Hello, this is my last post of 2003. It's been an interesting year. I hope next year will be better. I won't bore you will a look back so lets just look to the future. I start my new job on Monday and I am in a new house, as close as I'm going to get to starting over for a while.

On a side note. My friend Bamboo2 got laid off yesterday at work. They did it for very stupid reasons and they lost a good worker. I would like to wish her good luck on finding a new and even better job!

Until next year,
DAN

One week to go and I go back to work and my three month vacation will be over. I am glad actually, I have been pretty bored when not working on the new house. It will be nice to be back to work and be able to talk to people again. I miss that interaction a lot. The money is going to be nice, that is for sure. Maybe I'll even meet a girl that I like there. That would be really good too.

Without giving too much info out because I don't know how much they want anyone to know, I am going to tell you a little about bamboo2 who found my typo. She is a good friend of mine who I used to work with. When I first met her I thought she was really annoying but once I got to know her I liked her more. She goes out with all of us to Applebees on Friday nights and she has a boyfriend in England. Just thought I'd let you know so you don't sit there wondering who she is.

I don't really want to write about my Christmas because it's over with. But I will fill you in on my Thanksgiving turkey that I never told you about, but promised. As I said before I brined my turkey like Alton brown does on his show Good Eats. It turned out great! The skin was a dark golden brown and very crispy and the inside was perfectly done and very very juicy. For my first time cooking turkey it turned out better than I expected. I will brine turkey again if I get the chance.

That's my story and I'm sticking to it,
DAN

Hello, I can't talk long but I said that I would post once I move in and I am moved in. We have been sleeping here since this past Saturday. I just, although, set up my Mom's computer to check e-mail and look a few things up on Christmas eve, so I had a lot of e-mail to go through. Christmas wasn't too bad, it could have been worse but it could have been better. I wish I had money to get my friends and family stuff for Christmas but I didn't so I felt really bad. I start my new job in just over a week so I will be able to catch up on bills.

I gotta go, I'm really busy lately and I have to sit on the floor to use the computer right now so it's uncomfortable. I hope you all had a great Christmas. Talk to you soon!

DAN

PS Thanks to Bamboo2 for finding a spelling error in my last posting.

I finally got a job! I will be working at PowerNet Global through Express personal starting January 5, 2004. Like Shannon at Express said, it's a good way to start the new year! I will be a customer service Rep. PowerNet Global offers Internet, long distance phone service and data services. It should be a fun job in a field closer to my career choice.

At the new house we got our new refrigerator today. I love it. I'm a gadget guy and that includes big gadgets like new refrigerators. It is very nice and has crushed ice, one of those things that I just love. I will be sleeping there either Friday or Saturday. The phone will be hooked up Friday and the cable on Saturday. It's starting to look like a home finally, and my room is feeling more and more comfortable.

Laters,
DAN

Well, they finally caught Saddam Hussein. No matter how you felt about the war here in the US, you have to agree, as I do, that this is a good thing. I was against the war from the beginning, even though I knew Saddam had to go. I was glad to get on the Internet yesterday morning to see that they caught him. Now we wait to see the trial and see what punishment he gets.

The Buffalo Bills lost again yesterday, barely. They are not out of the playoffs for sure. Now we just hope to have the best defense in football.

One more early morning. The electrician should be done tomorrow. He finished my room so I can set up my bed and my computer and all my other stuff. My room is starting to look like a room finally. I can't wait to get out of an apartment, the people upstairs are really really loud. They stomp around like they are squashing grapes or something.

Ok, off to bed.
DAN

Hello again, it's been a while since I've posted. I hope everyone is fairing will with all the snow we are getting here.

