My wonderful wife and I gathered up our best beadery and skulls and set forth to our friend Amanda’s house. Here we would begin the journey of drunkenness and fun. For the record if you live where Amanda lives don’t expect to get any visitors cause you can’t even get into the place. Its like Fort Knox. After a false start which almost had me climbing the walls to get in a window and the minor misplacement of my wife (her fault not mine) we entered the grand castle (I say that because all the place needed was a moat to be impenetrable) of Amanda’s apartment and began to drink.

Jello shots were a plenty but made in very tall bathroom cups (as I like to call them). So dexterously using your tongue to remove the jello was something only Gene Simmons could probably handle. With the aid of a toothpick we plundered the shots, sometimes 2 at once.

With a healthy buzz on we ventured to two quick stops before our final destination of the day the Gaspar – T. First our parking spot where we needed to acquire some ocular protection for Scuba Steve, then a quick stop at Fergus’ to replenish our libation and say hello to old friends not forgotten.

I’d like to say that once we got to the Gaspar-T I remember every single detail but lets be realistic I don’t. What transpired next is a blur of drinking, dancing, eating and just plane ole fun. As you can tell by the Photos crazy was in top demand. To my friends and fellow party goers thanks for one more fun time with Jose Gaspar.

There was 2 differences this year as opposed to years past.
1) I didn’t once see the parade. I got my fair share of beads from the party people on the truck.

2) I could’ve done without the spill in the middle of the street off Azeele. I say thank you to my lovely wife for remembering where the car was. Thats why she had the keys in the first place.

GOTTA LOVE it ARRRRGGGHHHHHH.

A good idea for traveling is to invest in one of these traveling luggage scales. I personally have this one My Luggage Scale, but not for any particular reason but that I saw it on one of the 3 Bargain sites I visit almost daily:
www.dailysteals.com/Default.aspx
www.woot.com/
1saleaday.com/

They really come in handy especially because you can bring them with you on the trip for when you buy to much crap and need to know how to re arrange your stuff. On the last 2 trips I’ve taken with my beloved wife we have used this scale and it has been very beneficial. The large luggage with the over weight indicator is still a sore subject with us (it was a pricey buy) but this scale is better because it can tell you exactly what the weight is in case you need yo shuffle things around between you and your traveling party. With the price of airlines travel including all the extra fee’s they like to throw at you its a nice ting to have.

I don’t endorse any of the products above except to say that the scale I bought was in expensive (probably refurb) and I got more than my moneys worth.

My dad gave me a tape, and on it was my mom talking to me as a baby. You could hear me uttering nonsense as my mom tried to get me to say Momma. Its funny listening to your self 38/39 years ago rambling incoherently (hell that happens still sometimes when I’m drunk, I’ve come so far.)

I’ve been a brother, a son, a husband, a sailor/soldier, a best man, a groomsman, a teacher, a student, a scholar, a friend. I’ve managed people and been managed. I’ve helped people and maybe I’ve have hurt some. Truth is in the last 39 years I’ve done a lot and sometimes in the “immediate mind” you forget and sometimes believe you’ve done nothing in your years.

I’ll admit that the number has as of late bothered me. It my last year in my 30′s and really its bugged me the last couple of months, but I’m steadily trying to remind myself it still just a number. I’m no more older in spirit than I was 5 years ago.

I’ve tried my best not to regret my choices in life and for the most part I’ve been good at it. I think the only thing I’ve really ever regretted was not going 100% in certain things in my life. But then I stop and think maybe I wasn’t suppose to go 100%. Maybe the choice I made was they way it was suppose to go to get me here to where I am today. I mean if I had gone 100% into my choice to become and officer in the Navy I might have made it. So you think whats so bad about that. I might still be in and maybe I might have been some where on 9-11where I would have lost my life. Yes I know all of that is what if and way beyond what I could be foreseen but it is in the realm of possibility. The thing is, I’m happy where I am right now. With the woman I love and in the life I have made for myself. To regret choices or in action sometimes means I would regret the very thing that got me here.

I know there are moments we’ll all look back at in our lives and think if I just did this or that it would be different. But look at where you are it might just be where you need to be right now.

Almost 4 decades, it makes me smile. I’ve traveled so many places and seen so many things and I can’t wait for whats ahead. I have the love of my life by my side, I love to see her every morning I wake up and every evening I come back home (even if we’re fighting).

We all sometimes get lost in the minutia of our day to day and we let the bad times seem bigger, longer and more meaningful than the good times. I want to look at every good moment and not let every bad one break me down. I want to try new things. This year it was re-modeling a bathroom (not doing that again). Next year a garden? New flower beds? How about an Art Show?

