Rainy Day = Zero Motivation

I had zero motivation today. I did nothing. The rain had a lot to do with that too. Of course, with the rain, there was no football this morning. I was okay with that. I must've been tired, for i slept till 10:30am...which is rare for me.
I was supposed to go to a crawfish boil today too...and again, with the rain, i didn't feel like going. I didn't even put in my contacts today. I, at least, picked up the acoustic guitar for a little work...
I sure wish i could've done some household chores...but it just wasn't in the cards for today. Perhaps tomorrow will be a more productive day?
Now, i'm just watching college basketball...

I hope your day was more productive than mine?

Time to Relax

Well, after a rather rough week on console and some awkward personal matters, i'm ready to relax. Unfortunately, i don't think there will be much time to relax. The weekend just won't be long enough.

Before work today, i made a stop at Aaron Brothers and dropped A LOT of cash on some frames for my new artwork. I think we came up with some good choices...but man, it's expensive. I won't say how much i paid, but i'm glad i've been working a lot of overtime lately...cause i'm gonna need that extra dough. Hopefully, you'll like it...i just hope that the pieces turn out great! The pieces should be ready in about 2 weeks.

Well, i thought i had more to talk about, but i guess not. Not right now anyway. Anyway...kick back and relax!

Drive around the Neighborhood

So, have you ever gone outside to move your vehicle out of the way for some visitors? Takes, what 3 minutes or so? Well, in space, it takes about 15 hours.

Today, the ISS crew moved their vehicle from one parking spot to another. While they were moving the vehicle, they took a spin around the neighborhood. The video footage was pretty impressive. If i can find it, i'll post it here.

It's been a rather busy week on console. One more day and i can relax a bit...as it is almost over...the increment, that is.

That other thing is almost over too...the paper work is moving on and getting signed. I think one more document to get signed and that'll be it. Probably another month to go...

10 Things...

Here is a list of 10 things that you may, or may not, know about me. I got this idea from Lisa on her myspace page. I brought it here to this blog for all my non-myspace peoples.

I am possibly incriminating myself on some of these, but i believe the statute of limitations has passed, so i should be in the clear.

Enjoy.

1. I have two middle names. My full name is Todd Shane Anthony Horelica. If you are ever upset with me, just use the Todd Shane Anthony bit and i'll know you are upset with me.

2. I have a freckle on the retina of one of my eyes.

3. When i was 3 or 4, my parents took me fishing. I caught a crab and called it a squirrel.

4. I always tie my straw wrappers in a knot. It's my calling card.

5. I made money in college by selling my body...plasma to be exact. Twice a week...$35 cash. Easy money...

6. I was once a little league baseball coach. We won exactly one game.

7. The longest i've ever held my breath was 3 minutes 55 seconds. That was back in my lifeguard days.

8. I started flying airplanes two weeks after getting my driver's license.

9. I once patched a hole (that i created) in my parent's living room wall with dental wax. That patch remains in place still to this day. It's a great story, i'll tell you sometime.

10. In high school, 4 buddies and I were pulled over, no intercepted, by a fire truck and a law enforcement officer from the Texas Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, and Firearms. Another great story...

Comedy Showcase

Tonight, the Mauldins (Jeff and Lauri) and Erin and I went to the Comedy Showcase. It was another one of those free-ticket-birthday-deals. Tonight's...er, last night's headliner was Billy D. Washington. I must say, he was pretty damn funny. There were three openers this night and 2 of the 3 were pretty funny. And for the life of me, i can't remember their names...my short-term memory must be going. But, i think all had a great time...i know i did.

After the comedy show, Erin and I hit the Fox and the Hound to have a few more drinks...since the night was still young. Some of her crew met us there and we shot darts (is that the right terminology? shot? or is it just played darts?) for a an hour or so.

Pretty good evening if I do say so myself...
I'm sorry that you other guys couldn't make the show...it was a good one!

Chattin' with Astronauts in Space...

It's not every day (ok, for Capcom...it is) that one get's the opportunity to chat with the astronauts orbiting high above in the International Space Station. I was given the opportunity to say a few words to LA and Suni today. We were at Boondoggles having the 500 day party for the crew. (LA = 200 days, Misha = 200 days, and Suni = 100 days: 200+200+100=500 days) The crew called Boondoggles and we had a phone set up with a microphone and speakers set up so that everyone could hear.

