So a few days ago I’d posted a facebook status regarding my being legal regarding operation of my car. I had a few people ask me about it, and thought I’d clarify.
So my mom got her iPhone 4 on Friday, and after getting her plan all set up I wanted to go upstairs to AT&T and confirm a few things on the account since she’d joined my existing plan, to make us a family plan, etc. Once there, the AT&T rep checked my ID and said “Did you know your license was expired?” I didn’t believe him at first, but I checked and sure enough, it had expired… almost one month ago!.
(Insert mental shriek here.)
I couldn’t believe it, I had been driving with an expired license for almost a month. If I’d been pulled over on the highway, I’d be in serious trouble! So, needless to say the drive home that day was quite scary. I don’t think I’ve driven the speed limit on every road since I was in driving school.
Here in NJ, we have this crazy “6 point ID verification system” which basically requires enough proof to verify someone’s identity with various papers. I’m somewhat disorganized, so that was a source of some angst for me worrying that I wouldn’t be able to come up with sufficient points. Luckily, I had (at least I thought I did, as we’ll see soon.).
I woke up nice and early, and got to the Motor Vehicle office around 7:15am, and waited until 8am when they opened. They had short hours since it was Saturday (only 8-12), so I was expecting a long line. There was, just before 8, but I was first in line so it didn’t matter.
According to the rep, the bank statement I’d brought was expired, and she asked if I had my insurance card for my car. I figured, “Sure, I’ve got that.” Went out, checked, and evidently… that had expired too!. So, I walked back in sheepishly with the expired documents, hoping that somewhere she might find some generosity to let me through; and she did. She told me to check my documents next time to make sure things weren’t expired, and sent me to the line for the renewal.
Luckily, I’ve got my new license and a better photo to boot, and went home to print out more recent insurance documents. Luckily my car’s insurance isn’t up for awhile.
Phew! – Certainly learned my lesson there.
Keep my documentation up to date, because “you never know.”
We’ve all seen those little tiny dents and dings when those pesky shopping carts have run-ins with their automobile nemeses, but what happens when the cars retaliate?
Probably looks something like this:
I love this saying, because it makes absolutely no logical sense. For those unfamiliar, this saying is usually directed at someone driving a car who needs to do so in a more rapid manner than they currently are doing, ie they’re late for something, or trying to get away from someone or something.
This also implies that car thieves automatically drive fast. This isn’t always true, because that would cause undue attention directed at them. therefore they’d stick out like a sore thumb!! If you’d just stolen a car, would you actually drive around very fast, thus creating a spectacle? I didn’t think so. Granted, if being pursued by the police, a car thief might drive fast, but how often do those high-speed chases end up where the thief evades the police successfully and winds up with a free car?
I’ve seen enough cop shows on TV to know that catching car thieves is something cops are fairly good at, namely when involved in a chase. “Parked car theft” is a whole other story, equally as shitty, and even worse since there’s practically nothing to go on when the cops show up.
I don’t know what prompted me to write this all down, I just think it’s funny when someone says “OK man, drive it like you stole it” – if I heard that I’d drive normally, not because I wouldn’t drive fast if I’d actually stolen the thing, I’d just want to piss that person off. 
What better way to spend one of my days off than troubleshooting network issues?! For some weird reason, I’ve started having difficulties with streaming video, namely YouTube and now Netflix is acting up too. I’d start downloading/streaming a video, it would load about halfway, then just stop playing. I’d have to pause then restart the video, or scrub all the way to the end before going back to the middle of the movie to hopefully have it play through. This happened once before, then the issue magically resolved itself, and it’s now back again.
I’m curious, is anyone else experiencing issues like this? Doesn’t seem to have any bearing whether I’m connected via Ethernet or Wireless, I run both an 802.11b/g and 802.11n networks (separate, actually two different devices entirely), iPhones, iPads, all Macs in the house (hehe I’ve been waiting a long time to say that), but still I’m getting wonky behavior on the network.
I’m in the middle of a fresh backup of 600+ GB of data from my MacBook to my Time Capsule, but once that finishes I might try taking my Airport Extreme out of the equation to see if that resolves the issue.
It seems that tech support, I’m afraid, is always open…
This is one of my favorite sayings, because it’s completely true, and it’s a bit sad at the same time. Why is it that us as humans have some sort of hidden motivation to “start spreadin’ the news” when bad things happen? What is it that we’re really expecting to transpire by pontificating our maladies to the masses?
