A Very Special Christmas Edition of Thursday Thirteen: 13 Things I Love About Jameil

Merry Christmas, everybody. I'm not sure how many people will be reading, but if you are, here is another collaboration with Jameil. Actually, she hasn't read this ahead of time, but the idea was constructed together. Be sure to check out Jam's list of what she loves about me.

1. Our Long Phone Calls - Being in two different states, the majority of our time is spent on the phone. I love how we can always find something to talk about or even just enjoy each other's silent company as we do different things. I think the longest we've talked on the phone has been 15 hours in one day.

2. Following Dreams - I love that Jameil is following her dream to make documentaries. A lot of people have lofty ideas, but never do anything about them - present company included. I'm so proud that she is actually taking action to make this a reality.

3. Sense of Humor - We have some of the craziest, most hilarious conversations. I wish I could put some of them on the blog sometimes, but I'm not quite sure everybody would get the joke, or if they did get the joke, they may not appreciate us laughing at you. Needless to say, in a 15 hour phone convo, there has to be lots of humor to keep it interesting. Jameil has that part covered.

4. Passion about the news - Okay, this may get on some people's nerves, but I love it. Whenever we are watching any local news show, Jam immediately starts critiquing it. This comes from her background as a news producer. She knows how things should be done, and always points it out if its done incorrectly. I've learned a lot just from hearing her rant about the news, and you know I like learning new stuff.

5. Accepting My Weirdness - I'll be the first to admit that I'm not normal. In fact, I wear weirdness as a badge of honor. This can turn some people off, but Jameil seems to take it in stride. It's a good thing, because my brain isn't turning normal anytime soon. LOL

6. Talking About Anything - I don't know if there is any conversation that is off limits with us. We can talk about the past without any strangeness. We can talk about the future without any nervousness. We can plan our hypothetical kids names without either of us running for the hills. I love that no matter what the topic, we can keep everything in perspective and not have to be all guarded around each other.

7. Long Hugs - When I first see Jam after two or three weeks, you can bet that we are going to be locked in an embrace for several minutes. I can tell that she is genuinely happy to see me, and the feeling is definitely mutual.

8. Making Fun Of Each Other - We are ridiculous with this one. The same way we make fun of other people, we make fun of one another. It's all good natured teasing. She loves to call me old because I am 7 and 3/4ths years older than her. She likes making gay jokes about me since I like a lot of TV shows and movies that most heterosexual black males don't watch (i.e. Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Gilmore Girls, etc.) She knows she can do this because I can take a joke. I'm not one of those sensitive cats that's gonna run off crying in a corner because somebody ribbed me. I do the same to her, but I'll leave those off the blog. I'm not crazy, ya know.

9. Food - Whether she cooks or we go out to a restaurant to eat, we gonna eat. And we gonna eat good. And I love that she is not scared to try new places. It's cool being able to go to some new spot and experiencing new culinary delights. I've had situations before where we always went to the same restaurant week after week. We definitely have our go-to spots, but there's always some new food adventure around the corner. Also, she's introduced me to the wonderful world of brunch. Where has that been my whole life?

10. Strong Personality - I love how UN wishy washy Jameil is. She knows what she likes, she knows what she believes in and she doesn't waver. The way she presents her self is the way she is. There's no fakeness in her. I never have to wonder if she is just saying something to keep me happy. If she doesn't agree, she'll tell me forcefully that she doesn't agree. You never have to guess if she feels strongly about something. Jameil is an antonym for the word sycophant.

11. Falling Asleep - I love when we fall asleep together. It feels like the most natural thing in the world, holding her while we watch a movie. Or her rubbing my head til I drift off. It's the sweetest thing. I definitely miss that when I'm not with her.

12. Competition - Lots of things between us are competitions. We've had 3 day long sessions trying to outdo each other. For example, once we had a competition to see who could say the most outrageous thing about a certain blogger. That thing dragged on forever until I finally was tapped out. It started on personal email, moved to work email, and continued on the phone. Neither one of us wants to give in first. These are friendly competitions by the way. Neither of us are sore losers. (If she would ever lose, she might be a sore loser. She always seems to get the best of me in these competition with her ol' stubborn self. LOL) By the way, we don't often have comment competitions, but when we post about the same thing, best believe its a battle. The posts when we announced we were dating, she won that time. Last week's T-13 was a tie. I'm hoping that my bloggers will represent for me this time! COMMENT ON MINE, NOT HERS!!!!!

