I think I am 38 today.  Yes, I have officially come to the point where I don’t remember what my age is.  Does it matter?  I am getting old.

I tried to get off of work today with no luck.  The cellular world will come to a crumbling disaster if I am not here today.  Everyone needs something done today since we lose a day next week with the holiday.

I did not even remember there was a holiday.  I have been so busy, I forget what day it is.  Last week I was working in Texas.  I spent 7 days driving around and installing POS systems and working like 20 something hours and getting a few hours sleep.  I was so confused, I was thinking it was a Saturday and it turned out to be Monday.  Somehow I thought being a Director, would preclude me from having to do all of this work and I can delegate.  I have determined if you need something done right, you need to do it yourself.

Well I think I will treat myself to a late night trip to the river or the ocean tonight.  Not sure yet.  I really feel the need to decompress.  I have so much to work out in the head, but I have been so busy with 50 things at once that the clarity and the peacefulness is not there.

Here’s to a another Birthday coming to pass…..

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I did not sleep good last night.  My fault really.  I did not use the CPAP for fear of a repeat of the nasty allergic reaction I had last week that lasted 3 days.  I also have so much on the brain about work.

Some things that are crossing my mind.

- The pressing need to sit at the ocean for several hours and listen to the waves crash in

- Trust has been hard to earn and give out.

- I am committed to helping Connor’s music career as best I can

- I need to write more.

- Get a 1/2 hour of time to myself to seriously devote to my wellness

- Need to have a plan…  I am living for each day.  Mentally that is good, but financially this is not good.

- Embrace the little things in life that happen and cherish the moments that are fleeting, but satisfying nonetheless.

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Look, I am a middle aged frustrated man that is plugged into the Zombie society that goes to work everyday and makes someone else rich.  I come home and I try to read some positive news and not get stuck in the doom and gloom of the world spinning out of control.

One thing that I have been seeing lately is some weird shit.  I read someplace that scientists have found yet another “possible” planet in a neighboring galaxy.  Yet I just read last night that some citizen “might” have found a long lost monster in the Florida keys and amazing enough it was yet another “fuzzy” picture.  So I try to comprehend.  We can see planets 50,000 light years a way, yet we can’t find some fucking technology that can solve BigFoot, the loch ness, and all the other “mascots” of the world and solve this shit???  Move on!!

How did we go all wrong in the 70′s?  We hit the moon in 10 years.  Christ, we could barely get a dog and monkey to space in the 50′s to sending a team of humans to the moon with the processing power of your cheapest solarpowered calculator.  Why did we stop??

My thoughts are we are bored with ourselves and so damn hungry for money and assets that we can’t see our ass from our head.  Why don’t we strike a deal to populate the moon!  Get working on new technologies that will stimulate the world economies.  Yes, I know there are millions of people starving and in third world countries with no shoes, but if we can start expanding and getting everyone involved in the new mission, we could maybe focus our efforts on something positive instead of war.  I know Afghanistan is not going to have a spaceship and astronauts in the near future, but what the hell?  Can’t we figure out something to focus on instead of war or spending billions on worthless fighting machines?

Same thing with the Mars exploration.  Why are we sending robots to the damn isolated locations on the planet.  Scientists complain about how Americans don’t want to go into the Science arts no longer.  Ok.  NASA is a perfect example…. .Get a real FUCKING marketing team together.  Have you ever watched those boring ass C-SPAN type shows where the head nerd is there all fucking excited about a rock they named Neil for one of the Astronauts because it has a sharp edge like his chin???? Are you fucking kidding me?  We went to Mars with billions of dollars to name a rock after an astronaut?  How about firing your Marketing staff and start with this headline.  US TO LAUNCH MISSION TO CYDONIA.  Ok.  You will go from CSPAN to MTV Cribs overnight.  NASA will be the new cool thing to be.  Come on.  Make exploration exciting.  You can’t tell me there is NO value to fly to that region of the planet and see what is there.  I think that is called EXPLORING!  No instead we are looking at craters.  I think we have a few of those ourselves in AZ.  What are we doing?

Privatize this shit!  Get some high profit margins working here, and Space will be the new frontier for real.

Yes, Rob is sort of Raw this morning, but I just can’t take the craziness.  I mean, I saw in the news pundits fighting over why the main stream media did not jump on Obama for saying “All we weed up”?????  Is this what America cares about?  Let me see.  I am no expert.  The Dems get control of everything up to and including your children.  The Republicans have to filibuster just to be allowed to still sign their names without having a dunce cap on their head, and Obama can’t pass his bill?  Look.  NO ONE is going to make the entire country happy over health care.  Ask Bill Clonton… I mean his Husband, Hillary.  She failed badly in the 90′s and she had no way to win since the Republicans were the majority.  COME ON!!  Pass the health care bill and move on to the next important item.  This is America.  Nothing is written in stone.  Get the ground works moving and then the details that are not perfect can be sorted out by our due process.  Things get changed all the time.  Paralysis by Analysis is just a poor way to run a country, even more since your platform for being President, Mr. Obama was to be the President of Change, not the polls or your close adviser’s opinion.  An effective leader will make the tough decisions.  MAKE IT.

oh yeah, and fund the next big Space mission to change the way we are heading in America.  Help us feel proud to be Americans again!

