Flushing B.E.S.T.

So, BEST in Mobile is over. I can finally put the continuing problems of Azalea City behind me. A lot of my friends came to help out and to them I say "Thank you, you did a great job!" But now that I am no longer obligated in any way to deal with it (or more specifically a certain group of individuals) I have this great sense of freedom.

The drama of ACB, however, is far from over. There is officially a new hub director (which is good), but some key personnel are missing (primarily a technical director). While the local university has not been completely removed from the picture, it should participate at a much reduced level. There is the possibility that another department at the university might step up and support the program, but I'm not going to hold my breath.

Money is going to be a problem for ACB. I seriously doubt the new director will be able to collect any funds that remain from the previous years (guess the university can buy more legos). The new director did make some good contact with Mudbrick Media, Degussa, Gulf Power, Alabama Power, and a few other companies. Let's just hope that plays out well.

Speaking of money, the ex-ex-director (he quit twice in writing), within 48 hours of the event, sent an email asking why he did not get the checks for the electronic kits that were purchased by the schools. Apparently he thinks he still gets to call the shots or that the new director is too timid to remove the university's involvement. To him I say, "Go ahead.....push her buttons. I DARE YOU, YOU RETARDED BASTARD!"

So, again I say thank you to all the people who gave of their time and money to make BEST happen. May your generosity be returned to you ten-fold. May your children grow and have the educational opportunities we never had. May you never end up smelling like three day old taco bell chili cheese burritos left in direct sunlight inside a burned out yugo parked on a mound of human feces.

See...I'm evil...for real....

So I found some dumb little blog thingies and was REALLY bored so here are a few of my results for your enjoyment.

You Are Lightning

Beautiful yet dangerous People will stop and watch you when you appear Even though you're capable of random violence You are best known for: your power Your dominant state: performing

What Type of Weather Are You?

You Are 76% Evil

You are very evil. And you're too evil to care. Those who love you probably also fear you. A lot.

How Evil Are You?

You Are Mr. Burns

Okay, so you're evil... You have big plans to rule the world, and you'll destroy it in the process if necessary! You will be remembered for: the exploitation of the masses Life philosophy: "One dollar for eternal happiness? I'd be happier with the dollar."

The Simpsons Personality Test

You Are The Godfather Ice Cream

Someone crosses you, and they'll end up with a scoop of this in their bed

What Flavor Ben and Jerry's Ice Cream Are You?

Triple Word Score.....

Phew.....I'm pooped. This weekend heralded the "Because Christian said so" party. Friends (BJD, Porter, & Casey) from Mobile came up and a good time was had by all. The primary source of inebriation was two kegs of Yuengling (we floated the first one Friday night). I was very impressed with the quality of said brew, for I had never experience the beery goodness of this brand before.

The house we were parting at was amazing, the kitchen was huge in comparison to most kitchen's I've seen. The back deck was pretty nice too. Saturday night it was a little cooler outside and a slight breeze picked up. Twas very nice.

Some pretty big events occurred all weekend at said party. First, their was a Big'J sighting. I was able to take him with us the first night and get him to drink some beer (Objective #1). I think we might have freaked him out a bit though. Within five minutes of arriving someone shouted at him across the room, "You're last name is <>". Apparently, Big'J's 7th grade teacher's daughter was at the party and remembered him. We also discovered that our hostess is the B'ham area President (?) of Big'J's wife's sorority. So he was grilled about that too. Pretty amazing.

Second, Kyra AND Erin came out with us on Saturday night. Originally Erin was supposed to be studying for her realtors license and wouldn't come, so we figured Kyra would bail too. Fate denied the "supposed to's" and both came (Objective #2). They seemed to have a good time and we even talked them into going to Shoney's with us for breakfast the next morning (Bonus Objective).