13 Hey... - Cuz I know it's gonna be followed by "I Love You." It makes me feel all warm and fuzzy inside no matter how many times I hear it. I love you, too babe!

Thursday Thirteen: My $100 $150 Or Less Christmas Wish List

Since I have a killer case of the hiccups that wont allow me to sleep, I decided that I would do a Christmas Wishlist. I realized while writing this, I probably am a nightmare to shop for, cuz I never really care what I get, and I'm not good at dropping hints. It probably stems from all these years of not getting any gifts. My siblings and I don't exchange gifts, and mom and grandma usually go the gift card route. Anyway, here some of the things I would like for Christmas. All linked products are merely suggestions unless specified by name in the description.

1. Bose Computer Speakers- Most of the TV I watch is on the computer. I also watch alot of movies on Netflix Instant Viewing. I need to upgrade from these factory speakers I have.



2. GPS System - Do I need to elaborate on the many ways I get lost... even in my own city. I need this in my life.



3. A Watch - I'm tired of looking at my cell whenever I need to know what time it is. Plus, I would feel a little more like a grown up if I had a watch.



4. Car Audio - I'm always in my car. 35 minutes to work, 5hrs to Gainesville. I have an iPod adapter but it plays through the FM stations and in certain places it doesn't work. I would never buy this for myself, but it's Christmas, so someone can do it for me.



5. George Foreman 360 Grill - My old Foreman crapped out on me, probably because I submerged it in water several times trying to clean it. Glad this one has detachable grills.



6. Music Box Sets - Like Marvin Gaye , Stevie Wonder , or Al Green. Something classic.



7. Restaurant Gift Cards - Brother gotta eat, right?



8. Clothes - I didn't link cuz I don't know what I want. Plus Jameil was supposed to fix me, but it hasn't happened yet.



9. Shoes - see #8 I'll let you pick out what I should wear. Size 12 please.



10 Atari Flashback 2.0 - cuz the Wii is too expensive to put on this list.



11. External Hard Drive - gotta find a place to store all my porn mp3s. LOL



12. Cold Hard Cash - or gift cards if you think giving cash is tacky. LOL



13. Digital Camera - don't really need one, so much as I just want to get a new one. I keep seeing people with these cool cameras and I want one.

Message

FYI to the Holiday Decorators…

The Cat in the Hat has nothing to do with Christmas. Perhaps you meant to do something with the Grinch? He stole Christmas, not that cat. I know times are hard and we are not gonna put up that huge Christmas tree and all the lights to save money, but could you at least get that right for me? Just because its low budget, doesn’t mean it has to be tacky. Thanks in advance!

The Post Game Show

I know, I know. I either have way too much time on my hands or I'm completely out of my mind. I'm starting to think, that maybe it's both. You'll see what I mean as you read on.

Announcer #1: Hi, blog fans. I'm Bob Richardson. We are live here in Atlanta, Georgia to present you with the Post Game Show, presented by Blogger. Lots of action to get to, so without further adieu, I'd like to to introduce my co hosts: To my right, Gary Steele, and on my left Ace McAdoo. Lets start with the first quarter. Tell them about Sunday.

Gary: Although the holiday wasn't until Tuesday, the action started on Sunday. Rashan went to work like any other Sunday, but this day was a little different. For starters, his co workers came through with presents. Rashan was a little caught off guard as he had not gotten anything for them, and was unprepared. You can see him thinking to himself, "Damn, now I gotta get them something." Luckily, all it was a Christmas card and a candy cane, so he didn't feel too bad. It was a slow day at work, nothing too much to do, so Rashan took it easy and read blogs and talked all day.

Ace: Thanks for the recap, although I think you did miss one thing. You forgot about the Sangria.

Gary: Thanks for pointing out my error! (under breath - *asshole*) You are right, one of his co workers brought some sangria to work. It took everything in Rashan not to drink it right then and there, but he did what any responsible employee would do, and brought it home. I think we have some visuals for this.

