Waking up in the Morning

"Henceforth I ask not good-fortune, I myself am good-fortune." -Walt Whitman

Happy St. Patrick's Day! I forgot to wear green today, but luckily I'm not in school where you actually have to worry about being pinched. So much has happened in the last week, I'll try to give the quick summary recap, but too much has happened to give it much justice. I have to start off by saying that How I Met Your Mother is back on and the St. Patrick's Day episode was just as great as when it left off.


So here is more of my Spring Break. On Tuesday I went home from work to have lunch with Erika. I only had a little bit of time to spend with her, but it was still worth the trip. She waited for our show tickets to get in. She later went shopping at the Outlets in San Marcos. TomTom helped her get a lot of places. After work we went and had dinner at Fridays. I decided to go to this place in San Marcos after, but when we got there it was closed. So instead we went to J's where I got to show her the piano bar. The guy wasn't very good, but the experience was still pretty fun.


Wednesday was another day I had to work. Erika met me at work for lunch and we went to this place by my office. After she went off to Zilker park to read. I'm so impressed with how much she reads. She also got to visit the botanical garden, which I hear is really nice. I made sure to drop by while I was in town making a filing just to say hello. After work we had a quick dinner and had plans to go and see a concert. We ended up spending the night at home together watching tv and relaxing. Sometimes that is just the best way to spend an evening.

Thursday was my final day of work and I was so grateful that someone would still come visit me even though I had to work. After work I rushed home and since we had everything packed, we jumped into the car and drove to San Antonio. Erika bought us tickets to see Cirque du Soleil's "Saltimbanco" at the ATT center. We got there just in time and the show was pretty amazing. I do have to say I was a bit let down that there were so many mistakes, but maybe my expectations have just been so high from all the great performances I've seen before. After the show, we got a hotel room and headed for the Riverwalk. We had dinner at Dicks. I had never been there before, but I was hungry. I was a good sport and it ended up being a good time. I liked it a lot, but I will say that I don't see myself going back anytime soon. After a late dinner, we went to a piano bar and really enjoyed listening to the music. I definitely have to go back there.

Friday morning we took off for our drive down to the valley. We got into town in time to go and visit my sister Eliza and my new niece Celeste. She was born a week early, so just looking at her and knowing that she could still be inside of Eliza's stomach makes you look in awe. I'll be honest, I don't know what a good looking baby versus a regular one looks like. I think you have to wait at least 6 months before you can start making those claims, but everyone thinks their own is the most beautiful child they have ever seen and I think it should always be like that. Since she is my niece of course I thought she was so beautiful. I held Celeste and I have to admit I was a bit scared. She was so small and light. The idea of spending the rest of your life worrying about her every move makes me really admire parents.

Saturday we had plans to eat at Red Lobster for lunch, but this of course never happens because other plans come up. It is almost like tradition now, so I decided to ax the idea and go and pick up some BBQ with some tickets I had purchased. We took it to Eliza's house and ate there. I visited with my family and Bekkah and Jamie were there. Erika came by later and we took the kids to get ice cream. The food was good and it was good quality time with family. After, we went to play cards with Erika's parents and friends. I came out about even, but it was fun. We also saw the fight on pay per view which was awesome. Everyone is always really nice to me.


Sunday brought the end of spring break and having seen time pass by so fast I felt like it couldn't be here already. We spent the morning at Erika's parent's house for her Dad's birthday. He opened presents and we had breakfast. Then we went to her family's and had hamburgers. Then it was time for me to go. Erika dropped me off at home and instead of taking the bus, my parents decided to drive up to Austin to take me and so they could visit with Abram/us. I drove up and it wasn't too bad, but once we got home I was a bit tired. I made good time.

That about sums things up. It is hard to write about things once so much time has past. I'm looking forward to Easter.

I still need to end with some politics:

Check out this article:
Pentagon Makes It Official: No Link Between Saddam & Al Qaeda (why do people still think this?)

And don't forget sports.

In the NCAA tournament I'm excited to hear that Texas, George Mason and Cornell are going to compete. I can't wait to watch. Those are my sentimental favorites. It has been 20 years since Cornell was in the big dance. Cornell Men's Basketball Faces Stanford in NCAA Tournament

I dunno, I'm pretty adorable when I'm litigious

Celeste Nicole Mendoza

"An adventure is only an inconvenience rightly considered. An inconvenience is only an adventure wrongly considered." -G.K. Chesterton, "On Running After One's Hat," All Things Considered, 1908

Monday, March 10, 2008 my niece Celeste Nicole Mendoza was born to my little sister Eliza. She was 7 pounds 12 oz. I got to talk to Eliza before she was born, and was so excited to hear from my sister Ana when Celeste was born. I'm a Tio times 7 now. This is a pretty big blessing and I can't wait to meet her this weekend. Lots of new uncles lately.

