in 
Reflections
Reflections Monday
07Apr
No Post-Enhancing Drugs Were Used
Monday, April 7, 2008 100 Things About Me
- I can’t get myself to type LOL. I much prefer HAHAHA. I feel it captures the sentiment much more effectively.
- I have sprained both my ankles really badly at least 12 times in my lifetime (requiring crutches). It all started in 2nd grade when my foot got stuck in a tree root as I was running full speed. If I were a horse, I’d be staring down the barrel of a shotgun.
- When I was a kid, I collected pens, and gave myself the badass nickname, “The Pen.”
- My political career peaked in high school. I was class president in 9th, 10th and 11th grade. Then I was elected student body president in 12th grade. Then in college I discovered beer.
- I take my coffee black.
- I take my whiskey neat.
- I like my sake unfiltered.
- I like my Coke Diet.
- I’m not afraid to drink tap water.
- I like my steak medium rare, or rare if I trust the restaurant. Ribeye. Bone in.
- I hate white meat. Dark meat rules. Chicken skin rules too.
- I don’t often eat fish, unless I caught it myself. Except for Chilean Seabass. I know it’s endangered. To me that just means I have to eat it like there’s no tomorrow. Yeah, I said it.
- I talk too much about food.
- Cooking is a passion of mine.
- I’m pretty good at “reverse engineering” any dish I come across.
- But I can’t bake for crap. I just don’t “get it.”
- I love to read cookbooks. I can read them all day long. But I seldom follow recipes. I just get ideas from them and improvise from there.
- Nothing brings me joy like a well sharpened chef’s knife.
- I still haven’t found a way to look cool while running down stairs (I try daily).
- I was scared of Irish people when I was young (my town was probably 90% Irish).
- But I loved Italian people (the Italian kids were nice to me).
- I don’t think there’s a better feeling in the world than having a kid look up to you.
- I don’t think there’s a creepier feeling in the world than having a kid look down at you. Not saying anything. In the dark. While you are sleeping.
- I like my French Toast really crispy on the outside, and soggy on the inside.
- I love chocolate chip cookies without the chocolate chips.
- I used to wear glasses with no-prescription lenses just to look intellectual. Then I really needed them, which made me happy. Then my eyes cured themselves, which made me happy again because I was over that phase.
- I can’t throw a football worth a damn. Can someone teach my kid to do this properly?
- That’s probably why I was a bike racer in high school. Before Lance made it kind of cool. Unfortunately.
- No! I am NOT good at math!
- My favorite superhero is Iron Man. And I claimed that way before I knew they were making an Iron Man movie.
- In high school, I had a dozen separate fish tanks that I maintained throughout the house.
- I have a recurring dream that the fish are swimming out of their tanks into the air and if I don’t catch them all in time they will die.
- Since I started shaving my head in May 2000, I have saved $3600 in haircuts. Now if I only remembered where I put it...
- My upper torso houses a bunch of tattoos, all hidden when I assume my secret identity as “mild mannered corporate dude.”
- I was born and raised in Boston, and spent 25 years of my life there, but I have never once visited Martha’s Vineyard.
- The first time I was ever stung by a bee was on the tongue. I was eating a burger that he happened to have landed on.
- If I were allergic, that would have been the end of me. Instead I got to spend the next day eating nothing but ice cream.
- I am very disinterested in watching professional sports unless it involves bodily harm from punching, kicking or choking.
- I’m really good at trivia games. Except for the sports questions. See above for reason.
- I’d be happy just spending the rest of my days catching fish and drinking beer.
- I’ve been working on this damn list for months.
- It is very hard to think of 100 random things.
- I feel guilty that I just cheated you out of 3 facts.
- No I don’t.
- Before I started blogging, I had never read a single blog.
- I realize now how much I was missing out on.
- But now I have a new bane of my existence: unread posts on my Google Reader.
- I really need to start saving for my retirement.
- States I have been to (not counting airport layovers): MA, CA, WA, TX, FL, TN, CT, NH, VT, ME. RI. NY, PA, NC, KY, IL, NV, DC.
- Countries I have been to (not counting airport layovers): France, Turkey, China, Taiwan, Philippines, Canada, Mexico
- I miss my 84 Camaro.
- Nothing pairs better with an 84 Camaro than AC/DC.
- Can you get more 80’s “Boston suburb” than the above? Sorry, this wasn’t really a fact. Boxers of briefs? Boxer briefs. There’s your fact.
