December 31

The last few minutes of 2009. What a great year. We'll see if 2010 can live up to it.

Auld lang syne,
B

December 30

Everything went great with my Dad's surgery. That's all that matters for today.

Well, I did go see Sherlock Holmes with Brandon and the gang. Still, not the most important thing that happened.

Credit card be paid off,
B

December 29

I'm just getting in from a long night of filming, but I had a blast doing it. However, it's getting late and I have a lot to do tomorrow, so I'm going to keep this one on the short side. I met up with Mitch and we headed to Owosso around 6, where we got some food and shot a couple quick scenes. Then it was off to the gas station where we'd stay until around 3:15. Besides the occasional customer coming in, everything went very smooth.

My Dad goes into Genesys for surgery on his neck at 7:30am. They say it's a procedure that should only keep him in the hospital overnight, but anytime somebody goes under the knife it can be worrisome. Here's hoping for the best.

Hey kid, I'm a computer,
B

December 28

Today, I was finally able to meet up with some of my friends and pass out their X-Mas gifts. Everyone has been pretty busy and finding even a minute or two has been difficult. First off was lunch with Chadwick. We ate at a new buffet called Fuji and caught up for a little bit. He ended up getting me Bioshock for the 360. Looks like I have another game to play.

When I got home I started sifting through all of the stuff we had taken out of the attic. I'll be honest, the majority stuff that had my name on it, I had no idea why it was even up there. Basically, I condensed everything into 2 boxes. Now we just have to get some large, plastic tubs to store it all in an organized fashion. We'll see.

Before I left for Owosso I dropped off more gifts to Brad, Colleen, and Matt. All were quick stops, unfortunately. I would have loved to stay and chat but work needed to be done. And in this instance, the work was going to be awesome. From around 7 until 1-ish we were filming and actually got a lot accomplished. A lot of laughs were had, to be sure. Tomorrow night is the gas station location and should be an adventure. Anyway, I'm back home now and getting pretty tired. Definitely time to call it a night.

What's the deal with these ringtones,
B

December 27

I'm so exhausted tonight, I could probably sleep standing up. Seriously. This weekend has been amazing buy non-stop. Tonight is the first full night-sleep I'd have gotten since...Christmas Eve. Oh well. I can't complain. Life is beautiful. Today was spent working at the store, working at home, working on the home, and heading out to Owosso to meet up with Rhett. I'm extremely excited for tomorrow, as we're going to start shooting around 7pm. A lot of time, money, and effort (mainly Rhett's...) has gone into this project and I can't wait to get going. Now, as for some of the props...

Let me tell you a story,
B

December 26

The day after Christmas and I haven't slowed down at all. In fact, I have to get up for work in a matter of hours and am unable to sleep because of my sister and her friends inhabiting my room for the past 2 hours. Watching the Hangover. Hey, it's a good film, so it's all good. Well, I ended up working on the computer from early morning until I left this evening to go to Fred and Alex's for a little Christmas action. I got back home, had a late dinner, and now am ready for bed. Such a busy time of year.

Puppy chow,
B

December 25

Merry X-Mas to everybody! I, like a lot of you, had a day filled with family, food, and gifts. And it lasted from sun-up to sun-down. I love this time of year. Haha. Anyway, not only was it Christmas, but my Dad's birthday as well. So, as usual, we did our family breakfast and gift exchange in the morning and headed out to my Grandma's for the Sweeney family Christmas and birthday celebrations. My Dad and Uncle Dwayne share close birth-dates so there is always some dual party action going on. That just about sums it up. Just a great day.

Iron and wine,
B

December 24

It's the night before Christmas. Funny...I could've sworn there was another way to say that. Oh well. I played anorexic Santa today, passing out gifts to all of the good little boys and girls. Well, to the married ones. And the single ones. And the ones that were available. And that were technically adults. Scratch the "little" and I think we can make more sense of this sentence. Anyway, there was a lot of that going on. Then I stopped back home for a quick bit and we headed out to our Grandparents house for the patented dinner+presents+A Christmas Story night. It happens every year and this year was no different. I love it. A great dinner, looking at some cherished memories in picture form (well, my Grandpa and I did), and laughing at Family Guy spots on TBS. That one is a new tradition. I doubt it will stick. Now I'm typing in the blog before I head to bed. Tomorrow I expect more of the same as I still have presents left to give. Did I mention I love this time of year?

