Hey there!

Okay, just a funny story (sort of) in case anyone in the world actually does read my blog entries (highly unlikely, but I digress).

Recently (as of yesterday, in fact), I have decided to start dieting to go with my walking routine, since you really can't successfully lose weight unless all of your food is bland and repetitive.  I've been eating chicken, rice, and green beans (or any veggie, really) for dinner and apples for basically any other meal, and I have ditched soda entirely in favor of water, cranberry juice, and chocolate Silk (soy milk, since I'm unfortunately very much lactose intolerant and need the calcium and vitamins and stuff) - normal Silk is indescribably strange-tasting as a beverage, but the chocolate kind is quite tasty, actually.  Also, bread is now Satan, too, which makes me sad and I miss it but it's a necessary sacrifice if I want to get rid of my unlovable love handles.

Anyway, being on this diet means I cook for myself - my parents cook separately for themselves or order out - and last night was my first time ever cooking chicken.  Mind you, chicken makes me nervous because cooking it incorrectly can make you very - sometimes deathly - ill.  But I figure, hey, if I burn it, it won't be pink in the middle, right?  Good logic.

Actually, I wasn't thinking that, but I did it anyway on the first go around.  You don't even know, it does too make sense.

Tonight was my second time cooking chicken, and I was determined to do it correctly this time.  And since last night's meal tasted so awful and bland, I was going to play around with the spices tonight.  So I've got my canned green beans (French style only, please) in a small pot and my boil-in-a-bag rice, all very basic stuff.  Both of those items are basically done, but I'm poised to let things over-cook because I figure it's better than not cooking it enough.  So I start my chicken after taking forever to cut it into bits to ensure it cooks thoroughly and I don't die eating it.  I throw it all in the pan with a small dab of olive oil so it doesn't all stick together and I look to the rotating spice rack to my right, excited by all of the wonderful-smelling and tasting seasonings just ready to make my chicken interesting.  Obviously, the first thing I go for is the garlic powder - it's probably loaded with sodium, but I don't care because I'm pretty hell-bent on flavor by this point, and the enlarged bag of boiled rice is begging me to hurry up and finish already.  But instead of lifting the little plastic flap on the cap to reveal the holes for even distribution of garlic powder, I absent-mindedly remove the cap altogether and start to pour about half of the container into my pan of basically raw chicken bits.  I start to panic and everything smells very strongly of garlic, but since I'm a pretty quick thinker, I grab the colander from a cabinet, put it in the sink, and dump the chicken into the colander and start spraying the chicken with water to get all of the excess garlic off of it.  But there was a problem, naturally.

In focusing on the chicken, I forgot the pan, which I put back onto the burner, so chicken juice, olive oil, and garlic powder is all burning to create one of the strongest smells I've ever experienced.  I quickly grab the pan, confident by now that the chicken is nice and garlic-free, and I run cold water into it and squirt some dish soap on it so scrub away the burnt garlic powder.  Of course, the chicken is still in the colander in the sink, so while I'm washing the pan quickly, I realize that my haphazard motions are getting soap all over my chicken.  At this point, I'm no longer panicing but laughing at how ridiculous the entire situation has become.  I have garlicy, soapy chicken in the sink while the entire kitchen reeks of some indescribable scent, the boil-in-bag rice is getting even fatter and my green beans are starting to boil (never a good thing), and this is only the second time I've been cooking my own full meals for my diet.

It only goes uphill from there, though.  I turned the other items on the stove off and began to cook my chicken.  With a few spices I don't remember, some ground cinnamon, soy sauce, and a bit of cranberry juice added in for good effect, the chicken was absolutely wonderful and beyond my expecations.  But really, the process of getting to that was more than I care to handle again.

Anyway, yeah, tha'ts my story.  I hope you're just dying of laughter because, Jesus Christ on crackers it's a knee-slapper, eh?

I just felt like telling it, that's all.  It's not like anyone is going to read this anyway.

Best regards, imaginary readers!
~Andrew

PS:  I posted some new pictures of myself.  Go look.  It's masturbating material for at least a week.

Hey there!

Okay, so I'll come out and say it outright:  I'm tired of being chubby.  I have a gut that I'm starting to find increasingly difficult to lift thanks to all of those Pringles, and my poor moobs are starting to sag (yes, I unfortunately have moobs, which for the unsavvy, are "man boobs").

So I've decided to finally start exercising.  About 2 weeks ago, I started walking/jogging for about an hour to an hour and a half a day.  While I'd love to say that the results are super-fast and I feel energized and amazing, I'd be lying if I did.