Bob: Thanks, lets move on to the second quarter.

Ace: I'll take this one. Monday was Christmas Eve, as you all know. Rashan had to work early that day. 1:30 - 10:00. The previous night, knowing that he would have wake up about 3 hours earlier than usual, he opted not to drink the tempting sangria, and instead took a sleeping pill to fall asleep quickly. Well, it didn't work, but that was just a minor setback. See, Rashan is an experienced insomniac, so the lack of sleep didn't bother him. He got up and went to work, dressed in a festive tie and full of good cheer. He knew that the day ahead would be easy, and for the most part, it didn't disappoint. Rashan pretty much did no work on Monday.

Gary: I understand that there were some complications that arose though? Tell us about it.

Ace: I was just about to when you interrupted. (under breath *douchebag*) At Rashan's job it's tradition that on holidays management provides food for the employees. Monday was no exception. The problem was that there was not enough food to go around. As Rashan's manager was out of the office yet again, nobody told his team that it was time to eat. When Rashan finally spoke up, all the food was gone. Rashan, who is notorious for not eating at work, didn't care, but some of his teammates were pretty upset by this percieved slight. What ensued next was a virtual bitch fest, a cavalcade of hurt feelings, and many speeches citing that "it was the principle" of being forgotten. Rashan did his best to keep the peace, before finally realizing he was fighting a losing battle and retreating into instant messages and friendly flirtatious conversation. He was elated when 10 PM rolled by and wasted no time getting the F outta there. I believe we have some footage of Rashan in his snow man tie...

Bob: You can't say that on TV! Let's keep this PG-13. (fake laughter) Let's move on to the third quarter.

Gary: I'll try to keep this clean, unlike my esteemed colleague. Christmas Eve night! Rashan left work and instead of heading immediately home, he went to see some of his friends. They were having a get together for family at their house. One thing that you can count on with Rashan is his never arriving empty handed. He called and asked what they were drinking on, and true to form, took the time to stop off at a local liquor store to pick up another bottle. When he arrived, there were a slew of unfamiliar faces, but he remained undaunted. Rashan did NOT give in to the anti social tendencies that sometimes afflict him. Rashan, ate fish and macaroni and cheese, and sipped on Hennessy as he listened to conversations about people he didn't know and subjects he had no input on. After most of the family left, he played some Madden 08, winning a close game playing with Eagles, and getting blown out playing with the Saints. Although he wanted to have a tiebreaker, he realized it was getting late and he had a long drive ahead of him, so he called it a night. Let's show the footage.

Bob: Sorry, folks. Look like we are having technical difficulties and are unable to bring you visuals of the third quarter. We'll try to get that problem corrected as soon as possible. The fourth quarter is up next. Let's have a recap.

Ace: Folks, before I start, let me just apologize for my earlier language. I promise you that I meant no harm. Tuesday was Christmas. The plan was to hang out with the family, eat dinner out at his brothers house, and basically chill. I have to tell you that Rashan executed this game plan to perfection. Aside from the annoying generic text messages that woke him up too early, and the delayed start time of Christmas dinner, the fourth quarter went off without a hitch. Rashan chilled all day just like he wanted to. He hung out with the family and saw them enjoy their gifts. Although a little late, he also drove out to Newnan to have dinner with his brother and his wife.

Bob: I understand something a little funny happened on Tuesday. Tell us all about it.

Ace: This is a funny story. Do you remember the Chia Shrek that Rashan got in his Secret Santa game last week. Well, he gave it to his niece after discussing his displeasure with the "gift." Well, Rashan's family thought it would be funny if they re wrapped the Chia pet and presented it to him as a new present. The look on Rashan's face was classic as he tore through the wrapping paper, only to discover that his re-gifted gift had been re-gifted once again.

Bob: Wow, it seems like Rashan's whole family are jerks!

