Mar 1, 2017

I worked at Memorial for CST during the day and had to call the teacher back into class from the meeting before lunch so I could actually go have food. So that was frustrating, but overall the day was fine. I went to Becca's and cooked some asparagus while she napped and then we headed to my mom's for dinner. My mom made the delicious chili that we had over Christmas, and it was just as good again. We had the peach wine that I got her and then we got into a game of Rummikub. We played quite a few games before we left. It was a lot of fun hanging out together.

Feb 2, 2017

When I got to Vineland Memorial in the morning I was greeted with Alex telling me "We're not having CST meetings because a teacher is out.. maybe call someone?" So I called Insight and got them to give me another job at that school for the day for the same pay rate. I was a one-on-one with a kid named Oliver. So I went to his classes with him and more or less just sat there in case he needed me. He almost never did. The day started slow, but once I got lunch and took a break in the afternoon it wasn't so bad, just boring. I went right to PT for my thumb after work and got the same treatment from last week while I played Words with Friends and talked to another guy getting shoulder treatments.

When Becca was done work we headed up to Mount Laurel and stopped at Wegman's on the way to pick up some beer. We were greeted by a friendly guy offering us tastes of wine. Since we were within the safe confines of a grocery liquor store we accepted. They were actually really good wines, but this Chablis was my favorite overall. The chardonnay wasn't bad and there was a good pinot noir. Pretty good trip to the liquor store.

When we got to Alex's she and Chuck were watching Groundhog Day, so we dished out the Massaman curry that Alex picked up for us from Bhan Thai and started watching. It was nice since I haven't seen that movie in quite a while. After dinner we tried out the VR console for Chuck's PS4. We played an escape room game that was pretty fun. The whole thing was kind of crazy and awesome. After trying it out we got into playing Fibbage so we could all play together.

We opened the Allagash Curieux and the Dogfish Red & White that I've had since Christmas; both were very good. After some fun and hilarious games of Fibbage Becca and Alex took a break so Chuck and I got into another VR game about defusing bombs called "Keep Talking and Nobody Explodes." It was amazingly fun. I didn't know what to expect from VR in general, but I am excited for it.

Dec 31, 2016

I slept in again and it was really nice. Once I got myself up I picked up Erynne and went to Silver Run for the closest thing Millville has to hiking. It was nice weather and we had a good walk while we caught up. She had never been there and I hadn't been there in some time.

We went to Wildflower for lunch and split a black bean burger wrap that was soooo good. It's been a couple months at least since I've been there but this is one of the best things I've had from them. We took a little trip to the mall trying to find out of the Viet place had a vegan version of their Vietnamese coffee with heavy cream. They did not, so we went to Target and got Starbucks to walk around with while I went to find the expansion pack to Settler of Catan.

Later it was time for the big New Year's Eve Party to begin. So when Ryan, Shannon and Alex got to Becca's we set up Catan and proceeded to explain the directions to everyone, confusing even those of us who had played many times I think. It was fun though once we got started and Ryan went on to destroy us all.

We spent the next couple of hours playing Catchphrase "Decades" which has categories from the '70s to the present. I prefer the other one, but this one ended up being fun. Becca's friend Lauren and her boyfriend Tony brought it so we could all play. The time passed quickly, lots of jokes were made, good and bad guesses had by all. Someone said as a clue: "He's in Genesis." My guess was Jesus. It was really Phil Collins.

At midnight most of us were uninterested in the dropping ball or turning of the calendar in general, but the festivities sort of came to an end there and people started leaving. After a brief cleanup and some stronger hints for people to leave, we got to bed in preparation to get up for the first sunrise of the new year tomorrow.

Jan 17, 2014

We had shortened periods through the day because of an afternoon basketball game that the students play against the staff. So the day went pretty quickly and easily. I had a shorter break early in the day, but I got an extra hour break at the end when the game was going on. I was glad I didn't have to go. I met Ryan at the gym after work, but after a few exercises he had a bad headache, so I just ran three miles on the treadmill and we put it off until tomorrow.

I went home for a while and edited the rest of a batch of photos and sent them off to Kim. We went to Matt's house later for games. Chuck and Alex were already there, and Ryan and Jamie showed up soon after. We started off playing Pandemic, which had to be explained to all the newbies, but it seems like it's easier to explain each time we do it. That's coming from someone who understands it though.

We played two rounds of that, one of which we lost horribly before a full round ended, and the second we ended up doing really well. It didn't seem exactly like it was involving everyone though, so we got out a card game called Citadels. I had thought Ryan had Cards Against Humanity so I had everyone's hopes up, including mine, for that. It turned out he wasn't able to get it because it's still sold out.

Citadels was actually quite fun once we figured out the rules. We definitely did a bunch of things wrong, but they were minor things that didn't really affect the game too much. Once we got the hang of it, we had a good time playing it. I thought I had won, but Jamie and Ryan kept killing me. I was close to winning in the end, but Ryan was just a few points ahead. It was a fun game night. We just need to remember to bring more games.