The year is just beginning so we’ll see.

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So enough of my rambling. Here’s to my 39th Birthday, here’s to a new year and to all my friends that have been there for me whether asked or not, thank you. See ya in the new year.

And Babe if I’ve misspelled shite hey it’s me aren’t we use to it yet

read coverage of it here:http://bit.ly/vUP2FY

So the other day when I got home I reached into the mail box and saw what I assumed was junk mail. I make it a point (unless I can tell its certainly IS junk mail ) to open every piece of mail just to make sure I don’t miss some important correspondence. So as I looked over the piece of mail initially I thought it was another bill from the Crosstown (toll road that now does bill by plate). It had 2 pictures of my car and as I read more I realized it was a red light camera bill for a whopping $158.00. UGHx10!

Here I am entering the house pissed to no extent. This has to be a mistake I don’t run red lights. I’ve been trying to drive even better than I usually do since I got a ticket earlier this year and opted to take driving school via the interwebs. So now I have to really read this piece of shite paper cause I’m pretty peeved.

When I drive and I come to a red light to make a turn, I usually stop and then proceed because well that’s the law. I see countless people just doing the “Oh I can turn on red so I’m gonna just swing through since no one is coming” procedure. I actually almost was hit by a car who assumed he could go, not taking in consideration that there was a Mack truck blocking his view of the intersection. Why is it the one time in a trillion you make a bad decision to swing through like everyone else you (the person who normally does it right) gets slammed over the twenty million who do it wrong.

So needless to say I got a ticket for failing to stop before turning on the red. Part of me feels like saying you know what it isn’t like I ran straight across the intersection with my car while I had a red. I did something that up until November 1 would not have garnered me a look from a cop (well maybe not). The other part of me is like shut dumb-ass you turned and didn’t stop learn how to drive and move on. So I will begin the new year paying a wonderful $158 bill to the wonderful city of Tampa, and all can say is “pffftt, JOG ON”

Oh yeah in case you care here are the locations of some cameras.

Red light camera locations
• Eastbound Fowler Avenue at Nebraska Avenue, plus northbound Nebraska at Fowler.
• Westbound Busch Boulevard at Nebraska.
• Westbound Hillsborough Avenue at Nebraska, plus northbound Nebraska at Hillsborough.
• East- and westbound Hillsborough at 22nd Street.
• Eastbound Waters Avenue at Florida Avenue, plus southbound Florida at Waters.
• East- and westbound Waters at Armenia Avenue.
• Northbound Armenia at Hillsborough.
• Southbound Himes at Hillsborough.
• Northbound Lois Avenue at Hillsborough.
• North- and southbound 50th Street at Adamo Drive, plus eastbound Adamo at 50th.
• Eastbound Kennedy Boulevard at Ashley Drive.
• Southbound Dale Mabry Highway at Gandy Boulevard, plus eastbound Gandy at Dale Mabry.
• Southbound Manhattan Avenue at Gandy.
• East- and westbound Gandy at West Shore Boulevard, plus northbound West Shore at Gandy.

So I started this post the week after we saw Janet and didn’t get that far, so here is me continuing.

I don’t feel any female singer has given me so many songs to love, almost every album brings up memories of a different time in my life.

I remember growing up and just about to finish 8th grade when Janet released CONTROL. The thing with Janet at the time is I remembered her more from her time on “Good Times” and “Different Strokes” before she blasted out her 3rd studio album. But songs like Nasty and What have you done for me lately? remind me of times spent with my big sister and her new CD player.

By the time I was about to graduate High School Janet released Rhythm Nation 1814 ( side note the 1814 comes from the fact that the R (in Rhythm) is the 18th letter of the alphabet and N (in Nation) is the 14th, also there is something to do with a correlation with the National Anthem writing year http://bit.ly/tcPzbG). For our senior year we had the privilege of doing a Christmas show for the school. One of the numbers we did (and by we I don’t me mean me, I was the AV geek running lights) was RN1814′s Rhythm Nation. Some of the girls re-did Janet’s dance number it was hot. Two of my favorite RN1814 songs:

Then came Janet for me it was the album that had more songs that I loved than any other. By the time she released this her fifth album you could see she was (and will be a) celebrated hit. Around this time I was in the beginning of my Naval career and her songs made me miss home as much as they made me love my new life. Hell and who could forget that awesome cover. Below is one of my favorite songs of the album

Finally, I have to admit after Janet  I didn’t buy anymore Janet albums but I loved everything the radio played and I love as her career grew stronger and stronger. Then her and her brother did one of my all time favorite songs Scream. It will always be one of my greatest Micheal and Janet songs.