- I have a huge noggin. I can’t wear normal hats. Maybe kickboxing wasn’t the best choice of sports for me.
- I regret that I cannot speak Chinese in any coherent manner.
- When I was young, I could speak it fluently.
- That is a major head start in life that I just pissed away.
- It serves as a convenient excuse as to why I am not as successful as I’d like to be.
- These are the movies I can’t shut off if I happen to catch them on TV: Pulp Fiction, Best in Show, Shawshank Redemption.
- My favorite shows as a kid: Electric Company, The Monkees, Brady Bunch and The Dukes of Hazzard.
- I love business travel.
- I got my eyebrow pierced when I met d Wife because she told me she liked it. Not a great idea when you spend a few days a week wrestling, punching and doing other stuff that causes face-to-hard-surfaces friction.
- My mom wanted a daughter when I was born. She solved that by dressing me up as a girl and strolling me through the park, basking in all the “ohh, what a cute little girl!” compliments she’d get from the old ladies.
- She still has pics.
- The first PG-13 movie I ever saw was Red Dawn. In fact, I believe it was the first movie ever given that rating. Someone should check that for me.
- The first rated R movie I ever saw was The Jerk.
- How or why I remember the above two facts is a mystery.
- The first tape I ever bought on my own was a K-Tel mix tape called Radioactive.
- Those were the days when The Who—You Better You Bet—and The Commodores— (Lady) You Bring Me Up—could appear on the same album.
- I think song titles with parentheses are funny.
- I love Star Wars toys. Ok, I love all things Star Wars.
- But I am not a science fiction or fantasy fan. I don’t like anything else associated with that psychographic.
- I’m serious. I really don’t. I don’t even like Harry Potter and I have never read nor seen Lord of the Rings.
- I used to carve my own fishing lures and tie my own flies in high school. I wanted to start a fishing company.
- My favorite event of the year that still gives me excitement jitters is the Fishing Expo.
- I haven’t gone in a good 10 years. That needs to change.
- I don’t watch Monster Jam (monster truck league) solely to bond with my son.
- But that’s what I tell adults.
- I played the violin, trombone and piano when I was a kid.
- Trombone was fun. Didn’t like the violin or piano. At all.
- I just lost my job. Anyone need a Marketing Director with 10 years of online marketing experience?
- Know anyone who needs a Marketing Director with 10 years of online marketing experience?
- I am a wine dunce. I can’t make heads or tails of a wine label.
- I was a straight A student as a kid. Except for conduct. I couldn’t keep my mouth shut.
- The best concert I ever went to was Guns ‘n Roses and Soundgarden, 1991 at the Worcester Centrum. 4th row.
- My favorite store in the world since I was 10 is Bass Pro Shops.
- I love Vegas. But I don’t really gamble. I just like to walk the streets with an open container of alcohol. It is extremely liberating.
- I don’t smoke, but I am totally against the “no smoking in bars” law. It just isn’t a bar without smoke.
- I am, however, totally for the “no smoking on restaurants” law. No one should ever be subjected to cigarette smoke while eating.
- I love cigars and hookah.
- I was into punk/hardcore in early high school. My favorite bands were Minor Threat, Government Issue, The Freeze, The Meatmen and the Descendents.
- Guns ‘n Roses changed all that. I became a dedicated hair metal fan after that. And have remained one ever since.
- I’m also a country music fan. Which seems totally odd. Until you break down the lyrics. Then it makes total sense.
- I also love classic Jazz. Coltrane, Miles Davis, Dexter Gordon... reminds me of sitting in some bar in New York City while it’s snowing out. Even though I have never experienced that in real life.
- Add old time vocalists to the list as well. Like Frank Sinatra, Dean Martin and Tony Bennett.
- I guess it would have been easier to just list types of music I am not into.
- I don’t have a favorite color.
- I will wear uncomfortable footwear as long as it looks good. My wife won’t even do that.
- I sponsored a wild tiger under my sister’s name for her birthday one year. We didn’t make it through one progress report before she got a letter informing her it got poached. It was sad. But I could not stop laughing.
- I am officially Friend of Jack. Yes, folks, my Tennessee Squire Association papers arrived. I owe THE Mommy of MommyCosm a heartfelt thank you for asking her hubby to nominate me. If you are interested in knowing why this means so much to me, read this meme.