The truth is, without decent running shoes - an investment I need to make - my shins and knees are giving me a lot of trouble.  Ever since I started this walking routine, I've felt about 60 years older thanks to the pain in my joints.  Plus, I don't think I'm walking correctly.  Does that sound reasonable?  I've always had back problems, and with a misaligned spine and uneven shoulder blades, one of my legs is just a bit longer than the other.

This causes my left leg to become tired about 5 minutes into each walk while my right leg is moving along perfectly fine.  But my right leg feels funny because I don't think It's moving correctly.  In fact, my whole body feels weird when I'm walking (and don't get me started on how I feel jogging).  I do my best to keep straight-as-a-board posture, but in the end that just makes everything feel stranger.

I think the self-scrutiny has a lot to do with the fact that I'm on display in front of whichever member of my little suburban neighborhood wants to look.  If some old lady down the street wants to see my ass jiggling feverishly while I jog, she's welcome to, and if my neighbor chooses to notice that my nipples are square under my shirt - I wear bandaids on them to reduce the friction and prevent bleeding and excrutiating pain after walking/jogging, which isn't uncommon - he's welcome to laugh himself into a stupor.  My admittedly low self-esteem lets my physical appearance get to me.  And, hey, that just sucks, you know?

I don't suppose I really have a point in typing all of this.  I don't have a lot of people to talk to so I guess it's just a matter of me wanted to get my thoughts out there to vent.

Anyway, I need to get back to work on a rather detailed and large art commission.  I just felt like taking a break.

Hope all is well with everyone.  Feel free to comment and tell me about some of your exercise pains, or at least tell me about your advanced cybernetic chicken that you were given for "International Talk Like A Pirate Day" on Friday.

~Andrew

PS:  The picture seen as my profile pic is terrible old and not very flattering.  It makes my nose looks like a cursed pair of black holes.  I really need to take a new one and put it up.

Bankruptcy.  did I spell that correctly?

I got the good ol' chapter 11 letter in the male yesterday informing me, Hollywood Video Guest Service Representative, that Movie Gallery (the company that recently bought out HV) filed for bankruptcy.

Or so it appears.

What does that mean for me?  I could lose my job.  Thankfully, my job sucks, so I'd have nothing to cry about, really.

Do I foresee losing my job before I inevitably quit?  No, I dont.

Anyway, just thought I'd inform the masses.

Have a great evening!  Your movies are due back on Monday.

~Andrew

Hey, before I enjoy copy/paste uphoria. I'm going to make sure everyone understands the following:  I'm going to complete it for Sarah's sake (the person who sent it to me), and for the sake of all readers, but I'm not going to tag anyone else.  It's too late, I'm too lazy, and well, y'know, that's just how life goes.

In any case, the rules are there for any interested in playing.  Enjoy reading it!

1. Each player starts with 8 random facts/habits about themselves
2. People who are tagged write a blog post about their own 8 random things and post these rules
3. At the end of your blog you need to tag 8 people and post their names
4. Don't forget to leave them a comment and tell them they're tagged, and to read your blog.

1. I have an irrational fear of perfume salespeople (for some reason, the women are more persistent, which makes them scarier).
2. I like to marathon watch entire seasons of television shows on DVD, because I'm too lazy and not punctual enough to catch them when they're actually on TV (thus hurting the ratings of an otherwise fantastic show - bummer).
3. I can wiggle my ears.
4. I'm ambidextrous (Though I prefer my left hand when writing and drawing).
5. I'm a squeeling American Idol fan.
6. I love the Rocky Horror Picture Show, but I have never been to see it with an audience live.  Bummer 2.0.
7. I usually spend about 35 to 40 minutes in the bathroom when I take a shower.  And please, keep your tainted brains out of the gutter.
8. I love the smell of keys.  Yes, keys.  Like car keys, house keys, keys in general.  Something about them is so.....mmmm!

Alright, thanks Sarah.  I really enjoyed that!

Psh, yeah right.  The title's a lie, I assure you.

I need to rant, so bare with me.

I'm getting ready to quit my job at Hollywood Video.  Here's why:

I'm tired of jumping over all of the wonderful little hurdles that corporate likes to throw at us for $6 an hour.

Dont get me wrong, I like my fellow employees, and many of the customers are great (I've even gotten to know some on a regular basis), but as soon as I learn how to do something and have it down pat, the higher-ups (be it the district manager, Charles, or some paper-pusher who gets to sit down in a comfy chair, getting paid threefold what I make, while I am forced to stand non-stop on an 8 or 9 hour shift) have to go and change it to something even more ridiculous than before.  Here's a good example.

I used to have to answer the phone like this:

We're having a great day at Hollywood.  This is Andrew speaking.  How may I help you?

