Tis' the Season!

Ok folks, let me start by saying I hope that you had a wonderful Christmas and have an amazing New Years as well! I'm not a big fan of the winter overall but I do love the stretch from Thanksgiving through New Years. This past week and a half has been extremely busy and I'm going to tell you all about it.

Last Thursday was my cousin Hollys' birthday and she had her party at the casino. Coming off of a company Christmas party at the casino where I came out ahead $350, of course I was going to attend. Well this trip turned out ok as well, came out ahead $200 and enjoyed an after hours hot tub party in the 10 degree weather! Definitely great memories with great friends. Happy Birthday Holly!!

Friday was Christmas Eve and for lunch I was at my great grandmothers house. Every year she makes the best meatballs and potato salad ever, they are legendary!!! I then went to a different grandmothers house for dinner and had a great time. We also attended the Christmas Eve service at the Fellowship Bible Church in Topeka. If you live in the Topeka area and happen to be looking for a good church, check this place out! The average age is 28 and they have a very modern & contemporary style. (http://www.fbctopeka.com/)

Then came Christmas morning. I was lucky enough to walk away with a new fire pit this Christmas and I'm stoked about it. I normally don't grill out that much in the winter since it's so cold but now that I have a fire pit I might have to light up the ol' grill again! Plus I enjoy sitting around a good fire and just chilling with friends in the evenings...if this happens to be fun for you as well then hit me up.

Later Christmas Day I went to my grandparents house on the Gentry side of the family. We had a great dinner (once again ate way too much) and we watched some basketball. I then spent a lot of time hanging out with my little cousin Lakin (below) and eventually put the little guy to sleep! It was a great day with the family.

Then came Sunday and oh was I jacked up for Sunday. The Kansas City Chiefs played the Tennessee Titans and absolutely embarrassed them 34-14! They clinched the division title for the first time since 2003! I'm definitely stoked that the Chiefs will be in the playoffs again this year and I can't wait to be at the next few games.

Last but not least, I have upgraded fishtanks and have also added some fish to the ever-growing ecosystem in my house! I now have five fish...Jackson (Black Moor Goldfish), Clarence (Gold Guarami), Julio (White Molly), Bennie (Silver Dollar) and Gary (Beta). I also went to PetSmart and bought a 10 gallon fishtank (below to left). At first I threw all five fish into the tank but then after a few minutes Gary (the Beta) kept attacking the other fish so I had to remove him and put him into the old fish bowl. Although Gary has proven to be trouble at times, he is a much appreciated gift from three great friends...Rachel Manry, Jayna Smith and Brooke DeVader! Thanks ladies! Anyway, I think I'm perfectly content with this set-up for now but believe me..it's only a matter of time until I have an aquarium like the one in Deuce Bigalow and also the aquarium in-tables!!

Have a Happy New Year everyone!!!

The One That Got Away...

So recently I decided that I wanted to get a pet. Well I thought of the obvious, how about a dog? The truth is, I travel too much and don't have time to properly care for a dog. So to avoid any crazy confrontations with PETA (don't want blood thrown on my white jacket while walking down the Red Carpet) I decided to go with a fish. I actually ended up getting two fish. One was a normal looking Fantail Goldfish which I named Bruce and the other was a Black Moor Goldfish which I named Jackson. Well yesterday was a rough day, I came home from work all excited to feed my fish and as soon as I walked through my bedroom door...there it is...Bruce is floating dead at the top of the water. I'm not sure exactly what happened. I never forgot to feed him, I put the drops in the water to insure it wasn't toxic and I even bought a plant to keep in the water for additional oxygen. I'm convinced that PetsMart sold me an old fish. Anyway, whatever the reason...please take a moment in silence now for Bruce.

Rest in Peace Bruce. You were a great fish.

The good thing is Jackson is still alive and well. And for everyone that is wondering, Bruce was given the proper "frontyard" burial.

Now that the bad news regarding the past week is out of the way, it's time to tell you about the good stuff. Friday night was the Advisors Excel christmas party and this year it was held at the Prairie Band Casino. The night was kicked off with about an hour of people having drinks and taking pictures. We then went to a ballroom for an amazing steak dinner. The three owners of our company spoke and then the entertainment for the night was introduced. Simon Winthrop was hired by our owners to perform for us. He is a world renowned magician and if you have never seen him then I strongly recommend it, he was amazing! You can check him out on his website, http://www.simonwinthrop.com/.