In the end, nobody actually cares about how bad things may be going for you right now. What’s more important, however, is being able to ask yourself: What is being done to correct it or fix it yourself? I try to think about why people complain, and I think I just might have an answer: They like to complain about external things because they may have some pent up frustration about something in their life, someone in their life, or themselves. Then, most likely, they want to take it out on something, or someone else entirely. If we, as human beings, would just take the time to really think about what was “wrong”, it’s most likely very simple to fix, or “make right”, often times with minimal effort.
Those who are complaining are the ones most obviously uninterested in learning about making it better, they just want someone else to fix it for them. I believe that would be called lazy by today’s standards. Remember, the grass is always greener, unless you spend your life walking around with dark sunglasses on, which would just make everything look dark and depressing.
Just a quick post to say “Happy Fourth of July” to everyone! Happy 234th Birthday, USA!!
I hope everyone has a great day, filled with fun and safe celebrations. Sadly New Jersey is one of the states that bans personal fireworks, but that doesn’t stop most people from “lighting off a few”. I remember when I was living in Indiana (a state that does not have this ban), I was pretty intrigued by the idea of lighting off fireworks in my own backyard, legally. My friends out there were quite surprised that I’d never even seen any of them before.
While living out there, I definitely have some great memories, though. One year I went to my friend Brad’s house for a barbecue with another friend of mine, Joe, who left Brad’s lawn fairly burnt after his gluttonous array of pyrotechnics. I had a few of my own that year, a few Roman Candles and some sparklers, but that was about it. I wasn’t really looking to rival the Macy’s fireworks, but I at least got the experience.
Whatever you decide to do today, just make it safe, and enjoy yourselves, and try not to burn the grass.
I couldn’t resist taking this photo – it just looked too cool from where I was standing.
I found out something troubling the other day; The new Snapple flavor, Troparocka, is in fact a limited-run product, according to snapple.com. (Quick, somebody prove me wrong!! I really hope I am misinformed on this one!!!!)
I was very saddened to hear this, since I really love that flavor! Its the only flavor of Snapple that I’ve tried to date. I was also drinking that in the morning instead of coffee… 10 calories in the bottle, with the caffeine pickup, as opposed to whatever was in the Dunkin Donuts coffee I drank previously… Also it was cold, refreshing, and didn’t have the “bite” that iced coffee seems to have, regardless of how much sugar and/or cream I have put in.
Any Snapple fans out there have any suggestions on good flavors to try out? I was liking the whole “diet” thing with the Troparocka. I’ve heard the diet ones tend to have a strange aftertaste. I didn’t notice that with the Troparocka, but maybe I’m used to it since I drink Diet Pepsi as opposed to regular, etc.
So what’s with this whole temporary thing anyway?! Why can’t it just be a regular flavor? Is it because Trump put his face on the side of the bottle?! Does he have control over that flavor, or is he too proud to give Snapple 100% control over the flavor, thus removing himself from it entirely? It’s not like Donald Trump actually needs any advertising. Sheesh.
Well, it was nice while it lasted. Thanks for the flavor Bret, I hope you can convince whoever needs convincing that Troparocka needs to stay! I may just be one blogging fool on the Internet, but dammit I want to have my Troparocka and drink it too.
I still have a few bottles left… Should I save them for a special occasion, or wait a month or two and sell them on eBay, or just say “screw it” and party on while I still can?
Wait… Doesn’t eBay have some type of rule against selling food products? Hmm… Either way, I’m still bummed!!
So I’m toying with the idea of actually going in to NYC for the fireworks this year. I know there will be a ton of people there, but it seems like it would be fun nonetheless. I remember going many years ago when I was younger, and I sat on the median of the FDR Drive which was closed for the Fireworks. I’ve been watching them on TV for the past few years, and that’s all well and good, but I think it’s always a good thing to see them in person from time to time, because being there makes it so much better.
So, anybody reading this, want to go into NYC on the 4th for fireworks? E-Mail me!
Hey everybody. Sorry I haven’t posted in a few days, I was just enjoying my “birthday weekend” celebratory festivities, from which I have some great stuff to share. To sum it up, I definitely enjoyed myself. Spent time with family & friends, got the $h!t scared out of me, and finished it off with a truly incredible experience.
I was off from work from Wednesday through today, so I had a handful of days to myself. Wednesday was fairly uneventful, since I hadn’t planned anything for that day just some “me time” to get some of my own things done. Had dinner with the fam as a pre-birthday celebratory thing, then got to bed early for my impromptu work day in the middle of my hiatus from the job.
I made a “guest apperance” at work for the launch of the new iPhone – went in and helped out w/ the launch, as well as left with my very own iPhone 4 that I absolutely love. I hadn’t worked on my birthday in 10 years up until this year, but of all the past jobs I’d had I wouldn’t have wanted to work on my birthday at those anyway. What better way to celebrate than usher in an amazing new device, and party with some of my colleagues and dear friends.