I thanked the crew for the birthday wishes they bestowed upon me last week and said a few additional words. It's a little surreal, but a really cool thing to do. This has been an incredible increment and i'll never forget the experiences that i've had while acting as the lead ADCO. Although hard, the space business is quite the adventure!

Speaking of birthday wishes...here is what the crew had to say to me. The first 10 seconds or so are of a russian transmission that was going on on another loop...just ignore the first 10 seconds.

Happy Birthday from LA and Suni

I hope this works...this is my first attempt at uploading an mp3. Let me know if you have any issues.

Everything Happens For A Reason...

Tonight's theme on Scrubs was "Everything happens for a reason." I heard this quite a few times during my ordeal and never really gave it much thought until tonight. I began to ask myself, does everything happen for a reason? Perhaps! Of course not! or Absolutely! I don't think there is an easy way to answer that question...perhaps it is just rhetorical. I thought about the following phrase: "I never would've ______ if _______." Fill in the blanks...i know you can. This phrase is so repeatable it nearly answers the question with a resounding yes! And because it is so repeatable, it's got to be more than a coincidence. One event that leads to another...and this leads to yet another, and so on... Would the outcome be the same if things were different in the middle...or the beginning? Who knows...there are many routes to get from point A to point B. Obviously the path would be altered in that it is more or less enjoyable, painful, exciting, (insert any adjective here). Just something to think about...

I don't think about the past much anymore...there is no point...you can't change it. You can learn from it though. Although it takes some more time to learn than others. Yeah, i've learned some things. I have changed.

I'm just going to roll with the punches...whatever happens, happens.

So, do you believe everything happens for a reason?

____________________________________________________________________________


Next topic:

Sadly, Texas A&M lost to Memphis tonight and was ousted from the NCAA tournament. I think that A&M lost the game...as opposed to Memphis winning. A&M was not very good tonight and was capable of winning it...but everything happens for a reason...hehehe (sorry, couldn't resist)

Next topic:

So, i decided to listen to the mp3 of the ISS crew wishing me happy birthday today. And it turns out that i do have the entire transmission. For some strange reason, when i listened to it from home, i only got the first 15 or 20 seconds of it. I plan to post the mp3 to the blog here in the next few days. I just need to turn on the desktop and find my passwords to my other website and upload it there. I can then link the mp3 for your listening pleasure. It may take me a few days to get there though...the desktop is mighty slow!

Fun...and then Not so Fun

Fun -- playing flag football

Not so Fun -- getting a cramp in your calf whilst driving a manual vehicle (clutch calf no less)

Fun -- Winning by 2 points (in fact that's all that was scored. Tremayne and I were credited with the saftey. MudDogs win 2-0.

Not so Fun -- the post game shower (my knees have several different areas of some severe road rash...yeah, it stung.)

I'm super exhausted tonight...I think i'll be turning in a little earlier tonight.

The Birthday Pictures...

And here they are...

***Happy Birthday***

Erin did an awesome job on the captions...you must read the captions...

Enjoy. ;)

Uh-Oh

The weekend caught up with me and i slept right through my alarm this morning. That doesn't happen too often with me. Luckily i didn't have any meetings to attend this morning. I was only about an hour later than normal...so it wasn't terrible. Tomorrow is full of meetings so, i better not be late.

I finally bought some art today. I bought a Monet and a Seurat to go along with my Picaso. Too bad they aren't the real deal...Now, i've got to pay the big bucks to get those prints framed and matted. You'll have to come over to see which prints i picked out...

I am also thinking i need a new set of sunglasses. I like my Spys that i have now, and i'll probably look at purchasing another set of Spys. I have two different sunglasses that i'm looking at...Silver Shadow and Lacrosse. So, which one looks like me? I know, you'd need to see them on my mug to make an informed decision, but give it a shot. Of course i'm particular about the way that glasses fit on my face. I'd have to try these on to see how they feel before making a purchase.

Tonight's rockstar practice yielded some unexpected results. My typical routine is to play through the two hits and move on to devils and then work on finding something new. Tonight's new tunes coming from the guitar were too happy to be Finding Reason. The guys will probably laugh at me when i present them the new material, but there is at least some new material. I expect it will quickly be dismissed.