Dec 7, 2013

I left before dawn heading to Delaware. It was a decent drive in the dark listening to Nick Offerman talk to me. I got to the rest stop early and the others from Legacy were running late so I went inside and actually bought myself an EZ Pass! It's about time, but this is the first opportunity I've had in Delaware. Dave, Derrick, Caitlyn, and Katie arrived shortly after to pick me up. I squeezed in the back with the girls and we went to the arena in Baltimore where Strayer's graduation was being held.

We set up our cameras and backdrops and then started shooting PR photos of the dignitaries and students before they came in. Once the place filled up and the faculty filled the stage the event got started. It was the same as the last Strayer grad I shot, down to the stupid speech the president gave listing things that are not as old as the university. Quite enthralling.

I shot the handshake/diploma presentation this time. It was much harder and fast-paced than the easy single shot in front of the banner. I had a hard time framing some of the photos as the people walked by quickly. I definitely messed up a few of the shots. My arm was hurting halfway through, but it seemed to stop pretty soon after and I just got used to it.

After we finished and quickly packed up our stuff we were back on the road. We went into the rest stop where I left my car and Dave bought us all lunch. I got an awesome salad with mandarin oranges and walnuts with raspberry vinaigrette. So good. I had a great time working with these guys today so I hope I get to work more grads with them.

I came home and was lazy for a while instead of going to the gym or being productive. Ryan came over and we met Chuck, Alex, and Kate at Matt's for games. We played Taboo first, which was a lot of fun and ridiculous. We played a bunch of Scattergories next, which is a game I'd really like to play more often. We hung out for a while longer after Chuck and Alex left, playing some Scene It, then Ryan and I went for a walk around that neighborhood in the cold night before heading home.

Nov 30, 2013

I woke up early and worked on some photos for a while and then I headed to Parvin for a run. Ryan was on his way so I had to start right away and I put on All Time Low so I was running quickly with the beat. I ended up running the three miles at 8:05 per mile. I was pretty happy with that. Ryan got there pretty soon after I finished and we got right to walking around. It was a good time outside.

After showering and getting ready I headed over to Tracy and Mike's place for Friendsgiving. I spent a lot of time playing with Atreyu while Tracy and Mandie cooked. 

We all milled around and sat in different places to eat and just hung around until we decided to play The Real Game of Life, which Mandie and Andy came across while traveling. It was really an awesome game that took Life and made it more fun. You could do drugs, get hit by cars, get mugged, become disabled, have kids, abortions, and adoptions. It was really a lot of fun. We had about 9 people playing so that was cool too. 

We moved on to playing Cranium next, and we actually had the clay! It didn't really become that fun or useful unfortunately, but the game was still great. We had some fun memorable moments like Mandie and Tina singing "Ride of the Valkyries" and thinking they were singing the Star Wars theme. It was something amazing.

We hung out talking for a long time after games and made plans for skiing in January. I don't know when the next time I'll see some of these peoples, but I'm glad we had a great time tonight.

Oct 11, 2013

I worked ACI at Memorial today. I only had a couple of kids throughout the day so it was quite easy. I did some reading and some internet surfing. The biggest problem with that job is that there is really so little to do that it goes slowly and you need to have something to occupy your time. After work I got an oil change that I needed badly and then went home to eat.

We decided to have a game night at Kate's so a bunch of people came over to play. My sister, Chuck, Alex, Ryan, Erika, and Steve. We opened some beers, including the Forever Unloved Sandy by Flying Fish. It's really good and I guess it's doing well since I thought they were done producing it a while ago. We played a game of Cranium, which was fun for the most part, but a bit crazy, as it can get with that many people. After that we played Telestrations, which can also get ridiculous with a lot of people, but it tends to be the good kind of ridiculous. After a few crazy rounds we were all ready to disperse and head home. It was a lot of fun getting a group together for games again though. 

Oct 6, 2013

Kate and I headed to Delaware in the morning to go to Iron Hill DGC. The forest was beautiful in autumn colors and leaves covering the ground. Regardless of how we played, the scenery was worth the trip to walk around the woods. There weren't many people there, so we didn't have to worry about crossing over anyone. The game went pretty well for both of us. I had some really good shots and some really bad ones. Overall it was a good day of playing though.

I always forget how long the course is. I start questioning whether it's a 27-hole course, but then I remember it's just because each hole is 400 ft or more that it plays longer than the ones I'm more used to. After finishing up the long course, we headed to Stewart's Brewing to get a flight and some food before we headed back. I didn't expect the place to be such a sports bar. There were TVs everywhere and fans with many different jerseys. I asked to be placed near the door since it was furthest from both loud TVs and yelling fans. Most of their beer was middle of the road, but the Big Bear Amber Ale was damn good. Definitely a smooth, drinkable beer.

