Wizzer's World

Ok so I realize that it’s been a while. I wish I could say that there hasn’t been that much going on but I can’t. There was a TON of stuff. Summary: New Wardrobe, Sarah and I hit 1 year, Trip to Vegas, Rock Band Tourney, GTA IV, Free Comic Book Day, Iron Man, and Andrews Promotion.

Yeah, like I said, Lots!

So let’s start out with the new wardrobe. It all started with a new position that came open at work. It wasn’t much, mostly a few administrative roles added on, but still a good boost to the career. As it was I really needed the boost. The past few years have started to drag a bit and I was starting to get a little bitter. Sadly that showed a bit in the past but over the last 6 months and I had started to pick things back up. Well when it came time for the interview, the new and improved Steve went in and nailed it, but the past Steve still had an effect. I didn’t get the position. This prompted a change in attitude.

I had been wearing jeans and polo’s to work but I could tell that if I wanted to step up the overall attitude change I was going to need more. It was make over time! Sarah grabbed her friend Jesse and we went to the mall to build Steve 3.0. New slacks, new shirts, new shoes, everything! I even managed to go through my current stuff and clean out some of the older stuff. I came away with 8 new pairs of pants, 10 new shirts, 2 new pairs of shoes and 2 new belts (because apparently no one liked my old belt). Now, for the most part this is for work clothes only, but I am trying to step it up over all and work some of them into the rotation for going out and about. Try not to be too surprised if you see some new duds in upcoming pics. I don’t plan on missing out on the next position.

I realize that this next part is about a month late but on April 13th Sarah and I hit our one year mark! It’s great to know that I have found someone like her who really understands me. On Sunday the 13th she got me a Spiderman statue that I had been drooling over for some time now (I think I have all of the symbiote spideys now) and I made her a full dinner from scratch (which is a feat for me). We are both very excited to see what the next year brings. (She will probably leave me sometime next month anyways (inside joke))

So as you can tell from some of the pictures sent to the blog from my phone, I was out in Vegas all last week! I went out for the annual Microsoft Management Summit. The conference was great and showed off a lot of new tech that MS is doing. The setting wasn’t bad either! Unfortunately I was there by myself for the most part and it got kind of lonely sometimes. I did manage to see quite a few shows. Blue Man Group was amazing! Bite was…..Interesting. The Star Trek Experience was fun, but it’s getting a little dated, and the Wax Museum was creepy but entertaining. I did do a fair amount of gambling while there, mostly Texas Hold Em. I only wish I had played better.

At the end of the conference they always hold an “After Party” for the guests. This year they threw together a Rock Band Tournament! I signed up as a random drummer and got placed in with a group of guys. We called our band the “Screaming Weasels”. Well, long story made short, out of 6 bands, we won! I know, I was floored too. For the most part we managed to just stay ahead and finish songs where others just failed. They moved us up to the main stage for the finale in front of about 1000 people. Sadly, the sound system was so loud that it caused a delay on the system from the visuals and it was hard as heck to play. We won by getting 80% through Enter Sandman while the other band only made it to about 10%. For winning we all got a folding chair and a brand new Xbox 360 Pro! (Yes I know, this makes 2)

This is a good thing as I have installed it upstairs and can send Andrew up there while I play Grand Theft Auto IV. I am sure some of you out there would give me crap about purchasing it but, the story is amazing. Honestly think of the movie Scarface. There is a ton of Killing, Sex, Drinking, Swearing, and drug use. I couldn’t even tell you how many people were killed in the movie, to include police officers. The movie is rated R. GTAIV is rated M which is the video game equivalent of R. As a parent, I am policing the content by not allowing Andrew to view it as I do not think it is appropriate for him. I do this because 1: I pay attention to reviews of things, 2: I look at the ratings that things get, and 3: I review thing myself and make the final judgment. This is called responsible parenting. From an Adult point of view, the game is stunning. The Visuals, the story, everything is very well done and it deserves all of the praise it has gotten. It does not deserve all of the admonishment from political figures who haven’t bothered to do the above steps 1-3 to form their own opinion. Nuf said.

Last Saturday was Free Comic Book Day!!! I met up with some of the other 501st guys to costume up at Phoenix Comics over in Leesburg VA. I didn’t go as a trooper though, It was a Comic event, so I went as Batman! Sarah, Andrew and I got done up as Batman, Catwoman, and Spiderman! Overall it was a great appearance! The kids loved us (well most of them, there were a few that got a bit scared of the Batsuit). Andrew stayed in Spidey for a while then switched over to Biker Scout. We had a great time and even raised some money for one of the local children’s funds.

After the event we headed over to the theater to catch Iron Man.

Wow….just wow.

Go see it

Now

And stay through the credits.

Lastly, as you may know, Andrew has been involved in Civil Air Patrol for the last many many months. Well he managed to step it up and made it to Cadet Airman First Class! I am VERY proud of him and even got to pin on his rank! I know it probably doesn’t seem like much to him, but it really meant a lot to me to see him succeed like that and I hope to pin on many more ranks in the future!

Wheew, that was a lot!