Class is over! Duke-Virginia

Well, it's been about a week since I have logged in to this thing at all. Class pretty much wiped me out everyday, for a couple of reasons. The state of North Carolina requires you to take forty hours of instruction before even attempting the state licensing exam for Life, Health, and Annuities. First of all, I've been bartending for 5 years, which means getting home aroung 6 AM, not getting up at 6. That shit is gonna take some major getting used to! Then, classes ran from 8 until 5:30 every day, which wears your brain out by about Thursday. The instructor was great though; really kept it as interesting as possible. I am about to sign up for an exam, probably for Tuesday.

Then, next Thrusday and Friday, I have to somehow get to Winston-Salem for the Medicare Supplement and Long-Term Care classes. More on that later.

Duke and Virginia start playing in two minutes, so I'll write more later.

State Licensing Class; Duke's 1st loss

Tomorrow I start the beginning of two weeks in class to get the licenses required for working at Bankers. It runs 8AM-5:30 all this week, with the exam on Tuesday. Then, I have two days training in Winston-Salem, followed by another exam the next day. I start training on February 6. Hell, yeah.

Duke posted its first loss of the season yesterday against Georgetown. They are 17-1. Somebody had to get them; I suppose it is good it was out of conference. Eric from the Duck and Dumpling told me a cool stat tonight: every year that Duke has posted their first loss against an unranked opponent, they have won the national title. Go Duke!

LET's....GO....DUKE....LETSGODUKE!!!

Ah, NC State; such high hopes, such low results. Losers. :)

That's all I have to say right now; I am dropping links to some earlier articles....

Purpose of the Blog

Thoughts On the Art of Bartending

Technorati : Blue Devils, Duke, NCSU, Wolfpack
43 Things : Blue Devils, Duke, NCSU, Wolfpack

Bankers Life, NCSU @ Duke

The interview at Bankers Life went great yesterday; they basically offered me the job. I go in on Friday to try and set up a schedule for getting licensed in North Carolina. Woo-hoo!

NC State comes to Duke tonight at 7PM. They have probably the best chance of beating the Blue Devils of anybody in the ACC this season. Truth be told, I am a little nervous (especially because of my stupid $175 bet that Duke would remain undefeated in the ACC this year).

But I'll never tell a State fan that! :)

Technorati : Blue Devils, Duke, NCSU, Wolfpack

Bankers Life Interview #2; Working Out

I just got back from running and lifting a few weights at the gym. I am consistently running 40 minutes on the elliptical machine; which burns around 675 Calories, according to the machine. I try to keep my heart rate between 157 and 170. Last night, Maggie and I did yoga again, and I am starting to see why people get so addicted to it. When I start the class I am so tight and inflexible, but by the end I just feel like I could melt into the floor. What a great stress-reliever!

I have my second interview at Bankers Life at 3PM today. I spent the morning researching the company and coming up with interview questions. I'll post how it went in a bit.

What a Great Saturday

Duke hung on and beat Clemson, Miami beat UNC at the Dean Dome, and there has been football on all day. What more could you ask for?

I just downloaded the Beatles Anthology, the new Strokes CD, the Steely Dan box set, Madonna's new album, and the Billboard Top 100 from 1963- my iPod is shaping up!

Maggie and I are going to the Brewery tonight to see Ali's boyfriend Sam's band, Evenfall, play.

Ali and her boyfriend Sam:

Technorati : Evenfall

Lazy Friday; LAX

It is Friday the 13th. I woke up late as hell today, around 1 PM or so. My sister Allsion bought a ticket with some friends out to LA for the weekend, and she wanted me to come transfer my music from my laptop to her's. I went to her house and put a few thousand songs on her computer so she could load up her iPod for the flight.

I got back and did as little as possible the rest of the day. :) Maggie went to work at eight tonight; she gets to bartend. Pete just stopped by to pick up Katy's dog, Max, and said that it was pretty slow, so I don't know how much Maggie will make.

Tomorrow is an excellent sports day: Duke-Clemson, UNC-Miami, NCSU-Georgia Tech, and NFL playoffs.

Right now, I am watching an Oprah on child molesters. Oh, how life changes when you stop working behind a bar!

Some pictures of my sister

Banker's Life, Duke-Maryland

I had an interview (well, a group interview) with Banker's Life & Casualty yesterday. I went in thinking that I would have no interest in it whatsoever; I mainly wanted to get some interview practice in. After sitting through the session, which was basically informational, I have to admit I am considering it. While I never wanted to sell insurance, I have always known that sales would be a career I would excel at, and the earning potential with a company like that is excellent. Top agents make around $325K a year, which would suit me just fine. It would definitely be much hard work the first year or so, but if within two to three years I could be making at least $100K, it would be well worth it.

