I’ll admit it.  I’m a sucker for those “as seen on TV” products.  I rarely buy them, but they all seem cool to me.  Last night, I did make a purchase, the “Perfect Fit Button.”  I recently went shopping for shorts and every pair I tried on were either a little too tight, or a little too big.  I went with the bigger ones and figured I’d just use a belt to keep those bad boys up.  Not anymore!!  I’m not an official endorser of the “Perfect Fit Button,” but I’ll tell ya, the thing works!  I put the button on my slightly too big shorts last night, and viola, they fit, dare I say, “perfectly.”  The pack comes with black, brown, khaki, and silver buttons you can use for various kinds of pants.  The only issue I have with “Perfect Fit Button” is that I didn’t come up with the idea myself!! 

I have to admit, I also bought the high-pressure wash attachment for the garden hose.  As soon as I can get outside and try it out, I’ll let ya know how it works!  Hell, I could take over for Billy Mays, if I could only find my blue, button-up shirt!

I had ankle surgery a little over two weeks ago.  Everything went well, but I’ve been on crutches now for two weeks, and I have an additional four to go.  I never realized how much I would miss the simple act of walking.  Crutching myself everywhere is a pain, especially when you throw in the added factor of snow and ice!  I should be back to full speed by May, and I can’t wait for that time.  I do have a new appreciation for those folks who, unlike me, have to deal with this type of thing on a permanent basis.  I didn’t realize until recently how so many buildings aren’t too “handicapped friendly.”  I’ll continue to hobble along I guess, and pray for warm weather and no more snow!!!!

It happens every year.  You’d think I’d be used to it by now.  A bunch of folks get gym memberships for Christmas.  Then, a bunch of folks make resolutions to get in shape.  I’m cool with that, as a gym rat myself.  But there’s a problem.  The gym is crazy busy in the month of January!  Seriously, if you go to the gym on a regular basis, take a look around and you’ll see people you’ve never seen in there before.  Take a look around again in another month or so, and I’m willing to bet you won’t see 75% of those people again.  I repeat, I’m all for getting fit.  But I get annoyed in January when I’m trying to do my normal routine and I can’t because every bench and piece of equipment is taken by some guy or girl who thinks working out for a month will get them in peak physical condition!  By February, it’ll all die down though, and I’ll be a happy camper once again.  But, March brings the beginning of Spring Break season.  This means an overcrowded gym filled with people who once again think that working out for a few weeks will get them in bathing suit form.  Can’t we just fast forward to May???

At Thanksgiving, I set a goal for myself.  My Christmas shopping had to be done by Dec. 10.  I don’t want to be the typical guy (who’ve I’ve been in the past) who waits until Christmas Eve to run out and grab every gift I can.  I didn’t technically finish my shopping by the 10th, but came really close!  Now I’m done, and I can kick back, relax, and actually ENJOY Christmas.  And I have to say, online shopping is the way to go!  No crowds, no fighting for parking, no hassle!  I simply sit in my living room, laptop in tow, and click away!  I must admit though, that the mall experience actually helps put me in the holiday spirit.  Despite the hell that is the holiday shopping crowd, it is nice to see the decorations and hear some holiday music in every store.  Maybe I’ll stroll over to Fashion Square later for some good ol’ fashioned knock down, drag out shopping anyway!

Overall, I really enjoyed the Thanksgiving holiday.  However, I, unlike most people, never touched or consumed any turkey.  I don’t have anything against turkey, but I don’t particularly crave it.  It’s actually rare for me to eat turkey on Thanksgiving, or any other day for that matter.  I choose the carb diet of potatoes, rolls and stuffing.  To each his own I guess.  I also had another first over the weekend….I read a book!  Books are like turkey to me.  I have nothing against them, I just don’t particularly like to read them.  I read Andre Agassi’s “Open.”  He has been an icon of mine for decades, so I had to give the book a chance.  Amazingly, I breezed through almost 400 pages in about a day and a half.  Good stuff.  It really opens your eyes to the realization that famous celebrities and athletes may look like they lead fabulous lives, but just like us, they all have their own demons.  Gave me something to think about over the weekend.

