Bigger Than My Body Gives Me Credit For.

THIS is how I feel tonight.

2010-12-01T00:02:00.001-05:00

My head is everywhere tonight. I’m feelin’ Nashville. I’m thinking about L.A. I’m watching Sportscenter. Photoshop and Illustrator are open, and I’ve got a stylus plugged into my USB port ready to draw…but I’m typing in Word knowing that I’ll copy and paste it into my blog when I’m done.

Amanda is to my left and I’ve got a glass of wine to my right and even though I’ve got more work due in the next two weeks than I’ve had in a while, things are GOOD.

My first semester of grad school will be DONE in two weeks, and I’m pretty psyched about that, but I need to light a fire under my brain’s ass to get more onto my assignments. Thanksgiving break was great and much needed, but it was nothing but a TEASE of how things will be when the semester is over. It was the calm before the storm of finals, and the last quarter at the bottom of my pocket at the arcade that’s discovered as the continue screen ticks down to zero.

I learned all of this as an undergrad. Thanksgiving is a breather, but “Drew, you can’t get comfortable yet.” Doesn’t matter. I fell for this trick five times before, and I fell for it again over this past long weekend. My head is bouncing between how much we’ve done this semester and what I’m gonna do after May without focusing on the NOW…which I desperately NEED to pay attention to.

But May is only six months away. In fact, six months from TODAY, I’ll be 11 days removed from graduation. Again. And honestly, I think I was more secure in this position as an undergrad, because, HEY, worse case scenario if I don’t find a job for a while: GO TO GRAD SCHOOL.

But what about after GRAD SCHOOL? Whew. Working on that one, and thinking about places I could see myself when I’m done, job (hopefully), internship (OK), or no job (SHIT!)…

Three years ago, as I had six months left of undergrad, I said, NEW YORK. I had it all planned out. I was gonna go to New York and I was gonna MAKE IT!

Instead, I went to Colorado for a month, met some amazing people, and toured the east coast following Mayer and hangin’ with friends for a few months before I settled into my parents’ house, started dating an amazing girl, and began working at a great restaurant.

School started up again after two years, and now that I’m in the hypothetical “Where do you wanna go?” stage again, the locations have changed a bit, but I’ve narrowed it down to three:

Austin. Nashville. Los Angeles.

I could see myself in any one of the three, and I feel like my vibes would TOTALLY match up with them. Austin and L.A. are hotbeds for my major, and Nashville is just amazing in its own way. I’d be happy in any of these places, and I’d feel like I was at least SHOOTING at my dream job[s] (whatever they are, exactly)…

But bring the daydreaming back to right NOW, and I’ve got finals coming up. And then another semester. Can’t really measure it in time, because it flies and it’s never concrete. Good days soar, bad ones are like swimming through jelly.

So we’ll measure it in METAPHOR. I’ve got two mountains to climb before May. I’m SURE more will pop up between now and then, but the biggest and tallest are FINALS (in the next two weeks) and SPRING SEMESTER. Whatever else comes up will seem like a walk in the woods, and I’ll get through it…even if I need a lil oxygen in the end.

So between now and Austin or LA or Nashville or WHEREVER, I’ll keep truckin’.

You know I always do.

D.

On spending.

2010-11-25T00:00:00.000-05:00

Check it:

Sunday night, I told myself that I would get through Monday without spending a SINGLE dollar. Not a cent. I had some groceries left over from the weekend and enough random food to get me through the day that I wouldn’t have to buy anything and enough gas in my car that I could go to and from school without a refill. Said I could get by without spending any more money on top of the things I already had.

This endeavor may sound stupid or self-absorbed…I don’t know. I don’t know how it sounds to you, and I hope it’s not offensive in any way, like I’m some douche who wants to “choose” not to spend money for a DAY, but think about it. When was the last time that you went through an entire DAY without spending a CENT? I’m not talking about percentages of your rent or power bills that are included on that day, but spending on top of what you have already paid for, like buying added groceries to what you have, or useless items and coffees that you don’t need. Can you remember?