A big huge thank you to everyone who has read and supported the BDB! Reading your comments and decoding your IP addresses has kept me motivated like you wouldn’t believe. I really could not have asked for better fans, friends, lurkers and stalkers (if you're lurking, please come out today, even if you never type another comment again - I'd just love to know). It blows my mind the support I have received for this little chunk of the internet that I call home. I definitely would not have made it this far without your encouragement, friendship and support.
Also, huge props to Jeff Day, who brought all this madness into cartoon reality by creating the BusyDad Tales comic strip.
And who could forget the one guy who made this all possible. The superstar himself. My son, Fury. If you’ve even read one post, you’d know that this kid is my everything. He doesn’t just make me laugh. He makes me a better person. Just knowing that what I do will shape his life long after I am gone has changed the way I view myself and the world around me. Things matter now. What a wonderful way to look at life.
But I saved the biggest thank you for Lisa, or d Wife as she is affectionately known, for genuinely supporting all that I do with this blog, even if that means putting up with the fact that I can’t be more than 10 feet away from my laptop at all times, have to “check my comments” constantly, blog hop the weekend away, ask her to remember stuff “so I can blog it later,” and be in front of the computer at 1:56 am instead of sleeping by her side. I know in my heart you are my biggest fan, even though you roll your eyes at everything I do!
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Reader Comments (57)
Congrats on getting to 100 posts and actually finishing the 100 Things list. Keep up the great work.
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[BusyDad] THANK YOU! It's been insanely fun.
I've been a long time lurker and have been meaning to comment, but never really had anything insightful to say besides "hahaha lol!" (never saw that as a good way to "introduce myself"). I really enjoy reading your blog (in fact, I stopped in the middle of studying for an exam I have today to read this post; good ole procrastination!) and all the creativeness you put into it. Keep up the great work man!
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[BusyDad] Greg, thank you very much! And nice to meet you. Good luck on your exam. And I enjoy "hahahaha" comments as well so no worries.
Way to kick tail on your 100 things post. This was bad ass! But never seen Lord of The Rings?? I nearly fell over..:)
Really enjoyed reading this.. WOLVERINES!!! (sorry Red Dawn is an old school fav of mine.. )
PH
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[BusyDad] I loved Red Dawn too! Those Russians underestimated that ragtag bunch of high school kids with shotguns and letter jackets. USA! USA!
This was a GREAT list! And I will be HAHAHA-ing over "The Pen" all day. :p
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[BusyDad] Thanks Honeybell! HAHAHA-ing as in "wow your nickname was SO BADASS" right? You betta rekinize.
I knew I liked you, but this reinforces that!
Oh and I thought you'd get a kick out of this: Last night, in my dream, you played the roll of the Casanova Drug Dealer! I was--of course--a Secret Agent (a garter belt holster wearing one) that could run in stilettos. It was hot. HAHAHHA <--just for you! Anyway, it was a pretty wild dream.
Back to the blogging thing. I have many favorite blogs, but if someone asked me which blog was my favorite of all time, I would say THE BUSY DAD BLOG! Keep being real because it shows in every post and it's why you are so well liked and received. xxoo
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[BusyDad] :) It is BEYOND awesome that your royal badassmomness digs my blog that much! And I gotta ask - were we riding the minivan with the machine gun turrets that your hubby made for me?
Happy Bloggaversary!
Just too bad you've never been to Minnesota. Wez gots snow today! Wait...that doesn't make it sound cool.
We got cows! They make meat! And we are accross the river from Wisconsin, home of lots beer. There...that sounds better :-)
Again - Congrats!
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[BusyDad] Thank you!!! Meat and beer. I really don't need much else. Oh, and lots of lakes. Check.
Ok, I am in Nashville, and a big fan of whiskey (actually more into scotch) and had no idea about the Tennessee Squire thing. Actually never been the 45 minutes to Lynchburg to visit the distillery because it is a "dry" county so they can't give samples.
enjoy your blog...
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[BusyDad] Thank you Josh! Nice to meet you. And yes, it a dry county and no you can't have samples. But, they do sell commemorative editions of JD there. Seriously, though, it is truly amazing that the world's best selling whiskey is made in that small town in an operation that really does not look all that grand. Worth the trip. Seriously. (I love Scotch too).
**Slinking out of Lurkerville** I'm am totally loving your blog and think you are a fantastic writer. As a good Irish girl from RI, I laughed at you being afraid of Irish people. I know our tempers can be fiery but most Irish people are really friendly!