He complains and whines when he doesn’t win an award, which is fairly childish.  But, to complain and whine and cause a scene about an award he’s not even eligible for??  Low class man, low class.  I’ll admit, I’m not the biggest Taylor Swift fan out there, but I felt so sorry for her.  She looked completely bewildered and stunned.  I think she was genuinely excited to win that award!  A lot of artists win these things and don’t really care too much.  I don’t think that’s the case with Taylor.  She was really happy, and had it all taken away from her due to Kanye and his antics.  He said on Leno’s show that he needs to take some time off.  I agree wholeheartedly.  Get your head straight dude, and learn that a little humility goes a long way in life.  I’m out!

I’ve grown tired of bumper stickers and license plates that tell me what to do.  Don’t get me wrong, I’m all for YOU having a belief in something.  And expressing your belief is fine.  But, I’m sick of the stickers and plates that express your opinion, while telling me I should do/believe it as well.  Here’s an example sticker for you:  “Recycle.”  Now, if it says “I Recycle,” I have no issue.  But whether I agree with recycling or not, I don’t like that I’m being told that’s what I should do.  I’m going to put a sticker on my car that says, “Don’t put stupid stickers that command  me to do things on your car.”

Ok, I’ve become obsessed with the Little League World Series on ESPN.  It’s so cool watching these kids go out and play baseball!  Watching MLB, you get used to seeing huge guys who show no emotion and rarely make mistakes.  It’s their JOB to play ball.  It’s so refreshing to see the kids playing a game for pure enjoyment!  These kids are scrawny, they make mistakes, and you can always see the frustration and excitement on their faces.  I saw the Japan team play a game yesterday.  This one really small player came up to bat, and he had a big ol’ elbow pad on.  Basically, he was hoping to get hit with a pitch, and sure enough, BOOM!, right on the elbow pad!  He had the biggest smile on his face while jogging to first base, and that smile stayed with him for a good 5 minutes.  It was awesome to see how happy he was to contribute to his team.  I hope to see more games this week, and I’m actually thinking about making a trip to Williamsport, PA next year to see the LLWS in person.  Playing sports for fun…what a concept.

I’m all for staying cool in the summer.  And I understand that less clothing can help you achieve that goal.  However, unless you live at the beach, driving without a shirt on seems a bit excessive to me.  At the beach, haulin’ around in a Jeep Wrangler, shirtless drivers seem totally acceptable to me.  But, leaving the McDonald’s in Cville in your Honda…shirtless…doesn’t seem to fit in my definition of social norms.  If you are a shirtless driver, no offense intended.  I just don’t get it.  And, I don’t think the seatbelt would feel good against bare skin.  Then again, I wear shirts when I drive, so what do I know??

So, I was in NYC during the 4th of July weekend.  I took a bus trip up there and saw two Yankees games.  Everything was great, except one thing.  About ten people on my tour bus were decked out in Virginia Tech gear every day.  As a UVA fan, and JMU grad, nothing is more of a buzzkill than being surrounded by burnt orange and maroon!  The games were great, and the new Yankee Stadium is awesome!  The NYC fireworks were the biggest ever, and they didn’t disappoint.  I was tired from the game that day, so I had passed on going to see the fireworks, and chose to watch them on tv from my hotel room.  However, I looked out the window, and discovered that I could see everything going on live!  So, I kept the tv on so I could hear the music, and I did indeed get to see the actual show!  I also saw Rob Thomas from Matchbox 20 perform live outside Rockefeller Plaza during the Today Show.  Free concert, can’t beat that!  Now my Bahamas trip is behind me, and so is my NYC trip.  Basically, my summer vacations are done.  Always a bittersweet emotion!