz. cup just twice, you're talking almost 600 calories. There are almost as many calories in two cups of Dr. Pepper as in the entire bowl of mac and cheese. But how many of you would be like, "oh it's just a cup of Dr. Pepper. It can't be that bad."

It's not that bad if you record it and take it into account for your day's intake. It just means you can't go as crazy on dinner and snacks. That may be worth it to you. Sometimes it is for me because I just like Dr. Pepper. But 600 calories is no joke, and it's one of the reasons why sodas are so dangerous.

-- Force yourself into a habit. I don't even think about going to the gym anymore. I wake up. I walk Allie. I go to the gym. If it's Monday, Wednesday or Friday, I know I have to run between 3.5 and four miles. If it's Tuesday, Thursday or Saturday, I know it's a lifting day. There are some exceptions. I might not lift if I have a softball game because I don't want to overdo it and hurt myself. But otherwise. Get it done.

-- Buy a food scale!! Seriously, pay attention to what the serving size is on the back of the box. If you're just eyeballing some pasta, you are most definitely going to end up eating at least three servings. One serving of dry pasta is just noooot that much pasta. And again, there's nothing necessarily wrong with eating three servings of pasta as long as you take it into account for the day. But it's just another example of how extra calories can sneak into your diet if you're not careful.

Also, I love turkey sandwiches. It's easy to put too much turkey on a sandwich. Weigh it out!

-- Cheat meals can be extremely important to helping you stave off cheat days or even weeks. One of the things I know I must avoid is pizza. My inner fat kid cannot control himself around pizza. I'm like Ron Swanson when it comes to pizza. "Give me all the pizza you have. I worry what you just heard was give me a lot of pizza. What I said was give me all the pizza you have."

But man, I was excited about my job interview on Monday, and there's a pizza place downtown I happen to enjoy, so I got a couple slices. I didn't order a large pizza. I just ordered some slices. Self-control. I has it. Sometimes.

And it helped! I didn't gain any weight. I didn't have a setback. I just rewarded myself and moved on.

So there you go. Thirty pounds is a lot! I know I'm ready to dig in and go the remaining 17 pounds now to get to my goal weight.

Some of you may think it's weird that I write so much about weight-loss, but here's my thinking. A little public shame and accountability is a solid way to keep yourself from doing something stupid again. The more I talk about this, the more people know what a bad state I was in, the less I want to get back to that state. And if more people know, they're more likely to ask how it's going, and it's just a system of accountability to make sure I'm sticking to my plan. Make sense?

Plus, you guys have been so unbelievably supportive and encouraging, and man. That goes a long way, too. Thank you, thank you, thank you to everyone who has messaged me with supportive words. It means the world to me. It really does, and I'm blown away. Sincerely.

Looking ahead:

-- Softball tomorrow night against Penn State, and then a doubleheader on Saturday against Richmond and Cornell. Maaan can't WAIT.

-- And hopefully some news about Monday's interview in the next couple of days. We'll see how it goes!

I'm out!

-BG

Rambling

2011-07-18T15:41:00.007-04:00

There's this really funny blog I read called 2Birds1Blog. The main writer is a girl named Meg who actually lives in DC. I've seen her around once or twice, too. I highly recommend checking out the blog. She writes it with a guy named Chris, and they just signed a book deal largely due to their writing on the blog. So you know. I'm available.

The funny thing is I started reading that blog several months before I moved to DC. Then as things started turning and I ended up taking a job here, I emailed Meg for advice on where to live, and she was super helpful about it all.

Anyway, she does this thing from time to time called "Thoughts I Couldn't Flesh Out into a Full Entry." Pretty self-explanatory, I would think.

And this is sort of my version of that. I don't have one thing I want to talk about today, but there are a few that are worthy of a couple paragraphs. And we're off!

Weight-Loss FTW

I'm still trucking! I weighed in at one point this weekend at 197, which is a loss of 30 pounds (!!). But I'm not going to mark that as official because I fluctuated between 197 and 202 all weekend haha. Still at 199 this morning. Still super pumped about that.

My belt is going to be on it's way out soon though. I just noticed I am now using the last hole on this belt. Ha! Love it.