Rain of fire (yes, I meant rain),
B

December 23

A late entry today. Haha. Anyway, a lot of shopping was the was the story of the morning and afternoon. It was very busy, but needed tone done. In the middle there was lunch with Brandon, Laura, and Matt where a couple gifts were passed out. I love me some cookies. Later that night I was able to jump on the computer for a quick second before I headed on over to Joe's. We hung out there, watched some Detroit teams be terrible, and chilled. I gave Joe his present considering he's going to be working on Christmas. Now I just have to do the same or everybody else. I love this time of year.

Comin' to you on a dusty road,
B

December 22

People, I don't think you know how happy I am to have a phone that actually WORKS. This is going on 6 straight days I have yet to experience a crash, freeze, boot, etc. Again, the phone I had before was uncommonly faulty. I'm just glad this replacement is the complete opposite! So freakin' awesome.

Anyway, today was spent doing even more work on the computer and a late trip to the store for some Christmas shopping. This was followed by visit to Owosso to get some Fortune House and see Rhett. It ended up being a very productive visit with the majority of the shot blocking for our shoot being figured out. Now we just need to make a list of items that need to be bought/found and get some more actors and actresses in place. There is a lot to do still, but after tonight, we're both feeling better about the project. Did I mention this is a good time?

State lost. Pistons lost. Not cool.

Blitzen = Lupe,
B

December 21

What did I do today? Worked on the computer. All day long. Tomorrow I wanted to finish shopping and what-not but...I have more work to do. So I guess we'll see.

Little, fat dogs can be entertaining,
B

December 20

Sleep is callin' my name. Especially after an EARLY morning and going non-stop until now. After work I headed on home for a minute before meeting Brad, Colleen, Mike, and Eric for some breakfast at French Laundry. It was extremely filling and delicious. Mmmm...food. I ran home, worked on the computer with some football running on the TV behind me, and continued that until dinner. After dinner I cleaned up a bit, tried to get some more work done, finished a little X-Mas shopping, and then my Aunt and Cousin came and dropped off their dog. This is about the time Bailey started to lose her shit. It's always excited and full of energy when another dog comes over, but usually that's only for a couple hours and they leave. Princess (I didn't name her) will be staying for the next week or so. This first night is going to be the most difficult (in terms of the dogs getting to know each other and settling down). At this rate, I don't see this happening anytime soon. And what a night for this to happen...

Welcome to Gametime,
B

December 19

I would go into a lot more detail, but I have to get up in less than 3 hours for work. So...

Today was spent driving ALL around Flint trying to find a cheesey Christmas sweater. I finally found one thanks to Colleen's suggestion of Kohls (which I didn't even think of). Got to the party around 7 and hung out until now, when I had to leave or be forced to be a zombie at the Buy. Another great time was had. Hopefully this can continue into tomorrow.

I've just seen a face,
B

December 18

Another day, another chance to get things accomplished. In this instance, we're talking about shopping (for the second half of the day, at least). I got a little bit of work done in the morning before running errands in the afternoon. I received help from Josh taking a TV to my Uncle's house, after which I headed back out to start the madness. Best Buy to the Mall to Target to Bed, Bath & Beyond to...well, you get the idea. I got back home after picking up some Olive Garden and had a nice dinner. A little bit later I received a call from Rhett saying to get to Buffalo Wild Wings. Now, I had basically checked out for the night, but the combination of Rhett, Whitney, and Jon was hard to pass up; Thus I gave in and met them. I had a Coke. Haha. But, as always, the company was worth it. Oh, I forgot to mention, Rhett flew into Bishop tonight. Now you know.

SO much more to do,
B

December 17

I'm tired. Quick summary: Met up with Mike and Meg for lunch, said goodbye, went to Apple store and exchanged my iPhone, packed up, drove to Flint, dropped off my stuff, drove to Detroit, picked Tori up, back to Flint, got food, lent car to Tori, in bed now. Also, my "new" phone hasn't crashed on me once. Hasn't froze, booted me, or done anything bad. So THIS is what everyone who has an iPhone is supposed to experience. Haha.