Erika is out for Spring Break. This weekend I went down to the Valley to visit her. I took the bus. That was an adventure, but sometimes it is nice to get a reality check to really appreciate things. Her parents invited us to the livestock show. I had never been. Oh man, it was so much fun. It was quintessentially Texas. We saw pigs, goats, horses, bulls, a petting zoo and a greased pig run. There was a carnival where I made a promise not to play any games and yet still ended up playing one. At least I was able to win a prize. We saw a pretty amazing hypnotist and had funnel cakes to end the night. There was so much to do and I was very appreciative that I was invited. I think I'm going again next year.

On Sunday, Erika came up to Austin with me to spend part of her Spring break with me. I have to work, but we are making things work. Monday we met up for lunch with my cousin Rino and then went to look at an apartment. I liked it a lot, but didn't like the small bedrooms. I think I should be more picky and the idea of higher rent, deposits and pet deposits do worry me. I'm excited to live with Rino and maybe even possibly Abram.

After work, Erika, Abram, Oscar and I went to this crazy fun center. Oh man I don't think I have had this much fun in a long time. We started the night off a quick bite to eat, then off to rock climbing. That was why I went and I was hoping the rest would be a nice addition, but man my expectations were more than exceeded. I put on the harness and climbed up the first wall. It was an easy one. I think I've done it once before, but nothing like this. I was too scared to jump down, so I just climbed down. Finally after doing that a few times, I just gave out and fell and found out that it wasn't too bad. After a half hour climbing (or trying to) my arms were numb, but I really want to do it again. Abram, Oscar and Erika did very well.

We then got some beers and played shuffle board. After that a few games of pool. You would think that would be a full and fun night, but it had just begun. Then we bowled two games. After that we played video games for an hour with our unlimited games card. Then we ended off the night with a kick ass game of laser tag. (Really had we known how much fun that was, we might of done that all night.) Erika got the second highest score, Marty the lowest. Abram did well too. Just so you can know, running blindly into enemy territory and waiting to get shot and then recharging isn't the best plan of action. By the time we got out it was 20 till 2am. We were exhausted, but man it was fun.

Here is an article I read that I feel was a good wake up call: 10 Ways We Hurt Our Relationships

"You spend like a single person
This was a hard lesson for me to learn — until it broke up a 7-year relationship. When you’re single, you can buy whatever you want, whenever you want, with little regard for the future. It’s not necessarily wise, but you’re the only one who has to pay the consequences. When you are with someone in a long-term relationship, that is no longer a possibility. Your partner — and your children, if there are or will be any — will have to bear the brunt of your spending, so you’d better get in the habit of taking care of household necessities first and then, if there’s anything left over, of discussing with your partner the best way to use it.
This is an increasing problem these days, because more and more people are opting to keep their finances separate, even when they’re married. There’s nothing wrong with that kind of arrangement in and of itself, but it demands more communication and involvement between the partners, not less. If you’re spending money as if it was your money and nobody else has a right to tell you what to do with it, your relationship is doomed."


I'm on my way to be more responsible, but things that should only affect you ends up affecting those around you. My life is bigger than my finances and I know that, but man they can really eat away at ya if you keep thinking about it.

such a big fan of surprises

Agendas

"To be wronged is nothing unless you continue to remember it." -Confucius

On Tuesday Abram and I picked up some pizza and went to Rinos to have a few drinks. It is funny because I catch myself telling some of the same stories over and over. It was the night of the election returns, so I put the news on and watched that, which I know isn't exciting for most people, but I really wanted to see how it all turned out. Now it is time for the pundits to try to make sense of it, either say, Hillary is back, or Obama gots it wrapped up, it is just in the math. I like them both and only want a fair primary, which is why I think they should throw out superdelegates and just go with the delegates that were elected by the people in the primaries. I know this will probably hurt Clinton, but too bad, I mean after 2000, I'll never forget how I felt when Gore was denied the Presidency while winning the popular vote due to a Supreme Court decision. I didn't even vote for him, but it was that moment that I truly became a democrat. I also think Florida and Michigan should re-vote and get their votes counted.




Check out this blog entry about the War:


Prose Before Hos: Every 9.74 days, Iraqi civilians experience 9/11. The charts really help you put the war into perspective.


I think this blog entry really sums it up well:

Cafe Talk: Obama and Clinton supporters must drop out of the race.



Someone asked me about this the other day.