So, Melana picked Jason. I'm not really sure why I'm surprised with that. I guess I was just hoping(for my own sake) that she wouldn't pick the pretty boy just because he's pretty, but that is exactly what she did. It just proves that even women that say looks don't matter are just saying that. Looks do matter. Of course I knew that, but this just proves it to those that said that they don't. Adam was the better guy all around. He had money, he had friends that loved him, he was on his own and secure, and he knew how to treat her right. Jason? Well, lets see, he knew how to kiss and how too look pretty. Now people always tell me not to worry, looks don't really matter to women, they look for other things like sense of humor. Well, I guess there goes my hopes. I guess there is going to be a Average Joe 2 based in Hawaii but I don't think I'm going to watch it, I already know what is going to happen. They showed some previews of it and the girl freaked out, she was pissed that they did this to her. Oh well, such is the vain life. If you want to chat about this, e-mail me at viperwd@hotmail.com with the subject of "blog."

Now on to other things. The house is almost set for us to move in. The electrician is almost done with all the new lines and service. We have carpet in the living room now. We also moved a lot of the living room furniture. My room, well I moved everything except my mattress and most of my clothes. I guess the cable and phone will be moved next Saturday, that is when we are going to be officially moved in. It will be nice to be done moving, I really hate moving.

Well, I still have no job. I have gone to a few interviews with no call backs as of yet. Red Lobster is also delaying my unemployment so I have no money coming in. I might be losing my car, and with no car I can't get a job very far from home. What a good time for all this. I can't get anyone anything for Christmas this year. I hate it, I feel so bad that I can't get anyone anything. Maybe something good will come out of this. I guess time will only tell.

Ok, I hope to post one more time before I move and then as soon as I get my computer up and running once I move. So have a good week all!

DAN

Ok, time to do a couple of updates on things I've posted in the recent past.

First, moving into my new home. I moved my desk the other day. It is a very large computer desk. I actually pulled the bottom and heaviest part up the stairs by myself. It wasn't too bad, I thought we would have more problems than we did. I got it all set up and started to set up the speakers and other things for my computer. I also moved my bookshelf and put my CD's, and DVD's in it. And lastly, I moved my night stand over. My room is coming together nicely. The guy to do the electricity is coming at the end of this week and the guy to do the carpet in the living room is coming on the 10th, so after all that's done I can move in and live there. Although I am going to wait until we get phone service and cable and move things like the stove in.

Next, I watched the new episode of "Average Joe" tonight. They put Melana, I think that's how you spell her name, in fat makeup and a fat suit, just like they would for a movie, and had her ask the guys questions. Then she watched by camera how the guys reacted to her and Zac finally came through as the jerk he is. To keep it short, she voted Zac and one of the new guys, I think he name was Mike, off. Zac was not too happy about it because he thought he was the greatest. So, to keep track, she has not taken two of the thee pretty boys off the show. So it's down to Adam and the one last pretty boy standing. I am rooting for Adam, he seems like a nicer guy and he has a similar sense of humor that I have.

And lastly, new news, I signed up for college and have been filling out financial aid. I guess it's almost final, I am going back in January. This is a good thing, I hope to get a degree in Information Technology(IT) and get a good job, finally.

Ok, until next time America,
DAN

So it's almost Thanksgiving again. I really like this time of year. Most people are in a better mood, there is a crispness to the air, and most of all it means that turkey is in the oven. This year I decided that I was going to make the turkey. Last year I wanted to but decided to let my Mom do the honors. I am a big fan of Good Eats(as some of you may already know) so I am going to brine my turkey like Alton does in the classic episode "Romancing the Bird (A Good Eats Thanksgiving)" Hopefully I will do it right and everything will taste as good as it looks in the show. I will let you know how things go.

Also, I saw a commercial for the Cross Roads Farm and Craft Market and saw that they have a website. I tried to access it but it said it wasn't there. I don't know if they are working on it or if was just down when I tried, but here is the address anyways, maybe it will be back up soon. www.thecrossroadsmarket.com