I may be getting ahead of myself- I still have to be called back for the second and thrid interviews, and then I would need to come up with the $475 to get licensed in North Carolina, but, still, it is something to consider.

Duke crushed Maryland last night, 76-52. Shelden Williams recorded a triple-double with points, blocks, and rebounds. Game recap here.

Technorati : Blue Devils, Duke

Rachael Ray is my 30-minute Hero(inne)!

I have successfully gotten Maggie addicted to some Rachael Ray and her 30-Minute Meals. We DVR all the episodes, and have started cooking quite a few of the dishes. Part of the reason I really like some Ray is that she actually cooks like people do at home. Most of the other shows on TV feature these 4 star chefs cooking dishes no mortal cook could ever replicate. Rachael Ray uses stuff we all buy, and cooks food we all not only like, but like to cook.

Tonight we are going to make her Turkey Cacciatore Burgers on Portobello Buns. It is a pretty easy recipe, so hopefully we won't repeat the whole Chicken Croquette experience.

Technorati : 30-minute meals, Rachael Ray
Del.icio.us : 30-minute meals, Rachael Ray
Ice Rocket : 30-minute meals, Rachael Ray
Buzznet : 30-minute meals, Rachael Ray
43 Things : 30-minute meals, Rachael Ray

Biting the Bullet

Well, Amanda from Banker's Life just left a message asking me to interview with them tomorrow. Though I do not want to sell insurance, it is a job. Besides that, even if I decide not to take the job, it is a great opportunity to brush up on my interview skills while I am hunting for PR work.

Oh, and how the fuck did Villanova stay at number three on both polls when they got beat by WVU? That makes no sense.

Job Offers, Job Search

I spent today sending my resume out to my friend Kris Larsen with the Downtown Raleigh Alliance. He works directly with several PR firms, and said I could use him as a sounding board for any questions I have. After looking at their website, I may end up trying to apply with them.

Kris was my boss at Tir Na nOg for a while, waaaay before Pete took over. Pete, by the way, graduated from WVU and has had the best sports week ever, what with the Mountaineers beating Georgia in the Sugar Bowl, and then last night, beating undefeated, 3rd-ranked Villanova! Unbelieveable!

My Duke Blue Devils waxed the floor with Wake Forest last night to stay number one, by the way.

Back to the job hunt- I am developing some good leads on long term work, but I still have the immediate problem of paying bills right now. A rep from Banker's Life called and wanted to set up an interview, and I might do it. I have no desire to sell insurance, but if there is a bridge, I may take it for the time being. Also, the convenience store by my house needs a manager. That would pay the bills, not to mention keep me motivated to find new work, so it is definitely an option.

Technorati : Alliance, Blue Devils, Downtown Raleigh, Duke, Tir Na nOg, UGA, WVU

Sharon to come out of coma

Ariel Sharon will be brought out of his induced coma tomorrow. For his own sake, as well as the sake of everyone in that region, I pray he recovers well. More thoughts and comments here.

Back In The Gym

Maggie and I just got back from the gym. It was the first time I went since November- I am ridiculously out of shape. We got there and I started with 35 minutes on the elliptical machine, keeping my heart rate at 140 or so. Then I got on the bike for another 35 minutes, doing the whole "hill" thing. I figure I need to focus on cardio stuff until I lose the weight I want to drop, then worry about lifting weights and gaining back some muscle mass (which is pretty nonexistant at this point). Maggie and I go to Capital Fitness here in Raleigh.

Technorati : Capital Fitness

Jeremy and Loren's New Baby

Maggie and I just got back from Jeremy & Loren Caldwells'. They have a six month old girl named Madeline who is just absolutely adorable. We all hung out, had some wine, and watched tv; just hanging out and talking.

Maggie and I stopped and got ice cream on the way home. We realized that we only do that when we hang out with Jeremy and Loren. Random, huh?

Sharon has a stroke, USC chokes

Well, it looks like things in the Middle East/West Bank are about to get another shake up. As pretty much everybody has heard by now, Prime Minister Ariel Sharon had a massive stroke last night. Palestinians, I would think, would be upset over this (though not as much as Israelis). Sharon had just started admitting that Palestine had right to land in the Gaza Strip, something no other Israeli PM had done before. You can find a timeline of the major events in Sharon's life here.

USC, USC, USC... what the hell are you doing? Reggie Bush trying to show off, facemask penalties when the defense had successfully stopped Texas' last drive, and more general fuck-ups... get it together!