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Yes, this sums it up.

Tonight after I restart all the POS services tonight around 9pm, I am going to play some Madden 2010.  I enjoyed playing last night.  Sort of took me out of the stress ball I was in.  Tonight before I go to bed, I am going to try some breathing exercises that clear your mind prior to trying to go to sleep.  I hope it works.

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This picture put a smile on my face and after the terrible day I have had today, it is just perfect for me to stare at and think about how quiet and peaceful it is in this image.

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So I have not posted in a long time.  More than a few weeks.  Maybe since El’ Jacko kicked the bucket.

I am working on my 3rd or 4th 36 hour or longer day this month where I lack the ability to turn work emergencies off and go to sleep.  I think I ran into two kids and a woman who claims to be my wife.  Oh yeah, the typical chocolate lab that I think loves me and greets me for the love I can provide, that ever loving feeling of being wanted….. Oh wait… she just wants to go out and shit.  Ok.  Well it is a good feeling nonetheless.

So I have not done much of anything but work and college.  It has been a trying time for me, but since I have been using my CPAP, my life is not in crisis, just annoying and not what I want it to be.  But I am not depressed and even though I have not slept since yesterday morning, I feel ok to move on through the day.  I think the CPAP is giving me energy I have missed in a long time.

If you were not paying attention 6 months ago, I was using the mask and I started to get very bad allergic reactions as if I was going to swell my face and eyes up something nasty.  So I stopped using the mask.  Partially out of the complete exhaustion of using 2 to 3 boxes of klennex a day and seeing my nose turn into a red pepper.  Hot to the touch.  So anyway, all I did was use hot water in the humidifier and I wear the mask very tight.  I can tell it works, because I wake up refreshed in the same position I fall asleep in and I do not have a cotton ball mouth from opening it and having the air dry it out.

So what else have I been doing?  Well, I am cutting lawns again.  Unlike Brett Farve I had the balls to come out of retirement and use a push mower too!  ”Aric’s Toy” is now the money pit from hell.  I have no time to take it back to NJ where we had it “Fixed” and now it seems the engine or transmission is seized.  GREAT.  So it is the push mower for now.  Aric “The Landscaper” is now Aric the “BMXer”.  No time to cut lawns.  He is too busy riding his bike….

So there you have it.  Rob’s interesting life in a nutshell.

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I had a huge RANT on this whole Michael Jackson Debacle, but I found an article from “THE SUN” in England.  This article truly sums up how I feel in a much more professional matter.

http://www.thesun.co.uk/sol/homepage/showbiz/bizarre/2523526/Michael-Jackson-memorial-was-like-a-macabre-circus.html

Just a quick thing.  I have pretty much hid from the news this last week or so.  I just couldn’t take the “OJ” fever I was getting from this mess.  What I mean is the circus the media is making his death out to be.

I secretly wanted the news to be wrong on the day he died.  I thought it was just rumors.  I listened to much of his collection in the last week or so.  I feel sad that for many years, his songs had many hints of how unhappy he was.  Everyone blew it off because “He is rich, I wish I had those problems”.  But I really think that he had problems.  I am not even talking about his bout with the law and allegations.

MJ is money.  That is how I see the mess going on now.  How to protect the money and at the same time, market his name and his life in a way that will be like Elvis and Graceland.  It is a shame that it takes someone dying to celebrate one’s accomplishments.  Like Jimmy  Hendrix, Elvis and others, his music will be full of unreleased albums, and greatest hits.

For me.  I just remember the time he was popular in the 80′s where “MTV’s World Premiere” was more popular than the Prime Time shows were on TV.  I remember the parachute pants, the cool expensive videos, We are the World, the Pepsi commercials, the “Moonwalk Moment” and most of all the wild life style he lead.  It is not just the death of Michael Jackson, it is another sign that my memories are that much more important to remember.  The person, Michael Jackson did not impress me.  But the whole experience if I can explain it in words was something that was amazing during the 80′s.

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So I am back in lovely McAllen, TX for my company.  I have a serious issue with heat.  This place has plenty of heat.  102 degrees with 60% humidity.  Yes, Rob is melting.  My hotel room smells of mold, but with a added bonus of chlorine or some sort of heavy bleach.  So instead of fixing the smell, it is both the cleaning agent and the mold.  Yes.  Makes for a good night in the room.  So now I have been staying in the call center until it closes and then sleeping and getting back up immediately to return to the call center.

I have enjoyed working with some of the call center people, so it is good to have that positive, but I am dying for this weekend.  I am looking forward to decompressing.  I have a busy 60 days ahead of me.  Once it is over, I can relax.  Maybe.