Tomorrow is the first day of Spring...Enjoy the new season...

Game Nite!

Tonight was a very nice and relaxing way to end the otherwise exciting weekend! It was game night at Erin, Justin, and Branelle's place. Game nite is a great way to have a good time without spending any money!

Earlier in the day i got in some rockstar practice. For some reason, i've been a little lazy on that front. But all was good as i could remember how to play the two songs in our catalog. I have been working on some new music and unfortunately it sounds too much like another band...oh, well, i'll keep working on it. And Finding Reason my be going on a "retreat" in the near future. Greg suggested we just lock ourselves in the studio for a weekend and work on music, music, music. No TV, no women, no distractions. Hopefully we can come up with some music to expand our catalog!

I started out the day by going grocery shopping (a chore i most hate...and hate even more doing it alone...you'd think i'd be used to it after 8 months) Anyway, the iPod made it a little more tolerable. But i'm stocked up on lots of food and such.

And on the NCAA front, Texas A&M has advanced to the Sweet 16. They play Memphis (#2 seed in the South). I'm not sure how that will turn out, but it should be a good game. I have a feeling A&M might pull it off. Guess we'll see...

Hopefully this week, work will be less painful than last week. I, unfortunately, have a lot to get done in one week. April 20th is not going to come soon enough. What is significant about April 20th, you ask? Well, it's the day that my Increment ends...with the crew (LA and Misha) safetly back on the Earth. I can then concentrate on 13A.1 planning.

Well, i think that is enough randomness for one night...Enjoy your week!

Party Like a Rockstar

Well, not exactly. I didn't snort cocaine off the bum of a groupie. Wait. What's the latest rockstar trendy thing to do? I dunno.

The night's festivities were planned out in advance so at least the logistics were taken care of. We had a designated driver (thanks Nick), we had an inconspicuous party vehicle (dodge caravan), we had restaraunt reservations, we had cake and balloons (thanks erin), and we had a post party place to crash (thanks Justin, Erin, and Branelle).

There were two birthdays to be celebrated on this day, mine (31) and Branelle's (25). We started the festivities at the post party crash location with a couple of bottles of champaigne. After that we piled into the inconspicuous party vehicle and put in an 80s CD and we were off. After dodging some traffic tie ups we were in the flow of traffic on the way to the restaraunt (El Tiempo Cantina) The food was good and the frozen margaritas were (wait for the Scrubs' Dr. Cox impression...) stro-ooo-eeoo-eeoo-eeoo-eeoo-nnnnnggggh!! Luckily i wasn't the only one that thought that. Anyway...i was feeling good after a couple of margaritas and i learned a new way to eat a cupcake (thanks branelle).

Once we settled the bill we piled into the inconspicuous party vehicle and moved on to our new location, Volcano. The strawberry basil margarita was a little too strong on the basil so i switched to mojitos.
And eventually the night was coming to a close. We all piled into the inconspicuous party vehicle and made it back to the post party crash location. I occupied a little corner of the couch and was out (thanks for taking care of me erin!)

I left out the details to protect the innocent (er guitly). But it is safe to say that all had fun! I don't have any of the pictures, but i'm sure they will start circulating...pehaps they'll make it to the blog (embarrasing or not...)

And...for the oddity of the night: There were not 1, not 2, not even 3, but FOUR Todds at the restaraunt in our party. I've only ever encountered another Todd in the same party. But four was just beyond odd...

Well, tonight i think i'm going to try to catch Less Than Serious. I don't think i'll be doing any drinking but it is St. Patrick's day. Definitely won't be drinking as much as i did last night. Whatever you do, be safe...and be merry.

The Call Came From Outer Space

Yes, for those of you wondering, I made it through the night...a post to come later.

So, it's no secret that yesterday was my 31st birthday. I've been working on console all week and working hard...it was not an easy week to be there. I put in 50 hours this week. On Friday afternoon, i got a call on console and on the other end was Mike Lopez-Alegria the commander from the ISS. As soon as i answered he broke into song...the happy birthday song. Unfortunetly, the communication gods were in my favor and we were cut off before i could thank him or talk to him. But i did get to hear the song. That was Awesome!!