Oh baby, you got what I need,
B

December 16

Today was a great day. I woke up in a wonderful house, got ready for the day, and did some work on the computer. A little bit later I received a text from Meagen asking where we should meet for lunch. It was decided that some Chinese food would suffice and so Mynt Fusion it was. They had Bulgogi on the menu, which I instantly got excited about. That excitement turned to disappointment as they clearly had no idea what real Bulgogi was. Thanks for giving me hope for humanity Fortune House. But the food didn't matter, as great friends made up for it.

Afterward the busy bees headed back to work and I drove off to Woodland mall where I was to finally get my freakin' iPhone figured out. After speaking with a couple workers and setting up an appointment (20 minutes later) diagnostics were ran and, as I figured, my machine was f'd up. Rather, it had been since I got it, I just didn't know any better; That is until I spoke with all of my other friends who have an iPhone and realized that their machines hadn't crashed on them once. Long story short, i was told to try one more thing at home, and if the problem still persisted (which it HAS) to come back and get a new one. Well, as of tomorrow, hopefully I'll be getting a new one. No, scratch that, I WILL be getting a new one. YESSIR!

When that craziness was finished I drove on back to the house, turned on some music, and continued working until M&M got home. There was a little bit of hanging out then out to dinner at FOUNDERS!!! You have no idea how long it had been since I ate there. Best sandwiches, period. So good. So good, in fact, that it was standing room only. Literally. We ate our food standing next to the merchandising display. Wouldn't trade that for anything, though. Yes, the food was that good.

Next was a movie. After going through the shows and seeing the times, The Blind Side ended up winning our money. You know, it was pretty decent. Definitely a tried-and-true "feel good" flick. And even though everybody knows what happened going into the movie, it still works.

It was about 9:30 or so when we all got back to the house. The rest of the night was some hanging out, watching DVR'd shows, and talking. Oh how I miss the late night talks. Refreshing really; Especially when you have a good friend to share with (and vise-versa). It was about 1 when things started to wind down. The crazy thing is that Mike and Meg need to be up by 5:30, so going on a full day with 4.5 hours of sleep...well, it sucks. Haha. I know some people can do it, but we all know it's terrible for you.

Tomorrow I'll probably meet up with them for lunch one last time before I head back. And maybe...just maybe...I'll get a new phone before rolling into Flint, too. I'd like to thank Mike and Meg for letting me stay and work in their home for the past couple of days. It was amazing seeing them again and catching up. Once I get my new computer, it will be so much easier to do this, too. All in one, baby.

I'm hot, you hot, we hot together,
B

December 15

I'm currently in Grand Rapids typing this night's blog entry. That's right folks, FINALLY made it over to see Meg and Mike's house...and it's amazing. Seriously, I'ma gonna take some pictures. They'll be good (I hope). Hell, maybe even a little video action?

Anyway, today was a lot of running around in the snowy Michigan weather. Owosso to capture more footage started my day, then over to the mall area to do some Christmas shopping, back home to eat, more errands, and then home again. In between there were calls made to Meagen, Brad, Josh, Chad, and others. Long story short, I got some gear (including my computer) packed up and headed for the GR around 7:30ish. A little later than I would've liked, but it's all good. I arrived around 9:30 (traffic was annoying), got the tour of the new home, and now here we are. A lovely day.

Letter,
B

December 14

Patch Perfect commercials are starting to piss me off. Don't ask why. Anyway, today was as busy as you would expect for a Monday. Just getting into the swing of things and really procrastinating on this Christmas shopping. REALLY Procrastinating. And with that, I'm going to have my midnight dinner. Haha.

Hardcore team deathmatch,
B

December 13

Who's ready for an amazing night of sleep? This guy.

22-3,
B

December 12

Another day and another (rare) early post. The reason for this is because it's Saturday night and some people have work early the next day.

First off, let me just say I got to see Brandon and Laura's soon-to-be house and it's awesome. There will be painting, there will be shampooing, and there is a gigantic basement; But all of those things are beautiful, baby. Beautiful.

I got back, talked to a few other people, and had a late lunch. After a little bit of work it was time for a little CoD and then a Pistons game. To my, and probably everyone viewing the game, Rip Hamilton was in uniform and started against the Golden State Warriors, which we won. 5 in a row and, now that we're starting to get our pieces back in place, I'm excited.

Not looking forward to the morning,
B

December 11

My meals today had very large gaps. Close to 9 hours to be specific. But hey, I'm all filled up now. So...yeah. Life is good. Basically just worked on the computer for the majority of the day and hung out with Josh in the evening. A little BWW's for dinner and now here I am. And that's that.

