A Re-Introduction to Me

28 Feb 2008

 

A Bit About Me

I thought that since we've lost so many bloggers and gained a few new ones, and since I've been gone for over 2 months, I thought that I should kinda re-introduce myself...

 

First of all I am a very happily married man. I won't try and tell y'all everything is sunshine and roses in my marriage, but I happen to love my wife more than any words could begin to describe.

 

My wife is called "M" here to save on keystrokes and to keep her privacy. Everything I write about has usually been discussed between us in some way, shape or form. But since I respect her privacy, I won't write about things that I think she would want to keep private.

 

One of the public things I talk about is that M had stomach banding surgery last year to help her lose weight and she has lost a bit over 50 pounds so far. What y'all need to understand is that the insurance program requires a person to be more than 100 pounds over their maximum "ideal" weight in order to qualify for the surgery.

 

When I get my laptop out of the shop, I'll post a recent photo to go with the ones you can see on the "My Photos" page here on my Blog that document her weight loss.

 

My Political Thoughts.

As for my political leanings, I call myself a republi-independo-crat and both conservatively liberal and liberally conservative.

 

In the 2000 Republican primary I voted for John McCain and in the election I voted for George Bush. In the 2004 election I voted for Kerry/Edwards. In this election I'm currently... Well, lost.

 

Now I liked McCain before but to me he sounds a lot like a continuation of GB so that has turned me off of him.

 

I do like Obama, but I feel as though he simply doesn't have enough political experience in the national political scene to be an effective president.

 

And for some reason I just simply don't like Hillary Clinton. I have no good basis for this feeling but she just rubs me the wrong way and I can't explain that. I'm sure some folks might think that I'm a woman hater because of this statement, but I never liked her, even when she was first lady.

 

I'm saying this to describe myself, not to solicit comments on who to vote for, so I'll ask y'all to keep yer political comments to yourself if you hope to influence me. I won't try to sway your vote, so please don't try to sway mine. OK?

 

Where I Live.

M and I live on the side of a mountain here in East Tennessee. I'm originally raised in Michigan and we moved here in 2004. I'm a small town kind of guy and where we are is simply perfect for me. The neat thing is we're not too far from some of the bigger cities if we want to do something a bit more sophisticated. We live within 30 miles of N. Carolina and 40 miles from Virginia so we can go in either direction or head due West to Knoxville.

 

You can see the view from our front porch on the "My Photos" page.

 

My Spare Time.

On Friday nights M and I bowl in a mixed league. This is the first time she has ever bowled in a league, but I've been active in bowling off and on for about 18 years when my job allowed. I'm not great but I'm not too bad either. I'm currently carrying a 177 average and in the past year I pulled off a 710 and a 709 series.

 

During the warmer weather I build things out of both wood and metal. My current projects include building some cabinets for our kitchen and rebuilding a old John Deere lawn tractor. But I have to wait for it to get warmer to do the paint work on both projects. I don't have a garage so I do all my work out in the yard.

 

I am also an avid motorcyclist. My bike is my refuge when my mind gets too full of crud. I'm hoping to be able to afford a second bike this year since M is planning on getting her motorcycle license this spring. If we have a second bike then we won't have to fight over who gets to take the bike to work this summer!

 

Last year we started a garden and this year we are planning to expand it even larger. There's nothing like making a dinner with fresh produce that you grew yourself.

 

I am also working on building a website, but I just found out this afternoon that my laptop may need a new hard drive and I was building it on the laptop... So as of right now that little project is on hold. If and when I get it up and running I'll put up a link so y'all can see my handiwork.

 

What We Do to Pay The Bills.

I work in a plant that makes metal parts for roller bearings. I’m sure you have heard of ball bearings, this is similar but with steel rollers instead of balls. This is usually a full time and then some job so I end up working a lot of weekends too. For our area the pay is pretty good and the company is a good place to work for… Most of the time.

 

M is a Registered Nurse and works at the local hospital in the OR department. She is the one in our family that makes the big bucks (as compared to me, that is).

 

If you got any Questions you’d like to ask, shoot me a Comment or Email!

I’m no genius but I’d like to think I’ve got a good bit of common sense and I tend to look at things from a slightly different point of view than most people. I’m very free with advice, and I don’t expect you to take it either so you won’t disappoint me if you think I’m full of crap!

 

I think that’s all for today.

 

I’m Alive… So Far…