A few minutes later before the evening daily planning conference, Mike played a song by Big Head Todd and the Monsters on account of my birthday. He and Suni then wished me a happy birthday and thanked me for all the work that i do. We were able to see this on video. I did get an mp3 of the conversation, but when i played the mp3 it didn't cover the whole conversation...only the first part of the song...i was a little bummed. But i think i can get a copy. At any rate, that is one of the most unique birthday wishes i have ever received. And thanks to all that sent me email or called. It means a lot.

Earlier in the day, Ginger, bought me an icecream cake to share with the team. So, it was a great birthday. Better than i could ever have imagined.

Thanks...

Another Rough Day...

...For the longest time, i thought today was Friday. What a sad realization it was once i realized it was only Thursday. Do you ever have those kinda days? It seems i'm having them more frequently. Hopefully, they will go away soon.

There are 37 days left in my increment. While this has been a great and wonderful experience, i am ready for a little relaxation. Don't worry, i'll still be busy with mission planning, but i'll only be concerned with one mission instead of two. what will i do with my extra free time? I dunno...we'll see.

Texas A&M has advanced to the second round of the NCAA tournament by beating Penn today. Here's the bracket for the tourney.

Wicked Weather!

Here in southeast texas we experienced some pretty wicked weather! Fortunately, i was in the middle of a windowless building and the only notion of bad weather was everyone walking in with this "shocked" look on their face. There were even some stories of people being pelted with hail. That made me a little concerned with my vehicle sitting outside unprotected. Oh well...it could've been worse i suppose. There were some reports of possible tornadoes. With the low hung clouds and high winds...and hail, i'm surprised i didn't see one. On my way home i was pelted with some small ice pellets...no damage done...at least from what i could tell. Also, i've been convinced that i need a vehicle with a little more ground clearance. I didn't have any major issues going through flooded streets, for i was watching the low camero in front of me make it through...but it's always a little more comforting knowing that a Murano, for instance, would not have any trouble getting me home.

Of course the wild weather cancelled football for tonight. I was a little disappointed, but i'm a fan of laziness too, so it all worked out.

Today was a very tough day on console. With two ADCOs working, for a full 8 hours, not all the work was completed. We did get a lot done though. We even uncovered a bug in one of our console tools (Sorry for creating more work for you Erin.) I sure hope tomorrow is a little more relaxing.

I need a vacation...do you need a vacation?

Construction sucks!!

As progress is made on the new NASA bypass, traffic is getting worse. I need to find a new way home. Luckily I have several different routes to choose from and i will pick a new route tomorrow and give it a test run. Construction brings out all the impatient assholes. I have a feeling there will be an increase in fender benders.

Well...the oddity with this post is that Josh suggested this was one of the topics that i was going to talk about yesterday. Well, before reading his suggestions, i had decided this was going to be my topic today on the way home today. Ironic... But i'm a fan of irony so...it's a good thing.

And while we're talking about Josh's suggestions, where have all the bloggers gone? Erin, Cory, and Mike & Molly...where are you?
The Green's have recently posted and it's a nice one...a couple pictures of my Godson!

Ever Forget?

I'm quite sure the answer is a resounding 'YES!' Well, that's the point of my post tonight...i can't remember what i wanted to chat about tonight. I hope it's not a result of my old age...

Well, if you can figure out what it was i was going to talk about, please let me know. thanks in advance.

Good Food Sunday

Today my parents came into town to take me out to eat as a celebration for my birthday. We went to Texas Roadhouse and we enjoyed the most delicious ribs. All i could think was: Tasty, Tasty Murder! Man, those ribs were great! And for dessert, my mom made me probably my most favorite dessert...dirt pudding...or this time, dirt pie. Lots of cream cheese and butter and whipped cream and vanilla pudding. Yummy...and oh, so, very fattening. As if i care...

Here's a recipe for those that don't know what i'm talking about.

I also test drove my parents new Hyundai Santa Fe. It was actually a lot of fun. I think it pushed my "buy a new vehicle want" to the top of the priority list.

On another note, the NCAA tournament bracket has been set...and Texas A&M is the 3rd seed in the south region. I'm somewhat impressed...i hope they move on. Some had predicted that they'd make it to the final four. I don't know about that but we'll see. Here is the bracket.