I can’t. I hit the grocery store up pretty much EVERY DAY, even when I have veggies and meal materials in the fridge. These things go bad sometimes because I don’t get to them in time, thanks to the added things I buy during the week. I also go through days where I BUY my lunch at school. I’ll drop $3.50 on a couple of carrot sticks and a coffee when I HAVE all of this at home, but didn’t take the time to prepare it for the road. Ridiculous. And then there’s the useless stuff on top of this, which can include anything from parking costs to a new t-shirt to that ONE song on iTunes that I HAVE to download for my commute. Stupid.

So I tried it. Monday came, I went to school, hit the gym, and made dinner with food I already had, and it felt pretty good. Thought it was something I needed to practice more often.

And then I remembered I downloaded a song on iTunes that morning while I was getting ready for class. I broke my own promise before I even left my HOUSE and spend 99 cents on a download of the “What’s Going On” cover by the All-Star Tribute from 2001. It’d been stuck in my head and I did it without even THINKING. I hadn’t heard the song in a LONG time, and Marvin Gaye’s version was stuck in my head, so I wanted to hear it again. Took like 12 seconds to download it straight to the touch. Twelve seconds to spend a buck on a day I said I wouldn’t. Idiot.

Anyway, I wanna do this successfully, but it’s HARD to go a day without spending money, and that makes me sad. It sucks that we live in a society where it pretty much HAS to happen on a daily basis, but I have to admit that I’m as guilty as anyone else in this area.

It’s a weird thing to think about, but why not give it a shot? It could be the cool thing to do, like jumping onto a trend before the rest of the world does. Give up spending for a day and see how you feel. Use whatcha GOT and work with it. Because, dang it, most of us PROBABLY have everything we need already. No need to spend. Just live.

Ramblin’ on,
D.

Eighteen again.

2010-11-15T13:01:00.002-05:00

Went back to NC State this weekend for homecoming and I became a 25-year-old 18-year-old. My friends and I are seven years removed from our freshman year there, but we’re skilled in taking trips with the metaphorical time machine made up of our memories.

The game was great. State beat Wake Forest 38-3, but the score and the action were only pinpoints in the weekend. This trip was more about catching up with old friends and calling each other out for how we used to be…and re-living certain aspects of our old selves.

We’ve all been through a lot since then. Every year since has been a tally-mark in the age column and a step forward in maturity, but through everything, we pick up where we started as kids in college ready to tackle the world. Our only problems then were finding out where to go and what to do every night. The drama wasn’t finding and keeping a job, but dealt with who was dating who and if this party was worth going to over that one. And we thought THAT was hard…

The main difference between then and now, though, is that in 2003, we were all in the same boat. We were starting school, confident, and nothing was jaded. We lived in the same building and we came together as a family at the start of COLLEGE, where no matter what “they” say about class, you’re gonna learn more about YOURSELF than anything else as you go through the process.

Now we’re all in different places and points of our lives. Some are married, some are back in school, some are states away, and some have big kid jobs. Regardless of where we are, though, we had that first year, and we went through one of the biggest one-year leaps of personal change together: the transition of being a freshman to being a sophomore. People came into and left our group as we moved forward in the next few years. Younger folks joined up and some moved away, but we stayed close, and whether we see each other every day or once every four years, the gap apart is easily closed, and it’s just like running into each other by the entrance of Owen Hall between class or at Fountain for a meal.

So this weekend was great. It was a break from everything of today and a true trip down memory lane. I’ve been wearing nostalgia like cologne lately. Like cologne temporarily covers up the fact that I didn’t shower today (no shame), nostalgia brings back the past in a way that you can hear it and feel it, but you’re not THERE. I can see it, but I can’t cover up the fact that as always, time is flying forward and those days are over (just like I won’t be able to cover the non-shower smell much longer…gross).

Don’t get me wrong, I LOVE where I am today and I’m super-happy with life. But the memories I hold on to are what brought me to this point, so I’ll always have a soft spot for those times.