Announcer #3 - It certainly seems that way. It is comforting to know that Rashan is not alone in his jerkiness. Let's show a couple of images from the Christmas celebration. As you can see, Rashan was right at home with his new nephew, Justin. I beleive that he fell asleep in his uncle's arms. Everybody say "awwww"

Bob: There you have it. Altogether a successful Christmas holiday for Rashan. I know he was hoping that someone would have gotten him a real present, but nevertheless, his holiday spirit remains intact. Maybe next year, he will stop alienating people and receive that elusive present he's been hoping for over the last few years. Thanks for sticking around for the Post Game Show, presented by Blogger. Stay tuned for your local news, except on the West Coast, where the classic Christmas episode of "Good Times" featuring Penny's adoption airs. See you next time!!!

See, I told you I was nuts. Anyone who can tell me where I got the names Ace and Gary from, will be my friend forever and ever. LOL. Have a great day!!!

Merry Christmas

Merry Christmas everybody! I'm supposed to hang with the family today, so I'll probably have stories and/or pictures tomorrow. I hope everyone has a great holiday.

Christmas Hoopla!!

Unlike some people, I'll list the rules first, so you know what to expect. I'm just saying, tricking people into reading a tag is so not right. LOL

The rules:

1. List 12 random things about yourself that have to do with Christmas!
2. Please refer to it as a ‘hoopla’ and not the dreaded ‘m’-word
3. You have to specifically tag people when you’re done. None of this “if you’re reading this, consider yourself tagged” stuff because then nobody ends up actually doing it.
4. Get to work! The Christmas season will be over before we know it.

1. In high school chorus, we sang the same Christmas songs every year. And then the following years when my brother was in Chorus, they sang the same songs too. I love Mrs. Reagan, my chorus teacher, but she really could have skipped "The Most Wonderful Time of the Year" once in a while. And while we are on the subject of Christmas songs, you know that song "We Wish You A Merry Christmas?" In the second verse, when they start singing about "Bring us some figgy pudding and bring us some now?" We, as young adolescent boys, made a very lewd and profane version of that. I know, so not Christmasy, but it was funny at the time.

2. One year in Savannah, it actually got cold for Christmas and ice covered all the roads. I had rented a Nintendo game from Blockbuster and it was due on Christmas Eve. (The game was extremely wack...I think it was called Black Bass and was all about fishing. The only thing more boring than fishing, is playing a Nintendo game about fishing.) Anyway, my mom had to bring back to the video store before they closed, and as we were driving, the car spun around on the ice and we went around in circles. Luckily, nobody else was on the roads. It was actually pretty fun to me. It felt like a mini roller coaster.

3. When I was 19, I was working at a hospital in the kitchen. All of the older ladies loved me, because of my natural charm (LOL). Actually this was before my whole anti social, don't talk to me, sarcastic side was fully developed. Well, that year one of the cafeteria ladies bought me a bottle of Hennessy. I didn't really drink then, but we tried to make some spiked eggnog out using the Hennessy. It was the nastiest drink I have ever had in my life.

4. One Christmas (1997), me and my homeys, Kareem and Tori went to the movies to see Jackie Brown. That was a fateful day. We ran into this girl named Charis, and her girlfriend Navika, and Navika's best friend Terri. This was the first time I had met them. In the upcoming year, I would become roommates with Charis, and Terri would become my bestest female (mostly) platonic friend. I lost touch with Charis after she had moved her new girlfriend (and her son) into our apartment and I dipped. And Terri and I lost contact when I moved from Savannah, and her phone kept getting disconnected. I wonder how they are doing now.

5. When I lived in New York, nothing was better to me than snow on Christmas. Granted I was a kid and didn't have to drive in it, but riding a sled down a hill on Christmas was my favorite thing. One year, I don't know if it was Christmas or not, I rode my sled down a hill and lost control and went under a steel fence. I scratched my face all up, but still didn't want to go inside.

6. For some reason, we used to always watch Ben-Hur around Christmas. I don't know if that is really a Christmas movie or not, but that was one of our traditions when I was like 12.

7. When I have kids, I want them to believe in Santa Claus for a while. So many Black people I meet don't do the Santa thing. They don't want an old White man to get credit for what they do for their kids. I say who cares. Its all a part of the magic of Christmas. There are so many other issues that are far more important than that. Let your kids just be kids and worry about racism and economics later.