Have a very happy Thanksgiving all!
DAN

Hello again. A friend of mine brought me to a Farm and Craft Market yesterday. I wasn't looking to find too much that interested me, but alas, I did. The first place that I found something interesting was "Spice Harbor." Now my friend said that I would like it there, and she was right. They had a lot of different kinds of fresh spices that you just can't get around town here. Most of the spices were pretty cheap also, 1/4 ounce of Spanish saffron was only $8. That's not too shabby. Then while looking at some Emu Oil products, I get tackled by the owner to try some Ostrich meat "beef" sticks. I was a little leary, but I tried it, and it was actually really good. No, it didn't taste like chicken. Then he had my try the summer sausage, and it was really good too. Too bad I didn't have any money with me or I would have bought some. My friend did buy some hand lotion that she tried there and said it worked great. The final thing that I found that interested me was Ice Wine. I've only heard of ice wine once before on the Food Network on the show "The Best Of." I knew this wine was very unique and I just had to try a sample. I went up to the guy at the stand, Michael Burkland, and asked if I could try a sample. Now, I am 25 years old and I am always told that I look older than I am. He looked at me oddly when I asked and pulled the bottle out of the cooler. He poured a little bit into a plastic cup and asked me how old I was. I was a little shocked by this and I almost blanked on my age, but I told him that I was 25. He made a little joke, then gave me the sample. I am not a big fan of wine, I just don't care for the taste or the mouth feel of it, but this wine was VERY good. Michael went on to tell me that it is a desert wine and the way it is processed makes it very very sweet. It was the clear cut best wine I've ever had. It was very sweet, the taste was intense, the after taste was actually a good one. This small bottle that he had at the stand, which resembled a extra virgin olive oil bottle, was in the price range of $24 US. I'm not one to spend much on alcohol but I thought that I have to get some of that. I asked him where I can purchase it other than the show there and he told me that it was at all the local liquor stores in my town and handed me his card. I am going over to my sisters for Christmas morning and I hope to bring a bottle of this outstanding wine with me. You can go to their website at www.merrittestatewinery.com I had a good time on that little trip, it was very nice to get out of the house for once.

Until next time,
DAN

Ok, so I haven't really been into reality shows for quite a while now. I, admitting, used to watch Survivor, Who wants to be a Millionaire?, and the Mole. But almost everything since has been boring. One that really did interest me when I saw the commercials was "Average Joe." Why? Because the concept is great. Take this beautiful girl who has been in beauty shows and was a pro cheerleader and give her a group of average guys, not models, to chose from. She said before the show started that looks doesn't matter, and almost all women say the same thing. This show set out to either prove them right or wrong. Now, I consider myself to be not all that great looking so I was intrigued with this premise. This past week she cut the number of guys from six down to three, then the big surprise, which I have to say I was kind of expecting. They brought in three pretty boys. One, from the beginning of the show who welcomed her to the show and then left, and two others. She seemed pretty happy to see these guys come in and hear that they are now part of the show and the three "average joe" guy's competition. Now, this adds a very interesting twist. She has shown that she isn't so shallow that she won't give these "average joe" guys a chance, but is she shallow enough to dump them for the new pretty boys for their looks. She hasn't spent nearly as much time with these new guys and doesn't know them as well as she knows the other three. I am rooting for Adam, he is the most "Average" of the three and I hope that she doesn't fall for the other's good looks only. But, from past experience, looks matter! I think she will go with one of the pretty boys. But we'll see I guess. "Average Joe" is on NBC on Mondays, check your local listings for times. You can also learn more by going to the "Average Joe" website: http://www.nbc.com/Average_Joe/

Ok, time for bed for me. I'll see you soon!
DAN

So I put the carpet in my room yesterday. My room looks good now. I even found a place for my Dave Matthews Band subway poster that Amber got me. It's almost 6 feet wide! It looks great. I am now moving my stuff into my room, which looks like a bedroom finally. Today I am going up there after the Bills game to tack the carpet down.

For anyone who would like to e-mail me about this blog you can. When e-mailing me, please put the subject as "blog." viperwd@hotmail.com

Until next time...
DAN

Ok, in case any of you read my post from early this morning. She called and apologized. So I am taking that post down. For those of you that didn't, my best friend and I had a fight last night and I said that I didn't want to be friends with her any more. But she called this morning and said that she was sorry for what she did, and I said that I was sorry for what I did. So now things are better, we are at least still friends.