Raleigh is different now, and there’s something new every time I go back. Hillsborough Street is a living juxtaposition of the past and the future, with its run-down shops and restaurants but futuristic airport runway of lights and automatic parking meters. It’s fancy, but the roundabouts suck. Downtown has LINES in front of bars now, and Carter-Finley Stadium hosts a winning Wolfpack team.

Faces are different everywhere we go, but for ONE weekend, we owned the city again, brought back 2003, and made it our HOME.

I love you guys, and I can’t wait until we do this again, wherever and whenever that may be.

Drew

Freshman year:

Saturday Night:

Coffee.

2010-10-24T13:05:00.001-04:00

Coffee has become my fuel. It’s the gasoline to my car and the yellow sun to my Superman. I drink it and it pushes me. Ahh, coffee.

I’ve been a two cup a morning guy for three years now, but I’d managed to cut out day consumption over the last year or so…until grad school.

Now I need it. One cup when I wake up. A tall cup for the commute to school. And an afternoon Vente Black before my last classes of the day. I told myself I wouldn’t do that, but after the first time, it was all downhill.

Weekends are no different. I went to brunch at 11:30 yesterday, and by the time we left at one, BOOM, my persistent waitress had topped off my bottomless cup four times. Didn’t even realize it. Until I was bouncing in my chair and chewing my nails.

I’m one down right now, waiting to go get food and itching for my next cup. It’s one o’clock.

Oh, coffee. I love you and I hate you at the very same time.

So long, Bobby. We'll miss you.

2010-10-12T12:32:00.003-04:00

The Braves were eliminated from the NLDS Monday night, but that wasn’t the real story. While reaching the end of the season is always rough, it was harder this year because it meant the end of Bobby Cox as manager.

In 25 years of managing the team, Cox lead the Braves to 2,149 wins and 15 straight division titles, including winning the 1995 World Series. He loved Atlanta and his players so much that he’d fight and stand up against every bad call, leading to 158 ejections in his career—first on the all-time list. But he was never bad-tempered. He had heart, and usually got fired up to prevent his players from getting kicked out of a game.

For me, Bobby was always a link to my grandfather. Granddaddy was the reason I loved the Braves. Growing up, I collected the cards and tried to play for a year or two. I faded numerous Braves hats and loved being a fan. However, I didn’t really watch the game until I was a little older.

I remember the moment I started to truly get into the Braves. We’d go to the beach every summer with my grandparents and family, and of course, my grandfather had control of the TV remote. These were the Turner hay-days, when the Braves were on TV six nights a week.

We’d finish dinner and Granddaddy would take his seat on the couch and turn it to baseball. My cousins and I knew this would happen every night, and we’d get bummed because we would want to play movies or watch cartoons, but we knew we were there because of him and respected what he wanted to watch. He’d go to bed kind of early, and we’d get the TV from there.

We got used to this trend over the years, and we’d continually repeat the cycle. Dinner--Braves--Granddaddy to bed--TV control. After a while though, instead of just waiting for control of the remote, I sat down and started to watch. I absorbed the lights on the green of the field and the sound of the bat and learned the players’ names and positions. I became more than just a kid with the faded “A” on my hat. I became a fan sitting next to my grandfather, and it was a great bond.

Granddaddy passed away July 1, 2001. It was my first experience with loss, and it was hard (Of course, it’s never easy). The night before his service, the Braves trailed four runs to the Phillies halfway through the fourth inning. I was down, and the Braves were down. But then Atlanta scored. And they scored again. And again. They went from four down to batting in the runs and winning the game by seven! It was a great game, and it lifted my spirits.

The next day, we said our goodbyes to Granddaddy. When it was my turn, I looked at him, and all I could think of was how peaceful he looked. I got my voice to rise out of my throat and told him about the great Braves comeback the night before. It was our bond, and I know he would’ve been proud. I had to tell him, but I probably didn’t need to, because I’m sure he was watching from somewhere that night.
The Braves went on to win the division again that year, but they entered the playoffs with the lowest win total of the other playoff teams. They lost to the Diamondbacks in five games in the NLCS, and the season was over, but my love for the Braves and the tie to my grandfather lived on.