8. My siblings and I don't exchange gifts on Christmas. Well, for the most part we don't. A while ago, we decided that instead of buying a gift for each other, we would just keep the money that we would spend and use it for whatever we needed or desired. That way, there's no pressure to figure out what they would like or anything like that. I know its strange but our agreement works out for us. This year although I didn't get my sister a gift, I did pay for most of the gift from her kids. And my brother, well he just had a baby, so he gets no gifts anymore. It's all about Lil Justin.

9. I found about Santa Claus when I was 7. I saw my father putting together my Christmas gifts. I think it was a hot wheel track. I didn't say anything because I still wanted to get gifts from both Santa and from my parents. LOL, I used to be all about the presents.

10. One Christmas, when I living with my ex, we got mad early and went to some friends house to open presents and have breakfast. The catch was... I really could not stand them. They were more her friends than my friends, but I played along anyway. Anyway, Christmas morning conversation consisted of why Tupac was the best rapper, how many guns they have in the house and getting blunted at 7 AM. I was appalled, so I spend the whole time playing with their daughter who was like 3. I don't think they ever knew that I didn't like them. I think they just thought that I was being friendly to their kid.

11. I have horrible luck when it comes to Secret Santa and stuff like that. This one year at my old job, I got nothing from my Secret Santa. Another year, I got a bag of chocolate candies. I don't eat chocolate. This year, I got a Chia Shrek. I vented about that the other day.

12. In Savannah, the neighbors across the street used to put up a gaudy, excessive, Christmas pageant on their house. They had lights for days, an inflatable Santa on the roof, a nativity scene. One year they had a giant inflatable snow globe on the front yard. I alternated between being impressed and being annoyed by them. The year when they added sound (Santa's Ho Ho Ho) I was annoyed.

Bonus # 1. I'm not good at picking out Christmas gifts. To me the gift card is the best thing ever invented because it takes all the decision making off of me.

Bonus # 2. (Cuz Jameil only had one bonus!) I gotta watch "A Charlie Brown Christmas" and "The Grinch That Stole Christmas" at least once during the Christmas season.

Okay, so I don't do the tag thing. If Jameil will forgive me for breaking the rules, I'm gonna leave that part out. What can I say, I'm a rebel. I don't know if anyone will read this or not, but if you do, have a Merry Christmas. I'll still be here posting away, so if you get bored, stop by and check me out.

Conversation With The Kids

"Uncle, we need your help"

"Okay, Dominique. What's up?"

"We need you to use your credit card for Mommy's gift."

"What are trying to get her?"

We want to get her a trip to Costa Rica."

"??????" (The actual sound was the Scooby Doo confused sound)



Let me explain. Dominique is 10 and her brother Tarik is 11. My sister sometimes talks about trips she wants to take. Costa Rica is one of them. Somehow, these beautiful and talented and intelligent kids got it into their head that they would provide the means for her to take this vacation. I just couldn't crush their dreams so I had to operate delicately and trick them out of this sweet, yet insane idea.



"Have you researched how much that would cost?"

"We found a ticket for $684 (or something like that)"

"Do you have $684?"

"No"

"Then how exactly do you propose to pay for this trip? I'm sure your mommy doesn't want you to spend all your money on her."

"We are gonna email Grandma and Uncle J and you to see if they can help."



Sigh... so industrious. Let me try this from another angle.



"Who is gonna watch you guys while she is gone?"

"You can watch us."

"You know that I would love to do that, but what about school?

"We can take our Spring Break whenever we want, since we are home schooled."

"Yeah, but I have to work, too. I can't have you guys by yourselves all night while I'm at work."

"We can stay with Uncle J or stay with Daddy that week."

"Yeah, maybe."



I see that tactic isn't working either. I'm about out of ideas... Wait here's one.



"You know that if your mom goes out to Costa Rica, she'll have to get a passport. Then it won't be a surprise."



Silence... I think that worked.



Wow, these kids are special... and I mean that in as good a way as possible. I made a suggestion that was more in line with their economic status. They are gonna send my sister to a spa. I told them whatever amount they put in I would match it. I love them doggone kids. Let's just hope they don't have hundreds of dollars in their piggy banks. I told my sister about what they were trying to do, but I didn't tell her what the final gift was. Of course she would rather just have them make her something, but I couldn't convince them to take that route. I'm not sure if she still reads my blog. If so, sorry for ruining your surprise. LOL

Christmas MeMe

My competition actually helped me today. I couldn't think of a thing to write about and almost gave up my daily posting, but then I remembered that Jameil did a Christmas Meme the other day. So I promptly stole it and there you have Saturday's post. You know I don't tag anyone, but feel free to take this if you like.