Ok, I have to go and help put carpet in my room, after that my room will be ready to move into. :)

DAN

So, my Mom just bought a new house and I am helping work on it. I've been working on my room first so I can get it all ready. (Yes, I still live with my Mom, but hopefully not for too much longer.) A couple of days ago I got the ceiling painted, then I didn't the walls. Today I got all the trim done, and all that's left is where the ceiling and walls meet. I ran out of gray paint to finish. Next I am going to do the closet probably tomorrow. After that is done I can put in the carpet that we got the other day. It is also gray, it should look good in the room and match pretty good. The colors are skyline blue for the ceiling, blue wale grey for the walls and cashmere white for the trim and closet. All the wiring in the house has to be redone. I am getting two new outlets and they are going to replace the two that are already in there. Once that is done, I will be able to start moving my stuff in. My room is probably three times the size it is now which will be nice.

I just thought I'd let all you who know me know what I've been up to the last week or so.

Laters.
DAN

Hello again, glad you made it!

Today, for those of you that don't know, I'm going to let you in on my favorite Band. Dave Matthews Band I've been a really big fan since their first studio album came out in 1994. Many of their songs have a lot of meaning to me. I have been to 4 concerts. 2 at Ralph Wilson Stadium in Buffalo, I was in the 10th row for each. 1 at the Air Canada Centre in Toronto Canada, I was in the 12th row there. And 1 at Six Flags Darien Lake in Buffalo, I was only in the grass(I bought the tickets late.) If you have never heard of them, check them out! For those of you who are already fans, Dave Matthews is going to be on Saturday Night Live this Saturday, Nov. 8, 2003 at 11:30pm EST to promote his solo album.

Ok, so I made a mistake. I sent everyone to a bible website instead of here. hehe, oops! Not that I have anything against those types of websites or anything, just not what I'm trying to do here. But you made it now and I guess I will give you another very interesting entry. :P

Today I am going to let you in on my favorite cooking TV show, Good Eats. I like to cook. I have some experience cooking in the restaurant business at Red Lobster. But I really like to cook at home. It can be fun. But Good Eats makes it even more fun. Alton Brown, the host, mixes pop culture with cooking to make it interesting to watch. Even if you don't like cooking shows, you should check it out. It's on the Food Network every weekday at 11:30pm or Wednesdays at 9pm. Not only does Alton give you recipes but he tells you why things do what they do in those recipes so you can change them up any way you want. It lets you experiment and make up your own recipes. It's actually fun to watch, and gives me lots of ideas for cooking. Check it out sometime.

That's all for now, TTFN
DAN

Hello everyone, and welcome to my new Blog. What is a blog you ask? I asked myself that same question earlier today when I was surfing the net, but more on that later. This blog will be a mish-mash of all kinds of different things. One day it might be a journal of the events in my day. Another day it might be my rants and/or raves of a website that I found. And another day it might be my thoughts about an article in Scientific American that I read. Who knows what it will be, I'll keep you guessing. I hope some of you find my thoughts interesting, and if you do, I hope you will come back. For everyone else, thank you for at least giving me a chance and checking this out. This is a new thing for me and hopefully will evolve into something very fun and informative for everyone(including myself.) If, by some rare chance, you find this interesting enough to link to or mention, let me know, I want to see :).

Ok, now on how I got here. I got an e-mail newsletter from a new website that I found last week, www.howstuffworks.com, and I saw something interesting. "How Blogs Work" I think to myself, "What in the world is a blog?" So I printed out the article and read it while watching Conan. Now I'm not going to try to explain what blogs are since I barely know myself, so I will send you to the article that I found so you can find out for yourself. Maybe you'll even make your own, if you haven't already. How Blogs Work Now I am a very big computer "freak." I pride myself in knowing quite a bit about computers. There isn't a lot of things on the internet or about computers that I haven't at least heard of. So when I heard about blogs today I was taken aback about how big they are and how I haven't even heard of them yet.

Well, this was my first blog, I hope you like it and I hope you all come back.

DAN