What a Productive Day!!

Today has been perhaps the most productive day that i've had in a very, very long time. Why can't all days be this productive? Anyway...here is the list of things that i did today:
1. Paid some bills (yuck...what a way to start out a saturday)
2. Made some changes to my cell phone plan (took some unwanted items off...i need to follow up with Sprint to make sure that i did things right.)
3. Rockstar practice (usually the bandmates and i get together and work on things, but today we didn't meet up...not sure why? So, i made sure to practice anyway. Work on "blue devils" a lot and also worked on some potential new material)
4. Got the oil changed in the Cruiser.
5. Mowed the backyard (yeah, i couldn't believe it either...the lawn mower started and continued to operate properly)
6. Sprayed tasty chemicals on the unwanted weeds around my house. (don't ask why i chose the word 'tasty'. it just seemed right...)
7. De-weeded the flower beds...as much as i could anyway...the tasty chemicals will do the rest.
8. Chatted with the neighbor for a bit.
9. Trimmed the vegetation (the vegetation that is supposed to be there) in my flowerbeds
10. Blew out the garage...got all the grass clippings and dust and dirt out
11. Church
12. Bought some 3-in-1 weed, feed, and ant killer for the yard.
13. Went to guitar center to order me some accessories (don't want to have my strap come undone and damage my new pretty guitar)
14. Had a date with my hairstylist...ok, so it wasn't a real date...i got my haircut. yes, my life has come to the sad existence of getting my haircut on a saturday night...although i'm pretty sure next weekend will more than make up for that ;)
15. Returned a phone call to an old highschool friend
16. Blogged

There were some smaller items that got done today, but all in all...it's been a very productive day. Tomorrow, my parents will be in town so i'm sure more things will get done.

As i was going on about my day i mentally noted some things that i would like to do here in the near future. I just need to prioritize them to make effective use of my money...but knowing me, i'll put want before need. so, i thought, while i'm making lists tonight, i might as well make a list of those wants/needs. In no particular order:

1. Build a proper music studio: what i mean by proper is some decent reference monitors, a guitar interface, and a suitable computer to run it all.
2. A new fence. I'm starting to get tired of looked at that ragged thing. I just can't come to grips with spending money on that right now though...my neighbor said he'd put a new one up for me. we didn't talk price...
3. Buy a new condensor unit for the AC system. I've had the HVAC guys come out and do some routine maintenance on my system, and it's in poor shape...they told me it may make it through this summer.
4. Buy a new vehicle.
5. Buy new blinds for the house. I've said that for i think 2 years now...
6. Buy and hang art for my bare walls. And maybe even make some art too.
7. Buy some new furniture (couple of leather chairs and an ottoman to fill up that void in my living room.
8. Buy new contacts and new frames

Well, i think that'll about do it for now. I'm sure there are some more things i can think of, but for now that list will do.

Hope you had a good saturday!
Well, I'm quite tired.

Not Much to Report

Well, there isn't much to report tonight. Was a fairly stressful week at work, but i think i got everything sorted out. Had a few drinks after work with friends. Came home and did a little rockstar practice. I've been concentrating on "blue devils," since that is quite difficult for me to pick up right now...It's getting better, but no where near ready for public display. But i am getting a little more comfortable with pieces of it. I've also been trying to work on new music...i have a few things in mind, but nothing solid. Finding Reason will be looking for a full time drummer soon, and we have put forth another goal...to do another "show" by the end of the summer. I hesitate to write that, but i suppose it makes the goal something more real. I grow tired now...I guess i had more to report than i originally thought...

MudDog Seven

Tonight kicked off the Gilruth flag football league for the Spring. And I'm happy to report that the MudDogs won the game. There were only seven of us tonight...just enough to match the other team. With no one available to sub in and out we were on the field the entire time. A lot of running ensued...but we prevailed. It was a good workout.

There was a scary moment though. Cory "break-a-body-part" Sholl took a shoulder in the ribs. He was down for a good five minutes trying to recover. He did and added another score to the scoreboard. Luckily nothing was broken...he'll be sore and bruised for a few days. Final score was 13-0. Next week hopefully we'll have some more of our regulars to sub in and out...

