Sunday, December 31, 2006

The Calm Before the Storm

My first experience as a floor manager on New Year's Eve. It's going to be crazy with sick calls. I hope things aren't half as bad as I'm sensing they will be. My next post will probably be in 2007, so we'll see if it's a HAPPY one.

Saturday, December 30, 2006

Bye Bye '06

The end of the year is near. Whoever had Saddam Hussein in the Death Pool before the end of the year must have made some money. OK I'm in a weird mood tonight. Long post will be coming soon when I feel like writing.

Monday, December 25, 2006

A Night at the Museum

No date, no plans, so when all else fails take self to movie. I thought a nice comedy would hopefully cheer me up and this movie did. The story was outrageous but the film itself was quite enjoyable. Ben Stiller is funny as usual, and any movie with Robin Williams in it can't be all that bad. I had a great time.

And now, once again, I shall wake up alone.

Sunday, December 24, 2006

December 24

Merry Christmas to all. Remember those that are less fortunate than we are.

Thursday, December 21, 2006

Rocky! Rocky!

How can I resist one of the greatest underdog movies of all time? Even thought it's been almost 30 years since the original Rocky (how time flies) and my gut feeling was that this movie was going to suck, how could I, the perennial underdog, pass up the movie? Well, I wasn't disappointed. While the premise of the story is still a bit far fetched, I identified with the movie. So much of the movie mirrored my own life. No, I'm not a secret boxer or anything, but my underdog story is a lot like Rocky's.

And what can I say, when Rocky starts training for the fight and you hear the notes of Bill Conti's immortal theme, how can you not be inspired? During the fight itself, many of the moviegoers were shouting "Rocky! Rocky!" as if it were a real fight. And in some ways (for me at least), it's been a real fight. When you know you are up against unbeatable odds, when you know you are fighting an unwinnable fight, do you still fight? After all that's gone on for me in the last few months, perhaps it's only fitting that it ends with this movie. I end with an inspirational line from the movie, spoken by Rocky himself:

"The world ain't all sunshine and rainbows. It's a very rough, mean place... and no matter how tough you think you are, it'll always bring you to your knees and keep you there, permanently... if you let it. You or nobody ain't never gonna hit as hard as life. But it ain't about how hard you hit... it's about how hard you can get hit, and keep moving forward... how much you can take, and keep moving forward. If you know what you're worth, go out and get what you're worth. But you gotta be willing to take the hit."

Wednesday, December 20, 2006

Crying

I can't remember the last time I cried because of something other than a movie. And now I feel so much pain and confusion inside.

Sunday, December 17, 2006

48 Hours

This Tuesday is the Christmas Party at work. While normally I'd be waiting anxiously to get drunk and act silly around my staff, I'm worried this year; worried I'll do something silly. There are a lot of things I don't mind embarrassing myself to do, such as karaoke, dancing on tables, taking my shirt off, etc. But the one thing I'm scared to (and hope I don't) do is do something regrettable in front of Mel. Yes, we are just friends (and very good friends at that) and she knows how much I care for her. So hopefully I don't make a COMPLETE fool of myself. Maybe I just won't drink. And Mel, if you happen to be reading this (since I did give you the link), whatever happens happens. If at the end of this all we are just good friends, that's fine. But if somehow in all of this craziness in the world we end up together, than it was worth the journey. I'm crazy about you. And right now you probably don't feel the same way about me yet, but I'm here for you anytime. I hope you know that by now.

Wednesday, December 13, 2006

Return to Graveyard (for one night)

Just got called into work today for the graveyard shift. It's been a while, as I've been on midshift for the last month. I hope I remember everything. Efficiency has been my motto but things can be quite challenging if the casino is busy at night. We shall soon see.

In the meantime, I hope my pretty little Mel gets better from her ugly little flu.

Happy Birthday

Happy Birthday to you
Happy Birthday to you
Happy Birthday dear Mel
Happy Birthday to you

Monday, December 11, 2006

8 More Hours

Short week for me. After Friday-Saturday off, I'm back to Tuesday-Wednesday off for two weeks, so it's my Friday again. I'm glad. These days off are quite precious now, because I don't want to suffer burnout from work. Hopefully I'll find something productive to do on my days off. Then again, doing absolutely nothing can be productive in its own special way.

Friday, December 08, 2006

Return of the Blues

It was the best of times, it was the worst of times. I'm relaxing after quite the momentuous week at work. I made a number of what turned out to be incorrect decisions at work, and generally my heart wasn't into it. Bonnie had talked about that passion for work that is necessary and I lost it this week. The stress, however small, has gotten to me again and it's affecting my performance. I could use a vacation, but what happens when I come back? Same shit different day again? There must be something better, I only hope I can find it soon.

Sunday, December 03, 2006

Stranger Than Fiction

With nowhere to go and nobody to do anything with, I decided to go see this movie last night. I'm not a big Will Farrell fan, as I don't really like his brand of humor. But the movie was a pleasant surprise as there were elements of true drama in it. There were great performances from Dustin Hoffman and Emma Thompson (where has she been?), and I believe I saw Maggie Gyllenhaal for the first time in a movie, and she was radiant. She combines the innocence of Scarlett Johansson with the sexiness of Angelina Jolie. She could be the next breakout actress.

Friday, December 01, 2006