On the way back home we stopped at Eliza's birthday party at a gymnastics gym. Aiden was there with Devin, and of course Tracy was there doing backflips down the trampoline thing. The kids and adults were allowed to play in the big foam-filled hole so we were doing dives and flips into it. Aiden was really enjoying himself just like the rest of us were. After singing happy birthday it was time to head out.

Later we gathered at Erika's to play games. We played a round of Settlers of Catan and that took up quite a bit of the night. It seemed like everyone was just on the brink of winning before Ryan finally did. We need to have more game nights.

Feb 2, 2012

I didn't work during the day, but I met up with Kim in the afternoon to talk about her wedding plans and our ideas for shooting her engagement photos. It was productive. Later, Chuck and Jimmy came to Kates and we played some music and talked about what we'd like to do with the band.

We spent the rest of the evening playing games. Mostly Telestrations. Such a fun game.

Jan 12, 2012

I worked at Memorial in a science class and met Kate for sushi during my lunch break. Sushi lunch specials are the best. It's been a while since I'd been to Peking Tokyo as well. It's still just as good.

I met Ryan at the gym after work for some circuits of upper body stuff. Not as crowded as I would have expected for late afternoon.

We all went to Erika's later on for game night. We played the best game ever: Cranium. It's never not fun. We had cheeses and meats and dips too.

We had a lot of fun, but I have no idea what Chuck was trying to act out in this picture. The charades part is one of my favorites. I'm not very good at the humming questions.

Oh, game nights. So much fun. Why are they always so few and far between?

Dec 3, 2011

Kate and I decided to go for breakfast at Jim's Lunch. I had the sausage gravy and it was delicious. We hung out there for a while and finished our tea and toast and then headed out.

I went to Silver Run for a few laps around the trails and then walked a bit before leaving.

I had seen a sign for a Christmas Lights display at the motor sports park so I took Kate there. It was a very short walk around a track with Christmas decorations and lights that you'd normally see on people's lawns. It was a little lame. But we got hot chocolate and watched a guy carve an ice sculpture.

We came back and Jimmy and Chuck came over to play Telestrations and we drank a few beers. That game is always a lot of fun. I didn't stay out too late because I had to get up a little early.

Nov 12, 2011

I went up to Bethel Mill Park in the morning and met Christy for a walk around. After we talked for a while we went over to Clancy's for lunch. I got the crab quesadillas which sound a little strange but they were great. I want them again.

I came home for a while and made some last minute preparations for the night and then gathered the troops and headed to Collingswood to pick up Jeff to embark on his bachelor party! After a somewhat frightening journey through the backstreets of Camden, we found our way to the bridge and started at the Abbaye. We had some good food and some merry beers before we took our leave and headed around the corner.

Of course, it was a bachelor party so I can't tell you everything that happened... well, okay I'll let it slip. We danced to N'Sync's "Bye, Bye, Bye" on the way to the North Bowl. Shhh. The wait for a lane at the bowling alley was crazy so we just went looking for another bar.

We ended up at a soccer bar not far from there, drinking some good beer and spilling some too. It was a pretty chill place, but we all had a good time chatting and hanging out.

We came back to Jeff's to spend the rest of the evening, where he presented us with our gifts. We each got bags with a bottle of Jameson and a different bottle of beer. Chuck got an Arrogant Bastard but I got the Double Bastard. Very nice. I also got the added gift of a bracelet that says "Best Buds." We'll be bracelet buddies! (Friends, anyone?)

We spent the rest of the night drinking Magic Hat and playing Telestrations in the living room. We also attempted lifting one another like a barbell. That didn't go too well. We are weak. Or heavy. Or both.

We had a really good time and I hope Jeff did as well. I think we sent him off with a good night with friends.

Nov 6, 2011

I didn't sleep that long after getting home at 5am, but I got up and went to Wildflower with Christy and brought my breakfast burrito home to eat while we watched Bridesmaids. It's a pretty good movie.

We went to Kate's later where we played Telestrations with her, Chuck and my sister. I'd never played before and it ended up being a lot of fun. You have to draw and then guess what the previous person drew and then the next person draws the word you write. It gets silly.

Like Pictionary, we had some weird drawing and some that were much more complicated than they needed to be. Definitely a game I want to play again though.

Nov 1, 2011

Another day of band classes. They watched movies and still complained about having to write one paragraph about the music in the film. Idiots. At least the band class at the end of the day played music.

I went to Union Lake for a run after work. The trail seemed a lot more sandy than it did previously. Plus someone dumped a bunch of tires in the middle of the trail. I don't think I'll return as much to this one.

After having dinner at my mom's and telling her about some of the upcoming things I have going on I came home and Chuck, Kate, and Sarah came over to play Pictionary and have some drinks. It was a lot of fun. Kate thinks me and Chuck should not be on a team because we were getting things really easily, but they ended up winning anyway.

These are just a few of the amazing drawings we did during the game. True art.

'Twas a good time and something we should do more often.