Anyway.  Lots going on.  Nothing interesting enough to blog about.  Yes, that is true even for the Michael Jackson news.  Just doesn’t surprise me at all.

Talk to you soon.

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The news of Perez getting his face modified by one of the Black Eye Peas gang seems to be the state of our entertainment industry lately.  I usually support the new way of obtaining your 15 minutes of fame with the advent of blogs, twittering and such.  But with the limited information I know of Perez Hilton and maybe a few links Amy sends me with funny stuff that Perez says, I really do not buy into his brand of dress down.

Years ago when Howard Stern made fun of a celebrity or David Letterman, it was “entertainment”.  It never was such a ripping that you wanted to kill them for it. (ok, John Debella might be an exception) but most of the time, the banter would go back and forth and it would end up with the both being on the main show and working it out and it was all good TV.  Now, you have people that just tear into celebrities.  Perez enjoys the attention.  I watched one of the reality shows, I think it was Donald’s Celebrity Apprentice.  Perez was on the show.  You can tell that he thinks his shit don’t stink by the way he carries himself. He has that look that cries the kid with the black eye who shouts, “I am calling the police”! Even though he provoked you.

The sad thing about all of this, I can’t blame Perez.  He is doing what any good capitalist will do, take advantage of supply and demand.  He is getting millions of people going to his site, and following his twittering.  ( I can’t believe I am using Twittering in a sentence).  He provides a service and people go there.  America likes this brand of defacing anyone with means like celebrities.  They get elevated to a status of Gods and then they get torn down only to be brought back from hell.  (Enter Robert Downey Jr, Britney Spears etc).

So, I am not saying it should be taken down or Perez should not provide this service that he provides.  I do not follow his site or comments, except when it dominates the news to the point where Iran becomes a blip on the screen.  I just think if you are going to berate someone to the point where violence is sparked, you might want to reevaluate what you do.

Perez did a 12 minute rant on ( I heard it on Preston and Steve this morning coming into work) about how he would never encourage violence like this (getting hit in the face), but in the same sentenace he started calling each of the Black Eye Peas more foul names and dishing out the same shit he has done in the past.  I just don’t see the sense of it.

Lastly, the sad thing about this is, back in the day, I could turn off Howard Stern if I did not like his antics, but now, everyone talks about the same thing.  The morning AM radio show hosts were talking about the fight, the Sports radio was talking about it and then Preston and Steve.   I had to just put the music on for the remainder of the drive.  Sort of annoying.  (yes, I am in the beginning phase of being that crusty old man at Mc’D's complaining about the sad state of the youth of America)

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So a few things that is bugging me lately;

1. What is the deal with convenient stores and the slogan.”Will card up to 40 Years old” when buying cigs or alcohol.

- I get it, you don’t want teens to buy these things, but 40??  I like to think that I am not getting old, but if someone is carding me to ensure I am 18….. I think common sense is gone.  WTF?  Excuse me sir, I realize you have gray hair and you are balding and you look about 40, but can I see your ID to ensure you are not under age???

2.  Perscription Drugs.  Every commercial has a disease or syndrome that is so off the wall.  Restless Legs Syndrome, Erectial Dysfunction (oh wait…. ED), Tear duct deficiency and on and on……

- Restless Leg Syndrome?  come on.. and the funny part is the dialog in the commercial.  “When I first got RLS, I hardly could sleep, but now I have blah blah blah..”  OMG, they shortened it to RLS.  Can you imagine your friend coming up to you… Hey, I have RLS, it sure sucks….

3. Sean Hannity.

- You complained for 8 years that the Democrats are babies and they complain and they are such extremists.. and yet, everytime I put on your show (Yes, I still listen), you are now sounding like the Democrats for the last 8 years.  Give the guy a chance to succeed.  You are doing exactly what Cheney is doing now.  Wanting this country to fail so you can sit and ponder and say you told us so.  WTF… Obama is not a god, he is not a miracle, he is simply someone who is going in a different direction than what we experienced during the rigid Bush days.  I am not changing my party affiliation or wanting to abandon the conservative ideals, but Christ, he breaths a sigh and you are saying it is killing the poor in this country… Rush and you need to back the hell off and let him try to make this country better.  Why do we have to be so hateful and against everything and anyone.

4. NASA.

- If I hear one more news clip about how we have found a planet in another galaxy and it may support life….. How come we can’t explore the bottoms of our oceans, mine our moon, or even figure out the common cold (other than a monetary reason), but you can find a needle in a haystack of stars.  WTF?  spend the money for real research.  Go back tot he moon and start harvesting the resource there and build communities.  Damn, give Bill Gates and others the opportunities to spend their money on something more exciting and more realistic.

5.  U2 not playing Philly this time around

- Who the hell pissed off Bono and the clan to make them skip Philadelphia this time around??  Philly was one of the best shows each tour.

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