All that to say that the Number Ones concert was one of the best concerts I have ever seen and I’m glad I got to see it with my lovely wife and my work wife. And I GOT A SHIRT YAY!

The day started with breakfast at Xtabi. You’ve heard me say it before and I’ll say it again the best french toast ever. We’ve been having breakfast at Xtabi together since we’ve come down here together. Vincent drove up in his boat to wave hi and I tried to do a U-stream web cast from our table. After that we headed back to Catcha where we got suited up for a 20 km trip to HMB on the scoots.

Half Moon Beach Park is a scenic 15 – 20 minute drive along to and from Negril. The beach is on the historic Abington Plantation and is breathtaking. Along the water their are several private islands to explore.

We revved up the scooters put on our action wear (our goofy but necessary helmets) and headed down One Love Drive. Staying at Catcha Falling Star we are now the furthest up the cliffs we’ve ever stayed. Because of this we get to past old haunts like Tensing Pen (our Honeymoon spot), Negril Escape (our wedding spot), Rock House and Xtabi (our first lodging together in JA). The cliff whips and turns down the road along these beautiful breathtaking human habitats. The sharp curve on the road right around 3 Dives (given its name as Rob puts because you can dive from 3 places on the cliff and not die, then we both added well not readily die) and Xtabi always makes me slow but once we past Xtabi I consider this the quick rip. Reason why is some quick turns and strait shot and we are at the circle which most know denotes the end of the cliffs.

Once on Norman Manley Blvd we past the local craft market and its a strait shot down the beach. The scooters can’t get to revved up because the most traffic is here. Whether its human or vehicle traffic it slows us up. We break free of the hubbub of the people and cars and careen past the stretch of properties most people know as the AI beaches, AI standing for All Inclusive.

On a side note I have nothing against AI’s but on the cliffs or on the beaches of Negril I’d rather stay at a non AI property.

Its a mad dash race scooter a scooter (like mano a mano which is a spanish term in bullfighting originally meaning hand to hand not man to man), well actually its not because we take driving scooter in JA very seriously. We past both a sign letting you know you are leaving Negril and soon after the Negril.com sign saying Thank you for , what I can only assume is visiting because its having a war with some flora that is covering the right side of the sign.

Todays quest is to see Rhodes Hall Plantation, HMB and get some food from Biggas. I’ll key you in that 2 out 3 ain’t bad. The ride was mostly uneventful so we pushed on to RHP and HMB, but we passed up Rhodes Hall Plantation and settle into Half Moon Beach. Quaint and Quiet is hardly the proper explanation for the gorgeous spot. We snaked down the dirt road towards the beach, hopped of the scooters and checked in at the bar for a Ting and a Red Stripe. The wonderful woman behind the bar gave us the lay of the land and off to the beach we went. My beloved Shauna (or her new name Hot Lips, explanation coming) informs that the Wild thing Catamaran brings their patrons here for a day trip and I can see why. Drinks are reasonable scenery is nice and water is quiet and cool.

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Between the snorkeling and laying out (cause you know I need a tan) we found time to hug in the water (something I really love doing) and get all cuddly. Frankly I think my wife just tolerates me when I want to do that .

We spent about 2 hours soaking up the environment, the water, the sun (so much so the mrs is a little burned) and each other. Well Our tummies were in need of some food so Biggas to the rescue.

Assuming we knew where Biggas was we hopped on the scooters and raced off in search of food. Frankly I don’t know how Biggas gets business cause there is exactly 0 signs saying “here is Biggas come get some Chicken”. Fortunately I have a great sherpa who is knowledgable and sexy (but don’t tell my wife). Shauna, got us to Biggas with out a hassle and before we knew it we had jerk chicken to go. The rotund man who I can only assume is Bigga chops up some chicken for us slaps on some sauce and beckons us to taste. I mean it would be a shame if we got home and hated it. A quick taste, 800 J and a reminder why jerk chicken is hot and we’re off (The Burning Lips is why we are now calling Shauna Hot Lips, I call her that for another reason.

Chicken in hand we head back to home base, stopping along the way to catch pictures of billboards, signs and scenery we like. The whole time thinking can’t wait to eat that chicken. Fast forwarding a head since nothing monumental happened on the way back we reached home base and scarfed down some delicious food.

I wish every day was like this. Sun, Fun, Good Food and Hot Beautiful Company. YAY. Look forward to another stellar adventure and maybe even a part demux to this since it was a birthday night.