A bit cheesey, yes, but managable and nothing when compared to the monstrosity I have to vomit out every time I pick up the phone now.  It goes something like this:

We're having a great day at Hollywood Video where you can join our MVP program and recieve $50 in free coupons.  This is Andrew speaking.  How may I help you?

Something tells me it's actually longer than that, but I dont remember it completely.  Regardless of it's length, it's the least fun to say, especially when my dad calls the store asking if I need a ride home, but doesn't bother to interrupt me when I'm spewing the advert.  He says he likes to hear me do it because he's sadistic like that.  He's right, where that's concernced.

Another great example is how rentals are currently 50 cents for our grand re-opening (we recently split the store in half).  This is fine and dandy for everyone, it makes the customer happy, and when the customer is happy, I'm happy because I dont have to hear them complain about every last thing they can think of.  But recently, we are now required to put the 25 cent damage waiver on all DVDs because the district manager decided our revenue isn't high enough.  He's right, but seeing as we're technically not allowed to write out our own signs, it means that the 99 cent deal is false advertisement, and I have to hear about it from the disgruntled consumer (despite the fact that he or she is still getting a really great deal when compared to our usually over-priced movies).

Bah!

Alright, it's late and I"m tired.  I'm going to bed.  Probably.  I just needed to rant.

Later,

~Andrew

FLU, as in the virus, not any Floridian universities.

I'm pretty positive I'm suffering from the Flu (influenza), or maybe just a terrible fever.  Italian food tastes terrible the second time around, and the smell is even worse, believe you me.

It wasn't until about 9:45 PM that I was actually able to get up and walk without throwing up or toppling to the floor (the bigger they are, the harder they fall - cliche but true).  Now I have a headache and I feel like crap, but that's nothing compared to earlier.

So far, I have seen italian food, water, and some strange green liquid come out of my mouth.  I'm guessing the green liquid was stomach acid or something like that.

Now, do yourself a favor and go eat something.  I hope I didn't ruin your appetite.

PS:  My brain hasn't caught up with me yet.  I'm typing about five timees slower than I usually do thanks to the headache.

Later,

~Andrew

Another PS:  The version I am playing of Ocarina of Time, for the curious, is not on the N64, but was downloaded off of the Wii Shop Channel.  Oh, the joy of owning a Wii.

Hey there,

I got my Wii on launch day, and I love it so.  I already beat Twilight Princess (which is great, by the way, if you buy any launch title, buy that), but it took me a lot of nonstop playing.  Yay for gaming marathons!

Best regards,

Andrew

Hey guys,

It's been a very long time since I've posted on here.  I just thought I would inform all those interested in my life on what's going on.

First and foremost, for those who are curious, the Hurricane Katrina thing is in the past.  We are pretty much unaffected by it now, although we did move here to GA (which I think I told you guys about last blog post).  So no need to worry about that.

I have a job.  It doesn't pay much, but it's a job, plus it's a job in art.  I make promotional comic strips and artwork for a comic book/media store opening soon in Morrow, GA called Mondo Atomica.  It's actually a lot more difficult that I thought it would be, but it beats Burger King or any job like that.

I'm on something of an art dryspell.  I have been for a while.  I guess I'll just have to think of something, eh?  ^_^

Well, that's about it.  Visit my art gallery if you like:  http://freakshow6.deviantart.com

~Andrew G.

Hey there,

I'm so lazy.  I told you guys that I could do some free photo stuff for you, but I was too lazy to do any of it.  I'm sorry.  x_x

Anyway, my family and I have found a new house here in Georgia.  I dont know what it looks like, but they really like it.  It almost scares me.  Me and my parents dont always agree on what's likeable and what's not.  But it should work out okay in the end.

Going to a new school should be interesting, for lack of a better word.  I'm nervous about it.

Alright, now about the wordnot part.  There's nothing for that part of my title to actually be occupied. Oh well, get over it.

I was recently invited to join the myspace group, the "I Hate Belle Vernon" group or something like that.  Problem is, I dont hate Belle Vernon.  So I declined.

Cya all!

Andrew

PS:  Sarah, if you read this before I get a chance to call you in the near future:  My grandparents are outta town and so it's nearly impossible to make any long distance calls without my dad's calling card, and I dont wanna waste his minutes.  So, I just thought I'd let you know why I havent called.  I'll try and call ASAP.

Hey everybody!

Because I am so bored lately and I do generally have some free time on my hands, if you have any photos that you want to look nice for your Myspace.com account or for any reason, just lemme know and I'll do a touchup or possibly a manipulation (depending upon what you want and what I'm willing to do) for FREE!  Yes, no charge, I'm just bored.

Also, I'd like to take this time to remember all of those poor people who died on 9/11/01.  A moment of silence, please...

...

...

...

Thank you.  Cyall!

~Andrew G.