Have you ever had such a busy schedule that you needed someone to tell you to "stop what you are doing and go eat something!"? Well, i needed that someone today. I didn't eat supper tonight. From work, i jumped into Finding Reason rockstar practice here at the house. I wanted to work more on "blue devils"...that song is really taking a toll on me. After rockstar practice, i loaded up the guitar and headed out to guitar lessons. And then following that i dropped off my gear and headed out to the football field for some good ol' flag football.

And now i write to all my faithful readers...you are special! (i think the lack of food is affecting me...)

All Things Squirrel...Almost

So today at work i was entertained by the amazing acrobatic squirrel troupe. These guys were flipping and leaping and hanging. The only thing missing was a tiny squirrel sized hoop of fire! There are some short trees right outside my window and these little critters are having fun in the lovely spring weather. I even think i witnessed squirrel sex. It was either that or squirrel wrestling. Well, whatever the case, the squirrels were very entertaining. Perhaps I was easily amused due to my lack of sleep (i'll get to the reason for that in a bit.)

So, seeing the squirrels frolick in the wonderful spring weather made me think of another squirrel, Foamy. Foamy is...well, you should see for yourself. Warning: The contents of the following link may be seen as offensive to some. If you are easily offended, then don't click the link: Squirrel Songs. Ok, this link takes you to the vault. But one of my favorites is Squrrel Songs...so select that cartoon and enjoy. If you like that one, you should take some time to view the other sketches.

Ok, that is the end of "All Things Squirrel."

Last night, Less Than Serious played at Sherlock's in Clear Lake. Yes, i know, on a school night. Well, i attended the show and stayed a little too late. But i had a great time. Amazingly, i woke up before my alarm went off...on just 5 hours of sleep. I expect to get some very good sleep tonight. I hope one day Finding Reason can play to a packed crowd. Now, it's back to rockstar practice...

Wonderful Weather

Today was absolutely a gorgeous day! I took advantage and spent most of the day outside. It was another good day for football. No one got injured and all had fun. The post football grub run was to Freebirds. Sorry, Erin, but Chipolte cannot beat Freebirds. It was so damn delicious today. I'll reserve Chipolte for my pulled pork needs.

Following Freebirds it was straight to Rockstar practice. We need to hit the lotto or stumble upon some money. We need our own studio. It's such a pain to drag all the equipment to and fro and set it up, tear it down, blah, blah, blah. If we had our own studio, we could just show up and go to work...

Well, the weather distracted us from our practice. We ran through our two crowd pleasers and then wandered outside for a bit. Ok, we did try to work on some new material and it started to go somewhere, then it died and went nowhere. Then we wandered outside. We started talking about what we need to do and how we need to get there and such. It was a nice talk. We attempted to go back in and work on some yet unfinished music. The "driving" song is a lot further along than i remembered. The driving song was an old piece of work that was put aside to complete further along works. I think the driving song is nearing completion...there are some lyrics that need to be written, but the overall structure is complete. I guess i'll get to work on this one...

Now, that the sun has gone down, i think i'll just sit here and relax and watch a movie.
Enjoy your Saturday night.

Happy Birthday Misha

Today is Mikhail Tyurin's birthday. Mikhail, or Misha, is currently living aboard the International Space Station. Today i had the privledge of talking with Misha and sending him well wishes on his birthday. Ginger threw a birthday party for him here on the ground and several Increment 14 Leads got the opportunity to wish Misha a happy birthday. It was quite an experience.

As a special present to Misha, Ginger asked us to help Misha find his retirement career. Since Misha has flown two long duration missions, it is unlikely that he'll continue as a cosmonaut (but who knows what he'll do?). So several people morphed Misha's bio photo into other career opportunities. Since Finding Reason needs a drummer, i thought it was fitting to introduce Misha to a set of drums. So below is the photoshop that i did for Misha. This was done with Microsoft Paint...it would be better had i had photoshop or some other high quality photo altering software.



I made a hard copy as well. The hard copy will be sent to Moscow so that Misha can display it at his home in Russia upon his return to Earth. I also prepared an electronic copy that will be sent to Misha this weekend so that he can get a better look at it. Despite working hard, we do find time to socialize and have fun with the crew.