How To: In 12 Seconds Get All 3 Numbers To A Combo Lock -

I notice sometimes when people are mad at me, I have no problem telling them positive stuff and how my intentions were good, or how I may of made a mistake. I don't know how often I get angry at people, but I can't think of a case when I have ever been angry and in the face of positive comments and feedback, plus apologies, say I don't care and choose to stay mad anyway. Usually, I feel like if I get mad, people just get defensive and just get more mad at me. The good thing is that I don't get mad very often as I have always seen it as a lack of self discipline, but I think that mindset of not getting mad has really hurt me. There are times you just need to get upset, I mean it goes away, so why keep it inside and let it fester when venting might be the most productive thing for everyone. The good thing is that I don't have much to be mad about so I've been focusing on the stuff that has made me happy.



Spring Break is coming up. Not for me of course, but I'm going to find a way to celebrate it. Erika will be off and we are in the process of making plans. We have an outline of things to do, but nothing set in stone yet. I'm really looking forward to it.



Today I got some Good News from Maria's Blog. To summarize, she "received the results of [her] last CT scan in February and they are........ great! There was a decrease in size in all [her] affected lymph nodes so the new chemo is working well so far." I was happy to hear that.

I'm not someone you have to give a chance to

Texas Primary

"Occupants of public offices love power and are prone to abuse it."- George Washington , Farewell Address

I voted today in the Texas primary. I had planned to go before work, but woke up late so I went during lunch instead. There was a long line, but only for Democrats. The Republican line was empty. By 9:30am at my precinct 147 democrats voted and only 40 republicans. I did not caucus though because, just like superdelegates, I just think it is silly. I mean, people should just vote and the current system of apportionment is very fair I think and much better than winner take all, but the superdelegate mess bothers me too. It just isn't democratic, no matter if it influences the election or not. Most people I know voted for Obama, and I will surely vote for him for president, but I wanted to give Hillary her one last chance to make her comeback, and I voted for her. It was a hard decision for me and ideally I would like want a Hillary Obama ticket, but not an Obama Hillary ticket. He can help her, but she can only hurt him politically. I would of course take it though. I've voted in a lot of states now, NY, VA, FL and TX. Now it is time to watch the results.

Hillary Clinton on the Daily Show last night:





This weekend I went to see Erika. It has been nice being able to see her so often and this sure beats being 2000 miles away from each other. When I got there, we played cards with her family and friends. The time of course flew by as we made the most of it. She is really thoughtful and great at surprises. My favorite moment was dinner at this nice French restaurant we had never been to. It made me want to travel to Europe. We later had drinks with my sister Ana and Rick on Saturday night. I really liked that bar, they had some good music. After attending a birthday party for a little cousin of hers, and checking out her family calendar that her and her mom put together to see what empty slots there were, it was time for me to drive back to Austin. Back to work.

So I still can't get other this myspace v blogger amount of people that I get visiting. More people find it easier to go to Myspace and view my scaled down version, than just save my site as a bookmark. I can't add as much video on that site (well I probably could if I tried harder.) In any case, I still don't get many comments or kudos anyway. Maybe I should just blog exclusively there instead.

Here is some cool info I just learned. ABC will air five originals of Grey's beginning April 24. I feel like I have no understanding when my shows are starting or ending, when the season begins, ends, its all a blur to me it seems. Too many breaks and weeks off and well the strike probably complicated a few things there too. The Sarah Connor show had its series finale this week. I didn't think I would like it, but it is pretty good.


As a Christian I worry that the ones that have power set a bad example by those actually trying to follow Jesus's good hearted teachings. The most judgmental of Christians have been the people that upset me the most because they not only distort the word of God, but they make others not want to be Christians because of their example. Speaking of examples, Evangelical Christians talk so much about family values and not having sex before marriage and how gay people are evil (hate the sin not the sinner they may say, but they still hate the sinner.) This may be old knowledge, but I didn't know they too have one of the highest divorce rates of any religion, including people who don't believe in God. Way to set a great example. Way to live your life in a way that inspires others to learn the word of the Lord. That kind of hypocrisy bothers me a lot. So one article I read discussed the reasons behind Christian Evangelicals having higher divorce rates. (fyi, the Bible Belt also has some of the highest teenage pregnancy rates, but that is for another day.) So the arguments I heard were:

1. Christians are generally younger when they marry the first time.
2. Christians are less likely to have pre-marital counseling than non-Christians.
3. Christians tend to view their faith as protecting their marriage from divorce.
4. Christians are more likely to be ignorant about the problems that can develop within a marriage.

Sadly, I think that even though these are generalizations, they highlight some reasons that might explain this phenomenon. Then again I have seen a lot of happy Christian couples as well, but these stats still interested me.

loyalty