Brian somehow defied his inner nature and made it as well (Objective # 3). I actually lost money because he appeared (I had bet he wouldn't.....I owe somebody a coke now). Strangely enough he eventually talked his roommate/friend Jeremy to show up with girlfriend (Bonus Objective). It was great to see them, and Brian (with a little coaxing from me) collected a young ladies phone number (Double Bonus Objective with Triple Word Score).

So to recap:

• BJD, Porter, & Casey in B'ham - 1 Victory P (VP)


• Big'J out and about - 4 VP


• Kyra out and about - 2 VP


• Erin out and about - 5 VP


• Brian out and about - 5 VP


• Jeremy appearing - 3 VP


• Brian getting the digits of a model that yields victory points - 3 VP


• Having all three of my best friends in one place at the same time - 3 VP


• Having everyone meet Rich and Laura - 8 VP


• Being asked by Kyra and Erin to not be a stranger and hang out more - 3 VP


• Getting to see Rich and Laura (and their home) - 2 VP


• Eating Shoney's breakfast - 1 VP

Total Victory Points scored for this battle: 40 VP

Any way you look at it, that's a battle won!

Friends of the Ham....

Yesterday was a great friend's/acquaintance's day here in B'ham. I received an IM yesterday from one of the guys who works in my department asking me what apartment complex I lived in. No big deal, I think t myself, so I tell him. His response was "Excellent! My fiance is moving in there tomorrow. It will be nice knowing that there is someone close by."

Now my first response (and probably yours) to this type of statement would generally be something along the lines of "sucker.....", but I couldn't bring myself to crush his enthusiasm. The amazing thing (at least to me) is that her/their apartment is in my building one floor down and one apartment over. So it appears that I will have them as a neighbor (I know....someone should call them and tell them how dumb they were to move next to me).

Another amazing event happened yesterday as well. When I made it home I found a brand new fresh and shiny copy of PC Gamer (with a decent little article on Warhammer Online by Mythic), so I sit down and begin to read (ok, ok....I just look at the pictures). Somewhere around 6ish my phone rings and of all surprises it's Kyra on the phone. I figured I accidentlly mauled her favorite pet or something and I would never hear from her again. Miracles happen every day ;). At any rate, she wanted to someone to go with her to The Cheesecake Factory. Not being the type to ever pass up good food, I of course volunteered (I had the Chicken Picatta and the Dutch Apple Caramel Streusel cheesecake, both very tasty).

Heh.....I'm a social whirlwind! Ok....not really....but a guy can dream, can't he?

New day, fresh goodbyes....

The past month has been kinda crazy. This coming weekend will be the first weekend in five weeks that I've been able to just hang around the apartment and chill. Five weeks ago was Cat and Carson's wedding in Atlanta, four weeks Dwyer came up and we went to Newnon (right outside Atlanta), three weeks ago was Azalea City BEST's kickoff in Mobile, two weeks ago (was my fault) I took a mini vacation to Mobile for a little WARMACHINE and Mardi Gras action, this past weekend I was in Mobile for Dwyer and Cat. Phew....it will be good to sleep in late in my own bed. Though I have to say, looking back over the past month or so, I've had a great time when the time was supposed to be great (ex. watching Dewitt fall out of a chair) and exceeded all obligations with gusto (ex. I didn't punch my old boss straight in the face at BEST kickoff).

One big highlight from the past two Mobile trips was experiencing the culinary delight of the Blu Bistro (at the corner of Bit & Spur and Old Shell). Two Fridays ago BJD treated me to lunch there where I had the shrimp pasta and discovered that I am pretty much an apostle (def: an ardent supporter) of this restaurant. This past weekend we went for dinner and had gumbo, veal, and creme brulee (wow was my tummy happy!). Now don't expect to pay McDonald's prices, because this isn't the type of place you can get by just ordering bread and water. However, for a treat yourself special type of event, a romantic event with a loved one (please, no pets), or a special treat for a family member, Blu Bistro is worth every red cent, you commie!

Don't forget to tip your waiter/waitress...