- RAS -

10-11-2011

So yesterday was our anniversary, and I surprised my wonderful wife with our wedding photographer and a massage. I re-hired Ryan Lue Clarke to take anniversary pictures on Monday and Today. She was surprised and was grateful for the chance to get photos at our the place we were suppose to get photos at.

Let me tell you one thing I love my wife with all my heart and I’m so glad we are here together. She got a me a journal that was customized ( I cant wait to use it), and a gift certificate to me tattoo artist. Another thing I can’t wait to use. She is the best thing that has happened to me next to birth.

Some Photos:

Shauna was looking for a little quick sea food lunch but seeing as we didn’t find it right here on St. Armand circle we went with our first choice of restaurants.

Hemingway’s is a nice little second floor restaurant with inside and outside seating. We walked there so opted to eat inside to cool off. Not the one to rave over sea food I had a wonderful Turkey club. Shauna enjoined a salad and a crab cake. She cracks me up. For father’s day we took my dad to Leroy Selmons and she been comparing every salad since to that one. She liked Hemingway’s but it wasn’t the orgasmic LS salad. After dinner we enjoyed a nicer walk back to the Lido Beach Resort an a little pool time before our friends wedding.

Lets travel months back in time so you can understand why this Night at the Theater was special. My wonderful and beautiful fiancé bought raffle tickets for the American Heart Association Heart Walk raffle they where having at her office. They had several different prizes and raffles. To name a few a chance to see Wonderland, a trip to Caymans and Wicked VIP Tickets. Well wanna take a guess who won the Wicked tickets. You guessed it. So this win entitled us to VIP parking, great seats and a brief tour and history of the Theater itself. AMAZING!

So jump forward to the present and here we are Friday night all dressed and ready to go. We drove out to the Theater and hit valet parking and our tour guide took us into the theater.

THINGS I LEARNED: I didn’t know that they had 5 individual theaters in the Straz Jr Center. I’ve only seen Le Mis, and the Rocky Horror Show at the theater so I’ve only been in 2 of the 5. I also didn’t realize they had a conservatory where they teach dance classes (from hip hop to Flamenco) for the masses. As well as sound, costume, music and stage design classes. These classes aren’t just for the young but the young at heart as well. Passing by one of the classes we saw Flamenco being taught to and all age class ( well all age from young adult to older adult). We also learned that they have this awesome system that monitors the level of crowd noise and slowly raises the background music (usually a montage of current shows playing or coming) so that the crowd can still discern it but it isn’t overwhelming. It also has a limiter so that it never goes over a certain decibel and intern doesn’t blow the system. Now that was cool.

Okay so on to the show.
Having seen Cats, Le Mis and the Lion King I have now placed Wicked at the top of my short but prestigious list. My hats off to all the performers. Their range and ability was amazing. The Young lady playing the Wicked Witch of the West (Elphaba) was just wonderful. My fiancé and I both agree that in the beginning you feel like the young lady playing the Good Witch (Glinda) had the better voice and range but then somewhere in the middle of the performance you realize that the Elphabat has just as amazing a voice and range as her counter part. One wonders if thats how its written. As the story embarks the Elphaba, is a less sure woman compared to Glinda’s out going and very self centered personality. If that is how it’s written, then Elphaba played her part well. As she comes into her own, her voice gets stronger and more amazing.

A pleasant surprise for any Wicked tampa performance goer is the appearance of the all mighty wizard of Oz. Why you ask? Because its played by none other than Richard Kline best know for playing Larry Dallas; Jack Tripper’s friend in 3′s Company.

With my well dressed and beautiful fiancé by my side we sat for a long (but well worth it) first half and when intermission happened we couldn’t wait to return and we didn’t stop talking about how amazing it was so far.

Again for those who haven’t seen Wicked what are you waiting for. Hats off to all the performers that night they took a great story gave it a twist and a turn and made it an awesome performance.

On a side note a very funny thing happened in this performance which I doubt was planned and I doubt will every happen again. Elphaba and Glinda are in the bed room set discussing something and at some point Glinda throws her magic wand away. Now in any other performance I’m sure its suppose to fly off stage and that is that. Well she does it so perfectly it hits a metal post that is part of the set and just before the edge of the stage. The wand hits the post and ricochets back into the back of Glinda’s head. Without a miss step both Elphaba and Glinda make light of the situation but just for a small fraction of time Elphaba can’t hold in the laugh of what just happened. It was a great rare moment and just added to the scene.

What a WICKED Time at Wicked!

Thank you my love for a wonderful night out