Today I packed up the dog and headed out to the lake.  The sun has been out for the past few days, something exceedingly rare this time of year and I figured I would take advantage of it today by bringing my camera along.  I ended up going down to a beach I had not been to in quite some time.  It was further south than I usually go but still on Good Harbor Bay, just down the road further.  It was quite nice.  There were a few people out today but because of the Super Bowl and my complete lack of interest in sports, it was pretty quiet overall.  Gavin was able to run around off the leash for a while and I spent some time trying to capture a few good pictures.  I’ve uploaded a new gallery at leelanauphotography.com, just click the picture below to check it out.

The folks are off to Iowa for about 6 weeks tomorrow morning.  They’ve decided to spend some time away from here this winter since it’s easy to get really stir crazy this time of year.  We still have a good 3 months of shitty weather before spring starts to hit, I really hate this time of year up here.  Luckily, my job keeps me quite busy so it’s hard for me to care much.  Mom and Dad will be staying with Sarah, Brian and Christopher and I’ll be interested to hear how that all works out.  I love my folks to death but given the choice, I would not choose to have them live with me for any extended amount of time.  I’m pretty sure my folks would say the same about me. Our family dynamics are a bit much to tolerate day in and day out.  And, at my age, and their age, that’s the way it should be.  Christopher will be spoiled by Grandma and Grandpa for 6 weeks, and, that’s the way THAT should be too!  He’s a lucky kid, even if the only words he can say are “doggie” and “LOOK”.  We’ll see if Grandpa can teach him a few words during his stay.

I have made a new purchase since my last entry in this blog.  Last week, I broke down and bought a Wii so that I too could join the ranks of 30 something’s who are sick of being out of shape but who don’t want to join a gym.  I have always enjoyed video games even though I suck at them and I like the concept of being more involved in them rather than just sitting on a couch with a controller.  The Wii promises to at least get me off my ass for a little bit each day.  Eventually I’ll buy the Wii balance board and Wii Fit Plus game so that I can actually start getting in shape.  Sadly, they are sold out nearly all over the country and it’s going to be several weeks before they get back in stock.  Oh well, I’ll be busy enough at work.

Bonus time at work is fast approaching.  Profit Sharing checks are handed out Feb. 16th and my Managers bonus is due in mid March.  Crazy thing about my job is that I make more in the first 3 months of the year than I do the next 8 months of regular work just because of bonuses.  It’s nice to get big fat checks but it’s also dangerous because it’s easy to just go out and spend it.  If I had this job at any other time in my life, I’d be broke all the time but fortunately I’ve learned how to manage my money in much healthier ways so I’ll be able to save what is necessary but I’ll also be able to go out and get a few toys to play with.  This year I am buying a keyboard and I’ll write more about that when the time comes.  So for now, enjoy the new gallery.

The other thing that I’ve learned is that there are A LOT of people with problems who make no bones about being as bizarre as possible when they are out in public.  I can get past the morbid obesity, the bad haircuts, the full body piercings and pregnant teenage girls with tramp stamps.  What I can’t understand however is how some of these people can even manage to get themselves out of bed in the morning and remember to get dressed!  These are not the big things that our society is plagued with, it is the simple things that a great number people have simply forgotten how to do!  Tuck your shirt in, brush your fucking teeth (or your tooth if that’s all you have), TIE your shoes, wear a BELT!  There is nothing worse than seeing a really heavy set man in sweat pants trying to pick up a penny off the ground.  You didn’t like that visual either did you?  Try seeing it multiple times a day and then draw your own conclusion about the condition of our society.

One more rant:  I don’t have kids of my own, hell, I don’t really even pretend to enjoy the company of kids all that much in general (unless of course it’s my nephew) and as it goes, I have very little business telling someone who does have kids how to be a parent.  I have only one question though:  DO YOU allow your bratty 8 year old boy to jump on your bed with his shoes on?  No you say?  THAN WHY THE FUCK, are you allowing him to do it on the display beds in my store and WHY are you egging him on?????

Anyhow, I’m also feeling a little old lately.  I’m going to be 35 in a month.  I’m only 5 years away from being “over the hill” for shit sake.  Where the hell did all that time go?  What happened to my 20′s?  I don’t know, I really don’t mind getting older it’s the shit I can’t do any more that is getting to me…like lifting……..and getting out of bed without leg cramps.  I’ve got to wonder how long my body will allow me to do retail, or at least this type of retail.  12 hours a day of being on your feet on cement floors and having to walk across a store that is about a mile across on a frequent basis is exhausting.

OK, so those are my rants for today.

Now, tomorrow should be fun.  I’m heading out to the cottage and the entire family is going to pack up and go to the beach (assuming it’s not raining).  Apparently Christopher adores water and I need a day in the sun at least once this summer.  Should be a good time.  I’m slowly getting myself back in gear for writing again on this blog.  I know it’s been a slow summer for that.  Stay tuned, winter will be here soon and lord knows when the snow flies, NOTHING happens around here so I’ll have plenty of time to write.  Cheers!