Happy Thanksgiving

Oh Thanksgiving time. I love the food but I hate choosing which house to be at. It twas easier when I was younger and I was forced to go have dinner at someone house. Now that I get to choose … it sucks. I basically feel like I’m saying, “Ya I like this parents cooking more than yours”. In reality both parents are amazing cooks. I try and bounce back and forth and even do both if I can.

So this Thanksgiving, my mom took me to see the Transiberian Orchestra last night. All I have to say is holy freakin’ crap batman. I’ve been to a lot of concerts in my lifetime thus far and this one takes the cake. I wasn’t really expecting such an awesome show but they pulled out all the stops; fire, smoke, snow, lasers, lights, girls and some heavy metal guitar.

That’s just a small clip of one of their more popular songs.

So ya I want to be a rock star again. Forget punk rock music … metal Christmas is where it’s at.

A Family Band

I’m pretty sure I’ve got shit that I need to be doing right now. But I’ve had wordpress open for the last hour while listening to my 90s rock playlist and reading other blogs on g reader and I feel like I must write something. So off the top of my head right now …. is … well I like this song I guess. High and Dry by Radiohead. I also enjoy the cover by Jamie Cullum. Kids pretty bad ass with his nasty jazz playin’ skillz.

I grew up in a music scene. First concert I ever went to was U2 … I was still in my moms tummy but I was there and that’s all that matters. Actually my first concert was The Wallflowers. They played at the High School in my town when I was like in 8th grade. It was a pretty big deal when it happened because Beverly is a relatively small city up in the North Shore.

But ya. My dad used to be constantly plying the guitar. I remember listening to him at coffee houses when I was too young to really know what was going on. I’ve since picked up the guitar as well but I think he’s just a lot more creative than I am. I can get very analytical about things where as he just kind of rolls with it more. Sometimes I feel like I have just as much fun enjoying music as he does playing it. Regardless it’s still fun when we get to play together.

My sister also has a pretty kick ass voice. At first I was like, eh, she’s alright. But recently I’ve been like, what the fuck, why you and not me. Well I don’t care that much but she does have a pretty bas ass voice.

My dad jokes around about forming a band. I think it would be wicked funny but don’t know if it’s something I could commit too. However … we would have like a 7 piece band. No … that would be weird.

Whatever …. I’m gonna head over to my dads now. Peace

Things I Can't Stand

I find myself repeating myself over and over again when rationalizing the things that I say and do. I usually just wouldn’t give a dam but for my friends and family I’ll repeat myself as many times as they like. For the rest of you I’m making a list of things I can’t stand:

  • People that don’t have good relationships with their parents. I understand that in some cases there are good reasons to not have relationships. This is more about a girl I know that is a bitch to her mom for no good reason. She is also incredibly spoiled … but ya. I’m a family man.
  • People that aren’t open minded. This ones simple. I hate people that refuse to step outside of their little safe box.
  • People that are racist. I’m pretty laid back when it comes to this stuff but people in my family have not been so lucky.
  • People that try and push religion down other people’s throats. I went to 8 years of christian camp, youth group, bible studies and catacombs by choice. It was a great time in my life but I have since moved past it. Your not going to teach me anything I don’t already know. I choose to have my own beliefs or disbeliefs of my own and you can enjoy the same privilege. Lets keep it that way.
  • People that think they know everything. Because I know I know everything and that’s all that matters.
  • People that judge me by my age and appearance. If everyone started judging everyone else by how they presented themselves and their accomplishments we would be a lot better off as a society.
  • Parents that shelter their children. I was a camp counselor for years and have always loved working with kids. My younger stepbrother is one of the coolest kids I know. A lot of over concerned parents ruin their children’s youth by instilling fear. They do this out of compassion and their own fear but they don’t realize the real danger they’re doing. The odds that something will happen to your child are only decreased by such a microcosm of a percentage that its not ever worth trying to figure out. The truth is that child psychologists believe that your kid is alot less likely to have a normal social life when they grow up do to a lack of basic survival skills we develop in adolescence. Basically… let your kids be kids.
  • The Police. I know a few cool ones … but they’re about to retire so we’re all screwed. This is just because of my own personal relations with cops up to this point.
Well that’s about it for now. I’m getting to tired to think.

Family Values

So I checked the 20SB forum to see what was up and I saw the question, “What are you passionate about?”

One thing I value above all else is my family.

Growing up, me and my sister did a lot of traveling between our separated parents. This segmented the family into two separate families, both of which we love equally.

So, child support can be a bitch for an underpaid carpenter living in northern Massachusetts, and needless to say, my family was always there to help. I remember growing up in a large blue house that my mom and dad had bought and my dad had kept after the separation. He would rent out the rooms to be able to afford mortgage payments. Some of the residents of that house are still considered family to this day.

I moved in with my grandmother during her last year as a teacher to have her as my 6th grade math teacher. During this time she kept me very active in extracurricular activities…. and math. It formed the bases of my knowledge of math and sciences as well as set the course for the path I would lead to become what I am now. I was even asked to give a speech in front of the whole school to commemorate my grandmother on her last day as a teacher.

So back to my father for a second. He had several girlfriends after him and my mom separated. Finally he settled on the “red headed vixen from Minnesota”, those are his words, her name was Jean. She had 3 kids when she met my dad. This was about 11 years ago I think. My dad finally married Jean about 2 months ago and officially connected the two families.

I love my step family. I now have:

  • DJ: crazy 14 yr old steb-bro
  • Erin: cool 20 yr old step-sis
  • Sara: Independent 24 yr old step-sis
  • Kayleigh: The one and only KK Bishop aka my sister

 

So my sister, Erin and I spend a lot of time together because we’re so close in age, and it is a lot of fun. DJ visits his mom on the weekends so I try and make it a point to spend my weekends at my dads so he doesn’t go crazy.

Now my mom’s side is just as great … just located a little farther away. Most of the family lives in Puerto Rico however we have a handful of relatives in New York and Florida. They’re always just a phone call away any time we need a little help.

I could go on and on about my family… so I will in later posts. But my main point with this post is to stress to others how important family really is. Their the one’s you can really rely on and will always really be there for you. There something about sharing a last name that makes your bond so much stronger. My sister and I are inseparable, and I couldn’t picture it any other way. One of my biggest turn-offs is when a girl doesn’t get along with her family. I was brought up differently and couldn’t imagine life without them.