In the evening after the launch, I had originally planned a bowling outing and invited everyone from work as well as some friends. Being that it was a major work day, I understood that nobody from work showed up, but two of my best friends came and bowled with me which was great. We went to Applebee’s afterward and I got nice ‘n’ tipsy. Thankfully I didn’t drive.
Then, Friday’s great adventure…to…Great Adventure! I was really fortunate to have one of my other friends come along who had moved out to CA last year. He was back in NJ visiting, and it just happened to work out that he could join us. We had a blast. It wasn’t about how many rides we could go on, but how much fun we could possibly have despite the immense heat and increasing lines at the various rides. We decided to hit up the brand new Kingda Ka first, which currently holds the record for being the tallest and fastest roller coaster on the planet. (Right here in Jersey, yeah! Fist pumps!….j/k)
Here’s a video of the experience – someone else recorded it, but you definitely get the feeling of the speed of it. For best results, view full-screen and don’t skip ahead. The 10-15 seconds of “nothingness” is intentional!
So, as you can tell, that’s definitely what you’d call a thrill ride, to the tune of 0-128 mph in 3.5 seconds, going up a 450+ foot drop, then going (practically) straight down at almost 90-degrees. I found out on that ride that I could scream in ways I didn’t think possible, I evidently made noises human males don’t typically make… thank goodness I wasn’t being videotaped. I was, however, photographed. Apparently one of the newest things for theme parks to do is put speed cameras along the way on roller coasters, to capture the reactions of the riders. Let’s just say on Kingda Ka my picture was less-than-flattering, but still hilarious to look at. I digress… I haven’t been subjected to those kinds of feelings, ever. To say that it was exhilarating is quite the understatement. To say that it was “a rush” is putting it lightly. For me, it was a “once in a lifetime” experience – it was so crazy, so nuts, so insane, so intense, I couldn’t imagine doing it again. I loved it, but I also love that it’s left such a vivid memory in me that I don’t ever have to do it again. Watching that video from YouTube is just fine with me.
So after that, we tried to get on the Superman ride, but the 90-minute wait made that a lost cause. We grabbed some lunch and did some go-karting afterwards, then a sedate-but-beautiful parachute ride. It looked pretty boring from down below, but it was actually quite nice. You’re strapped into a chair, hoisted up about 15 stories, then dropped to fall at a controlled speed peacefully back down to the ground. No crazy G’s, just really nice views and some fun with gravity.
After an ice cream visit at Coldstone (I tried the Birthday Cake remix (it seemed appropriate), I now have a new favorite flavor), we decided to get on one more “oh shit” ride before heading out. We had to make it an early day because of some other commitments. We decided to visit El Toro, the newest wooden roller coaster at Great Adventure. This ride was exhilarating as well, but in a totally different way.
Before I continue, here’s a YouTube video to pique your interest. Also, not recorded by me (I wouldn’t dream of trying to hold a camera on that ride, I could barely hold on to the provided handlebar.)
So, yeah. This was more of the “psychological thriller” of a roller coaster. Turns that came up out of nowhere, banked corners that had the side planks a mere inches from our scalps, and speeds in excess of 80mph. This one I’d love to go on again, but the restraints were so tight I might have to drop a few waist sizes to be more comfortable on it. The attendant was able to get me tight enough but only just, I could barely breathe during the whole run but I don’t know if that was completely the coaster’s fault. More incentive to spend more time on the treadmill.
We had some great laughs, some great company, and all seemed to get some good color to boot. I had a great time. Let’s fast forward to today, Sunday. I rounded out my “Birthday Weekend” with a trip to see the new production of La Cage Aux Folles in NYC. For those unfamiliar, this is the original story on which the movie The Birdcage is based. I went into the show expecting some cheesy and corny dated Broadway/Vaudeville antics, but what I got was far better.
The show was incredible, and I even got to see one of my all-time favorite actors (Kelsey Grammer) in one of the leading roles. I’d been a fan of his since Frasier, and I even thought Down Periscope was a funny movie, despite not being one of his better roles. He was hysterical, and seemed perfect for the part. I highly recommend seeing La Cage if you get the chance. I’m not going to give anything away, just take my word for it. I laughed, I almost cried, and I laughed a lot more. I left feeling great, and actually wanting to go see it again. Anyone want to go? 
So, I’m 29 now, starting my 30th year of life. Who knows what the future brings?
“All will be well, you can ask me how but only time will tell…” — Gabe Dixon