1. Wrapping paper or gift bags? I usually do gift bags b/c I don't know how to wrap anything and I'm usually trying to rush out of the mall so I don't want to wait for them to wrap them for me.



2. Tree, real or fake? My family all has allergies so we always had the fake ones.



3. When do you put up the tree? 2001. I think that was the last time I put up a tree. If I still put up a tree, the real answer would be a couple of days after Thanksgiving.



4. When do you take the tree down? New Year's Day.



5. Do you like eggnog? Sometimes. About every other year, I change between liking it and not liking it. Also I think I'm lactose intolerant so I try to hold off on it.



6. Favorite gift received as a child? I can't even call it. I think my Tony Dorsett football jersey in 6th grade was my favorite, but now I can't remember if that was for my birthday or Christmas.



7. Do you have a nativity scene? Nope, but when I was in high school, we replaced the white baby Jesus with a black baby Jesus in the schools nativity scene. It caused a big, racial divide through out the school. Finally we all came together in the spirit of Christmas and realized it didn't matter what color the baby Jesus was.... Wait, that was a very special episode of some TV show I saw as a kid, not real life. LOL



8. Hardest person to buy for? No one. If I can't figure out what to get you then we have two choices: nothing or gift cards.



9. Favorite Christmas tradition? (I think the real question was easiest person to buy for?) - Watching "The Grinch That Stole Christmas" and "A Charlie Brown Christmas" cartoons



10. Worst Christmas gift you ever received? Some off brand cologne and a scarf from my first stalker. It wasn't that the gifts were bad, they just weren't me. It also was tainted by the fact that she was 46 and I was 19 and she was tryna get with me. Oh yeah, I wrote about that before: LINK



11. Mail or email Christmas cards? I'm not a card person. If I can't deliver it to you in person, you probably won't get one. Matter of fact, even if I can deliver it to you in person, you still probably won't get one.



12. Favorite Christmas Movie? I know its cliche but I like "It's A Wonderful Life", mostly because of Jimmy Stewart's performance. On another note, I can't stand "A Christmas Story." it just does nothing for me except annoy me. I don't find it endearing at all.



13. When do you start shopping for Christmas? This year I had some money, so I didn't have to wait til December 1st payday like I usually do. I actually started on November 15.



14. Have you ever recycled a Christmas present? A long time ago when I used to get presents from my relatives, I did. I got this shaving kit from my Aunt and Uncle, but I only use electric clippers. I recycled it into a work gift.



15. Favorite thing to eat at Christmas? RED VELVET CAKE!!!!! - I will forgo eating it all year, just so its special at Christmas. I wish I knew where Miss Cynthia was so she could make me one. It was the best I have ever had.



16. Clear lights or colored on the tree? Colored lights make Christmas. Why do people think they are tacky? As long as they aren't the big bulky and gaudy ones, they are perfect. The clear lights lack imagination.



17. Favorite Christmas song? "Chestnuts roasting on an open fire/Jack frost nipping at your nose" - Why can't I remember the actual title of that song?



18. Travel at Christmas or stay home? I usually wind up travelling but just to Savannah.



19. Can you name all of Santa's reindeer? I can read them from Jameil's answer, but left to my own devices that would be a no.



20. Angel on the tree top or a star? Angel. I remember that we used to have a star, but one year it was replaced with a black angel and its been like that ever since.



21. Open the presents Christmas Eve or morning? Gotta be in the morning otherwise, it's not a Christmas present; It's a day before Christmas present.



22. Most annoying thing about this time of year? Black Friday... not the concept of Black Friday, but hearing about how all the business sales are up or down as opposed to last year. Having to say Happy Holidays instead of Merry Christmas. I don't like when I get P.C.



23. What I love most about Christmas? Being of good cheer and stuff like that. Oh yeah, and Jesus. Shout out to Jesus for being the reason for the season. LOL