Thirsty,
B

December 10

Today was a great break. Finally. It started out with a tad bit of work in the morning - as always. I then got some work done at home and headed out to run some more errands. After picking up some needed equipment and supplies (not to mention presents), I ran up to see my Grandma. I thought that her and my Mom would be back from shopping, but I was wrong. Luckily Brandon and Matt were right down the street, so I got to talk to them for a little. After that it was to Brandon's to catch up some more then over to Brad's where he was working on his dish washer. Well, it ended up being a garbage disposal fix, but still...you get the idea. A meal with Colleen and Brad soon followed (Lebanese) and then it was back to the condo for some NBA Live and the Pistons game later. We ended up winning 3 games in a row online while the Pistons beat Denver for the 7th time in a row (4 game winning streak overall). A very good night o' sports and sport related video games. Now I'm back home about to dig in to some leftovers and relax for the evening. I'm a little scared at all of the shopping I still need to do. Yikes.

Zip-zap-zowey,
B

December 9

I would love to go more in depth with you on the post tonight, but truth be told, I'm hungry for some late-night Arbys. I mean I'm REALLY hungry, so I'm going to get some. Before that, though, I will say I've been working like a mad man these past few days. It's a fun time working from home, but not so much when your computer starts acting up. And given my computer is my main source of income and I have clients waiting on spots that I can't access...it can get stressful sometimes. Luckily it all worked out - albeit later than I had hoped - and everything was sent out. The bad news: It's been like this the last few days. The good news: I've decided on what computer I'm going to be getting. Might put the order in in the next couple of days. I'm excited.

Pistons beat Allen Iverson and the 76ers tonight. Shorthanded, again. I can't wait until next week. From what I'm hearing, that's when we can expect Tay and/or Rip back in uniform. Maybe even Ben Gordon too. I'm telling you, once we get healthy and get some games under our belt...we're going to surprise a LOT of people. We've been playing really good basketball so far this year. Just wait until we're healthy.

Goodbye, Curtis Granderson. I hope we can resign you during the summer of 2012/13. Freaking Yankees...

They callin' me,
B

December 8

You know what's a good time? Online table reads. It really is a lot of fun...until the microphones start going crazy. Then, not so much. Oh well.

Good times, overall on this wonderful Tuesday. Work, eat, work, eat, work. And now...I'm thinking I may eat something. Or maybe CoD. I'm done with work for the day. I do need to go out and pick up Public Enemies for my Grandma. She really enjoyed that film. Me...ehhhh.

Danny Granger is out for at least a month,
B

December 7

If you guess what I did today, I'll give you a cookie.

Damn it. OK, I don't have any cookies handy right now. Get back with me later and I'll give you one then.

Yup, it was the same ol', same ol'. Computer work in the afternoon and evening with meals in between. I'm actually done for the night, which means another last meal is cooking up in the oven right now. Well...it's about to. I need to put it in there first.

I have to get going on Christmas gifts. Only problem is I'm having a problem finding the time. This is going to be a busy holiday. A very busy holiday.

Gangsta, gangsta,
B

December 6

Wow, what a great day. It started out great, the middle was great, and the evening turned out greater.

Easy morning of work followed by some hanging out and eating lunch with some friends. Also, after scrambling, I was able to find a friend to go with me to the Pistons/Wizards game.

Long story short, they were the best seats I ever had. We were in the OFFICIAL Jerebko row where, for every point he scored, a viking hat was passed out. I accounted for point number 7. On top of that, and taking a decent amount of video and pictures, we won.

The evening ended with a conference call between myself, Rhett, and Jesse regarding a project we're going to be working on during the end of the month. It's going to be pretty ambitious, but I'm extremely excited.

A big thanks goes out to Jon Moore for being available for the game tonight. It was a great time.

Next up...Allen Iverson,
B

December 5

This will never happen again. It's not even 9 on Saturday night and I'm exhausted. I just got back from a great meal with the Mom and Grandma at Redwood and am trying to finish up a spot. Still, I'm thinking I may try to get to bed in the next hour. Yup, before or around 10. Haha. Hey, listen. I have to get up by 4-ish tomorrow and I want to have energy for the evening, so this may actually work out. Hell, I've just been in front of a computer screen all day, anyway. Then again...there's nothing new there.