Above is a picture of Simon with Arnold Schwarzenegger. He has also performed for several presidents, the CEO of Google, Tom Cruise, Wesley Snipes, Demi Moore, Robin Williams, the Prince of somewhere in the Middle East, and Jack Nicholson to name a few.

"Unbelievable..." -Tom Cruise

"Do that again!" -Arnold Schwarzenegger

"That evening Simon Winthrop had our entire group believing he was the World's Greatest Magician" -Jermaine Dupree

Ok, that's enough pub for Simon. After he was finished the ballroom was cleared out and casino games were set up for us. Everybody gambled for the next 2 hours and for every $1000 in chips, you recieved a raffle ticket. At the end of the 2 hours you could take all of the raffle tickets that you earned and disperse them into the pot for several different prizes. There were things like an IPad, tickets to the KSU @ KU game, flat screen tv, cameras, gift cards, remote control start for your car, etc... I put all of the tickets that I won into the IPad cannister but didn't win. Oh well, it was still a blast!

Eventually we worked our way into the real casino and hit the tables. I walked directly to the Black Jack table as I usually do and after a short period was up $175. A bunch of my friends then came up to me and said that they were going to go to an after party in one of the hotel rooms. So I told them to hold on a minute, walked over to the roulette table and put my $175 on Red and it hit. So in about 30 minutes I made $350, not bad. The christmas party was a blast, not many companies throw a bash like our owners do. As we say it, "Welcome to Casino Excel!"

Goals Are Dreams With Deadlines...Right??

Ok people, you are about to hear my thoughts on goals and why I think they are so important. If you open up the dictionary and look up the word "goal," it will be defined as the result or achievement toward which effort is directed. However, I hope that when you think of goals for yourself that it sounds a whole lot more interesting than that! Although I'm not a big fan of Lou Holtz and I hate how he spits when he talks, I do like the way he thinks goals should be a driving force in your life. Lou says, "If you're bored with life--you don't get up every morning with a burning desire to do things--then you don't have enough goals." Dr. Lou says a lot of stupid things but that's one heck of a quote!! (That's the last time I ever give him props by the way) I truly believe that it's important to put a timeframe on the things you want in life. This creates urgency and in the end it makes you more efficient and confident as a person. Whatever it is that you are pursuing or dreaming about, set a date to have it accomplished by and as Larry the Cableguy would say, "Get'R Done!!"

Another quote that I recently read fits percfectly in this conversation and it has quickly become one of my favorites. Diana Scharf Hunt says, "Goals are dreams with deadlines." I couldn't have said it better myself...

About three months ago I decided that I was going to make a list of my dreams/goals and make it so that I saw this list everyday. About 20 minutes after making this decision I was at Wal-Mart purchasing a whiteboard to go up on my bedroom wall. Big enough that I couldn't miss it when I woke up in the morning. Below are a few dreams/goals that I have put a deadline on (2010-2011):

1. Buy a house

2. Buy a new car

3. Visit Greece/Italy

4. Run a half-marathon (Done)

5. Run a full marathon

6. Climb a 14,000 ft. mountain

7. Achieve 1% body fat

8. Read 12 new books

9. Visit Jamaica (Done)

10. Create a blog (Done)

Now many of these goals are long-term goals and take a little bit of time to achieve. I do however make a lot of short-term goals as well, especially at work. I think that it is important to constantly be checking something off of your list, giving yourself a feeling of accomplishment. Anyway, this is how I feel about goals. I strongly encourage everyone that reads this to immediately sit down, grab a pen and pad of paper and just brainstorm. Think about the things that you have wanted for awhile now but just haven't had time...the fact is you just haven't MADE time. If it is important enough to you then you will make time and believe me, there is no better feeling that putting a deadline on a dream and then hitting that deadline!! Before you know it you will be a completely re-energized person and your friends will wonder what's up with you. Make your life a mission, not an intermission!