Congrats, Texas Longhorns on winning the Rose Bowl.

Technorati : Ariel Sharon, Israel, Palestine, Texas, USC

Moving Out, 6 months behind, Job hunt

I spent today with my sister, moving the rest of my stuff out of my old house. I actually moved out at the beginning of July, but due to lack of storage space here, I left several things at Josh's. Well, he got evicted this month, so I have until Friday to not only get all my things, but to find space for them here. Allison (my sister) and I got my extra love seat, shelves, books, etc. today, and tomorrow we have to go back and get everything else.

On the job front, Frank tells me he is getting contact information together for me. That is wonderful, but still leaves the task of finding work for the period where I am looking for work, if that makes sense. I know I don't want to work in a bar, so I am looking for something that will pay the bills, but still keep me motivated to find a good job. I am probably going to work for UPS, since it is part-time, full of benefits, and will definitely not keep me from wanting to look for PR work. My buddy Jeremy said he could ask his boss if they need some help. He is a welder/metal-worker of some kind, so the work would be physical, but only four days a week and fairly well-paying.

The only thing I am really sure about is that I need to start doing something.

Oh, by the way- go WVU! Unbelievable game last night...

Messed Up Recipes, Sugar Bowls

Today has been a great day. Maggie and I spent the afternoon reading, cooking, and hanging out with each other. She made some banana bread from a new recipe she found. It was pretty good, but her own recipe is much better.

I tried a new recipe myself, from Betty Groff's Pennsylvania Dutch Cookbook. They were supposed to be Chicken Croquettes, but I didn't make the white sauce thick enough, so we ended up cooking some brown rice and throwing together this casserole-type thing to salvage it. I shorted the flour or something. Oh, well- maybe next time.

Maggie is working tonight, so I am going to go to the Village Draft House, where our roommate Caroline works, and have some beers. The Sugar Bowl is on tonight. Our fourth roommate Katy took her boyfriend Pete down to Atlanta for the game. Pete runs Tir Na nOg Irish Pub here in Raleigh, but he went to West Virginia, so he was thrilled about the surprise.

Technorati : Betty Groff, Hershey, Lancaster, Pennslvania, Pennsylvania Dutch, Village Draft House

Life at UNCW

I went to school at theUniversity of North Carolina at Wilmington . I've always wanted to write down a kind of mini-memoir about my time there, and what better place to do it?

Wilmington, North Carolina is the greatest town on earth in many ways; it is the worst place in probably just as many. It is the town James Frey went to college in, recounted in his amazing memoir A Million Little Pieces. Having lived there, it is easy to see how the Wilmington environment could have sped his own life's downward spiral along. The ironic thing about life as a student at UNCW is that most people I knew were excellent students, despite severe drug and alcohol habits. I say habits instead of addictions because most have been able to overcome them since leaving town, without the help of rehab.

Wilmington is a picturesque, sleepy little beach town with minimal tourists and beautiful beaches. It is also a seedy, drug-infested place, as I suppose most towns in America are. More cocaine and ecstasy is brought to port in Wilmington than either NY or Miami, simply because the security is so lax. Because of that, there is a thriving network of organized drug rings, most existing to traffic the supplies around the country, but a few there specifically to service Wilmington.

It would not take all the fingers on one hand for me to count how many people I knew who did not smoke, pop prescription pills at the bar, or eat handfuls of x. I knew so many girls who refused to smoke pot because they "didn't do drugs," but would have no issue with putting a roll on their tongue. Why is that? What is it about a pill that seems so safe?

I don't want it to sound like school life was all hard drugs, even though that was a big part of it. In coming, scattered posts, I am going to tell as many stories as I can remember of my time there, both good and bad. This is more for me, I guess, that anybody out there who may stumble upon it. I made many mistakes in that period of my life; I hope writing them down, along with what I did right, will help me learn from my past.

We'll see.

Technorati : James Frey, UNCW, Wilmington, college, drug use

Good Morning!

Good morning, 2006 everybody! I can't believe I am actually awake and moving this early after last night. I ended up working the door at a local bar to help them out last minute (after a few rounds, it was pretty easy to talk me into it). I have never had so many shots and glasses of champagne brought to me by total strangers. It was complete madness. At one point, the other door guy and I had to tell people to cut us off for an hour or so! We had a great time; being served drinks on New Year's Eve is much more fun that serving them, for sure. Anyway, more later; Happy 2006!

Technorati : 2006, N & O, New Year's Eve, News & Observer, Raleigh