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[BusyDad] Woo hoo! So very nice to meet you. And thank you!! I no longer have fear of Irish people. You have the single best holiday ever invented. St. Paddy's Day. Nothing but love for the green.
So much in common. Some of my favs:
cooking, and reading cookbooks for ideas, not to stifle my culinary creativity, which I would not really have if not for the cookbooks in the first place - a vicious circle.
dark meat - I LOVE ME SOME CHICKEN THIGHS, gave up skin a while back, though. Except on wings. gotta have chicken wing skin and I LOVE ME SOME CHICKEN WINGS
PULP FICTION, BEST IN SHOW and SHAWSHANK REDEMPTION. I did get kinda burnt out on shawshank for a while when TNT or TBS or whatever played it incessantly for like 2 years. It is back up there, though. BEST IN SHOW is one of the funniest things I have ever seen and I don't like dogs.
I have only recently started writing LOL, but I prefer just stating - SO FUNNY or HILARIOUS. LOL is TOO widely used. I once was having a webcam conversation with my neice (teenager) who didn't have the microphone working, so she had to type everything. She wrote LOL once in the conversation and I said, "YO! I can SEE you. I know you didn't just laugh out loud. You barely smirked." So ever since then LOL just means smirking to me.
I am not afraid of Irish people. I married one making me an O'Neill. Do I scare you? I shouldn't. I am really German. Actually I am just American. Drives me nuts that my husband considers himself Irish since he is like the 4th generation born in the States.
KEEP BELIEVING
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[BusyDad] Ha - so cool. I do love reading other folks' 100 things for that exact reason - finding out stuff we have in common. And Smirk Out Loud killed me! Too funny... my favorite is Thai BBQ Chicken thighs. OH YUMness.
#23-Were you at my house over the weekend? Because there was an incident where the two older boys got guns-CAP GUNS ONLY, of course-and I swear they were both lurking over me on Saturday night, with sideways glances and evil grins.
#49-I cannot believe you haven't been to IDAHO. Please. You don't know what you are missing.
I don't think there are 100 things about me that I could think of. You are a better man than I. Because, you know, I am not a man....
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[BusyDad] I really do not know what I am missing, but I do intend to find out one day. I so want to pack up the truck and fish the USA. You guys have some great trout fishing up there. And you are a better woman than I. So we're even.
I have to say that I almost never make it through reading anyone's list of 100 things because they often get a leetle boring. But I read every single one of yours. Also -- weird alert -- I HAVE THOSE FISH DREAMS TOO! I don't know why. I'm sure a shrink could tell us. I never had fish tanks as a kid (have two now). Usually the fish are just jumping out. Sometimes the whole house has flooded and become an ocean, and then the water starts to receded and I'm swimming around rescuing fish. But it's always all about the fish panic.
Okay, more than you needed to know. Anyway... have a good day!
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[BusyDad] I'm actually very glad you have that dream. It means that I still fall within some reasonable bell curve. and thanks for reading my entire list in one sitting. Makes me happy I put all that time into it :)
Aw. Sweet ending. Congrats on 100 posts (I'm not sure I actually read that in your post, but it's me assuming. Sorry if I'm wrong about that one :) )
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[BusyDad] heh - yes, I made it to 100. So thank you very much :). I can't believe I've made it that far myself.
Congrats, BusyD! Looking forward to the next 100.
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[BusyDad] Thank you NukeD!I very much look forward to doing them.
Aw! I loved this! You're as cool as I always knew you were!
By the way, I'm pretty sure the Newcastle company could tell you where your haircut money went.
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[BusyDad] :D so smart, you are. Thanks Momo!
#63: oj - I think that I'm going to have to insist that you post some of those pictures of you dressed up like a girl!
#65: Yep -the NRA Strokefest "Red Dawn" was the first movie ever given a PG-13.
Congrats on hitting 100!
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[BusyDad] Thank you Mindi :) and I bet you my mom is busy scanning those pics right now. And props to you for looking up that fact. I have wanted to confirm that fact for YEARS. I know I just had to Google it, but, you know, lazy.
LOLOLOL @ 29 and Poor you! @ whichever number was about your mom parading you around in girl clothes!
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[BusyDad] :) It doesn't work. I am still the go-to math and tech support guy amongst my friends. Stereotypes die hard. Also, I AM the best tech guy in my friends group. Dammit...