We'll see how this goes,
B

December 4

Woke up. Ate. Worked. Bought Pistons tickets for Sunday. Worked. Ate. Worked. Watched Pistons. Played CoD with everybody. About ready to eat again. Watching the Heat/Lakers game.

X to the Vizzy,
B

December 3

Well, I think I need a new video card. At least before I try selling this beast, I should get a new video card for it. Man...I'm really starting to lean toward that iMac. I'd save so much money. And I'm not sure how high-demand the programs I'm going to be running will be, anyway. Hmmm...decisions.

Today was a lot of computer work and some CoD in the evening. Brandon stopped by before he had to go to class a hung out for a bit. This lead to a late lunch, but you know it's all good. It's ALL good. Tomorrow I'm thinking there will be more of the same. Well, computer work.

What does Droid do,
B

December 2

Another busy one. Worked for a bit then backed up the computer and headed to Owosso. I captured more footage and got a general outline of what the different companies wanted. After that I headed to GNF to pick up my camera and other equipment. While I was there Jon walked in, so I caught up with him for a little. I headed back home, but stopped by to see Brandon and Laura. Those two received some great news regarding their house earlier this afternoon. It's looking like they could sign the papers by January 10 at the very latest. Then...we have brand new home owners. BOOM! I'm extremely happy for those two. Hopefully all goes well.

And now for some very frustrating news. After I left from the visit, I wanted to grab some food before getting back to my house. I pulled into the Arbys drive thru and, after repeating my order 3 times, started to pull ahead to the window. Side note - it was rainy and dark and I couldn't see shit. The bottom of my car on the drivers side, including the front wheel hubcap, is now scratched, cracked, and bent to all hell. Well...the rim is a bit bendy. The scratches are noticeable, but low enough where it's not too bad. Still...I'm so pissed off at myself. I had a brain fart. Pulled up, didn't think of the curb, and proceeded to hear a horrible scraping-type sound for what seemed like forever. I parked my car after I got my food to inspect the damage. I then got back in my car and swore as loud as I could. I'm so F&*^ING pissed at myself...

On that note, I wonder how much it costs to remove scratches. Like I said, I could live with it. The marks on the bottom don't bother me as much as the rim damage does. I think I should probably get that looked at. Regardless, if I do act on it, there goes more money that didn't have to be spent in the first place.

I should go to bed before I punch a baby,
B

December 1

I started this blog in early January. A post a day, no matter how minimal. I look at my calendar today and see that it's December. Wow. That's all I can say. This coming holiday is looking to be amazing, but busy. I have a lot of work to do and need as much time as I can to finish it. On top of that there's looking for gifts, friends and family coming home, and, of course, the annual "Dress Like Lincoln and Bake A Pie" benefit I put on. Yup, this year's DLL&BAP is looking bigger than ever; Especially with celebrity guests like Bill Nye (of "Science Guy" fame) and DeShawn Stevenson (Washington Bullets). It's going to be a blast. Be there or be John Wilkes Booth. So please, don't kill the fun. Too soon?

Today was a lot of eating, working, eating, visiting with Chadwick, working, watching the State/NC game, shaking my head at our lack of size, getting excited near the end, losing, sighing, and now blogging. Tomorrow...probably more of the same. I do have to stop by Owosso, though. So, there's that.

27" iMac or Gulftown 6-Core,
B

November 30

Holy tomato. Did you all realize that it's already the last day o' November!? Which means...I'm typing this on December 1. December 1 and I have yet to see any snow on the ground. This is a damn shame. Still, the weather the past few weeks has been a pleasant surprise.

Anyway, today started out pretty good. Got up relatively early and did some stuff around the house. Got a hold of Brandon and met up for some lunch at Logans. Mini burgers = a good time. I drove back and started working on some video work. That continued until dinner time, after which it was time for a little ESPN and pre-game talk for the Patriots and Saints match-up tonight. The game ended up being pretty entertaining. Saints dominated, pulling away in the second half.

As you can guess, I finished this evening off with a few rounds of CoD. I have to admit, I'm actually getting better at this game. Crazy, I know.

I can't wait for tomorrow. Guess what comes out... BOOM!

(Joking, obviously.)

Pick up the phone and I dial the request line,
B