The most exciting thing about this whole "I'm getting in ridiculous shape" thing is putting on clothes I was too embarrassed to wear not that long ago. Except they fit perfectly now.

One of the things that really clued me into my weight gain was when I started going on job interviews back in the late winter and early spring. I started putting on my nice dress shirts and ties and noticed they were getting uncomfortably tight around my neck and my chest and arms too. Not good times.

Today? GREAT SUCCESS. Room to spare in the neck. No tugging and pulling in the chest area. That's what she said? I'll allow it.

And then of course I was three belt holes away from where I was back then. I said goddamn it feels good to be a gangsta.

Job Interview!

I had one today! It was a PR firm downtown, and it's a really exciting opportunity. The job listing is a solid mix of things I like to do, things I do well and things I really want to do in the future. I will not disclose details. I will gladly discuss them with you if you want to IM me on one of the several platforms I use!

I think it went well, and I'm optimistic, as ever. I will say that.

METRO WILL BE THE DEATH OF ME

Obviously, I ride the Metro to get downtown. I don't care to mess with the DC traffic, which never, ever seems to let up. I was once stuck in DC traffic at midnight. Midnight!

So. Knowing my interview was at 11:30 this morning, I was up and ready to go by 7 a.m. I was obsessively checking Metro's website and Twitter feed for information on any possible delays. Seeing none, I relaxed a little. The scheduled time for the interview meant I wouldn't need to travel during prime rush hour.

When I'm not trying to get downtown during rush hour, I can make it door-to-door from my apartment to anywhere downtown in just under an hour usually. Maybe right at an hour if I have to walk a lot.

Seeing no delays anywhere in the Metro system, I left my apartment at 10, which put me at the station around 10:15. I should get downtown by 11 at the latest -- 30 minutes early for my interview. Plenty of time.

Well I get to the station. No trains. The first two trains that show up are out of service for God knows why. Finally get on a train. We don't move for 20 minutes. (!!!)

No announcements. No updates to the website or Twitter feed. Nothing.

We finally get moving, and it's a slow trip. We get to the first station in DC (Friendship Heights), and the train stops moving just before the platform.

Stalled. Nothing. Sounds I'd never heard in two years of riding the Metro. Nothing good, that's for sure. Then we pull up to the platform. "This train is out of service."

Are you serious.

Thank GOD I planned enough time to get there 30 minutes early or else I'd have been screwed. I got off the train, and I knew I couldn't afford to wait on another train, so I ran upstairs to the street and got some cash. Fortune smiled upon me as a cab was driving by right as I ran out of the bank with my hand up.

"Mr. Cabbie, I don't want you to get arrested on account of me, but Metro has screwed me over big time today, and I have a job interview very, very soon."

We made it from Friendship Heights to Dupont in less than 10 minutes. This man was incredible. I think I gave him a $10 tip. Worth. It.

Apartment News!

The apartment people finally agreed to work with me. As I outlined a week or two ago, I was about to move back to Charlotte temporarily at the end of this month. I'd come back when I found a job, etc.

When I gave them my notice back in June, I talked to a guy I didn't know and who didn't know me. I explained the situation, and I was like, can you work with me at all on this? He said he couldn't. They had to market my apartment equally with the others that were available.

Well I went into the office today to ask if they'd found a taker for my apartment for two weeks from now (gulp). I was decidedly dreading the answer. To my great delight, they have not found a taker. So I decided to bump my notice up two weeks to give me until August 15. Thankfully, the person I talked to is someone who knew me.

She was like, oh don't worry, I know you, I know your dog, I've seen you walking her and I've seen you in the gym. We'll work with you. We'll make sure to show other apartments before yours as long as you let us know as soon as you know something. AGREED.

So I'm here for another month, instead of two weeks. That gives me time to see this last job lead through to the end, and then make a decision. If I get it, great. I'll sign a lease and be done with this nonsense. If I don't, I'll probably take a break from applying and just devote my time to moving back to Charlotte and just do THAT right.

I'll get home and settle in, and then I'll start applying to jobs up here again. But that's just the last resort. Fingers crossed this one will come through. It seems like a really, really great job, and I'd love the chance.

Anyway, I'm out for now. Questions? Concerns? Comments? You know where to find me!

-BG