Hey there...enjoyed reading these. And I think I might be able to help you (possibly). I work for an internet company and we have people all over the country (including CA). Our main contacts are Internet Marketing Managers and CMO's. I can send your resume over to a couple of my CA guys and see if they know anyone that has an opening. Worth a shot. Let me know if you're interested. I can't make any guarantees but I'm happy to pass your info along.
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[BusyDad] Like I always say, the friends you make blogging are as real as real can be. Thank you S-Dub-C!
Sounds like you need to make a road trip through Idaho to see what Kori is talking about, and then Utah to see what I'm talking about. Then you can write "100 Things About Utah That Jmax Forgot to Tell Me." Since, clearly, there are some oddball factoids in your memory already.
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[BusyDad] I think your summary of all the cool things in Salt Lake left no stone unturned. Like I said, your emails were probably more thorough than Wikipedia. And I really appreciate it! Too bad d wife keeps vetoing the idea.
Happy 100!!!
Totally w/ you on "These are the movies I can’t shut off if I happen to catch them on TV: Pulp Fiction, Best in Show, Shawshank Redemption." It's like you're in my head...
I got a little tiny *tear* at the last part.
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[BusyDad] Thank you Angie! Before I posted this, I really thought I was the only person who truly appreciated the genius of Best in Show. I am encouraged by the fact that many of my friends also love that movie.
Congrats on your 100th post...and for receiving your official Tennessee Squire papers! Perhaps JD consumed some of that $3600 haircut money, hmm???
I'll pour a Jack tonight and toast to 100 more. I'd do it now, but I have to coach softball. At a catholic high school. They'd probably frown upon that, you think?
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[BusyDad] Hmmm yes. Best to leave the toasting till after dark. Good call. But I'm toasting with you. As a newly minted Squire. THANK YOU SO MUCH!! I think if I combine your theory and Momo's on the money going to Newcastle, we can pretty much account for $3500 of that money. The last $100 likely went to Cheez-It Stix and Sun Chips.
You're a SAP! Secretly loving it but rolling my eyes anyway. HAHAHA! I have thrown away so many shoes because they were uncomfortable. Now it's Cole Haans with Nike Air all the way! Worth every penny!
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[d Hubby] :) It would not be you without the eye roll. Also, how ironic is it that the shoes I am referring to as uncomfortable happen to be my Cole-Haans with the Nike Air soles.
Good luck in your job search! Check out my company's job offerings, just in case. (My employer is listed on my Facebook page.)
I can totally relate to the regret about not having kept up the Chinese language - although, for me, it's Spanish.
Congrats on the 100th post! We're all thrilled you're here.
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[BusyDad] Thank you April! And your company is not far from here. But years ago I did apply and they did not take me. I wonder if they keep records of that? Funny, us not knowing Spanish or Chinese in SoCal makes us pretty functionally illiterate on a daily basis.
Did I ever tell you that I fish? That it's my single favorite thing to do? Ever? Like, i want to DIE doing it?
Awesome list, as usual. Can you help me with my 1000th?
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[BusyDad] GET OUT. no way. I may have to start making Mr. Lady Lego figures now.
Excellent post. I feel like I know you personally now...like a friend. Keep up the great work.
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[BusyDad] Thank you Jason! Means a lot. I tell ya - friends are real here in this blog circle. It ain't MySpace up in here.
Awesome list. My favorite thing though? What you wrote about Fury and dWife. Beautiful words Jim! You brought tears to my eyes!
PS - On no kid night, we are so going to smoke hookahs.
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[BusyDad] Thanks Miss :) And I am so holding you to that. We have a sitter.
Let me tell ya, my dad was in a coma and overheard us talking about his finances (and didn't even know who I was at the time) and managed to wake up long enough to tell us not to sell his Jack Daniels stock... or plot of land.... or whatever it is.
Congrats on finishing your list though. I'm still struggling at...ooooh.... 35.
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[BusyDad] That is killer funny. Don't mess with my plot of JD distillery land! I'm glad Fury has been thoroughly trained on the significance of being the heir to my Squirehood.
This is, by a clear margin, your finest entry.
Yes, even the one where you blew smoke up my hole.
A real eyeopener, the Irish thing(seriously, us?), Boston(I never would have guessed), the 'ink' hidden beneath the corporate animal skin (snap), the brow ring (snap), bars needing smoke (snap)... all fascinating and