Of course, I’ve continued to love the Braves since, and I’ve been lucky enough to make it to a few games in Atlanta. Through it all, Bobby Cox has been on the bench in the corner of the dugout. Looking at him, hat low and sun-worn face, he always reminded me of my grandfather, and seeing him always took me back to sitting on the couch and watching the game with Granddaddy.

Last night was Bobby Cox’s last game as manager of the Braves. Besides Chipper Jones, he’s the last Brave on the team who was part of the organization when my grandfather watched them play six nights a week. His impact on the game will be felt for years to come, and while the Braves will move on, it will be different. I know, though, that just like the bond I have with my grandfather, his legacy will live on forever.

Thanks for everything, Bobby. We’ll miss you.

Drew.

R.I.P. Jetta

2010-10-06T12:51:00.000-04:00

My Jetta is officially gone. The insurance people finally came to evaluate the damage, and the tow company picked it up while I was at school Monday. I didn’t get to say goodbye.

I’m not gonna lie. I cried. But I’m a crier. I lose it every time I watch “Field of Dreams” and Ray’s dad asks him if they’re in Heaven. “No, we’re in Iowa,” but there IS a Heaven. I tear up sometimes when I tell my girlfriend how much I love her, because I’ve been on the shit side of it and never thought it could be like this. I cried every summer on the last night of camp growing up, and YES, I’ve even shed a few while watching “Gravity” being played in person.

So when my car was taken from its final resting place, I cried.

My mom put a flower on the spot where it got hit, and coming home with it gone (as pitiful as it had been), the whirlwind of the last week caught up with me. Everything’s been non-stop since I had to get out of bed at 3 a.m. a week ago to see the damage, and it really didn’t hit me that it was destroyed until now.

It’s crazy to put so much into an OBJECT, but I’m a sentimental dude, and cars are different than other material goods. They take us places and protect us along the way. They’re a stereo on wheels, and you know you need music for any drive. They’re the last stop for a personal pep-talk before an interview or a first-date, and they take us back when the pep-talks work and things are good (or get us out when we need to run). They are the most important part of any road trip.

And speaking of ROAD TRIPS, my Jetta got to go on quite a FEW (or maybe I should say that I got to go on quite a few because of my Jetta). Together, we went through a total of 11 states and countless trips to the mountains and the beach. We also went to 11 Mayer shows. We drove all over North Carolina, down to Auburn, up to DC, and hit Tennessee from tip to tip. The driving partners changed over time but my Jetta took whoever was riding wherever we needed to go.

I’m looking for a new-used car now, but I feel like the kid from “Old Yeller” when he doesn’t want the new puppy. It’s just not the same.

So, R.I.P., my driving friend. Thanks for the miles and the memories.

Thank you, Michael Franti.

2010-10-04T10:12:00.000-04:00

Today is Monday. It’s hard not to think about this fact. The weekend’s done, and a new week is starting up. It’s cloudy out, I’m dragging, and it’s gonna be a lonnnnnng week.

But I’m not gonna Eeyore this morning. Nope. Why?

Because Michael Franti and Spearhead made me smile on my ride to school.

His music is plain-old HAPPY. I saw him open for Mayer in March, and I knew he brought this feel to the stage, but I only danced to it (not on stage, unfortunately [cough]). I didn’t listen hard enough at the time. The song that I was lucky enough to hear today, though, was called “I’ll Be Waiting,” and it turned my “case of the Mondays” attitude into more of a “case of the Tuesdays” vibe. I listened this morning, and the lyrics that really caught me were:

“The best things in life are things

The laughing and crying.

The best things in life are things

The frightened, they’re still fighting…”

He’s speaking TRUTH. The musical aspect of the song was friendly, and the lyrics are right. It’s all about smiles and cries. I wanna add this song to the mix tape of my life right now.

“I Won’t Back Down” by Tom Petty and “War of My Life” by Johnny May are on this list too. They all have similar themes with various degrees of badass-ness thrown in. Franti’s has more of an “I’ve got your back” feel to it, but it’s got the same message: “Keep fighting on. Don’t give up, and things will be ok.”

The back of my mind believes this message, but when outside forces try to take this belief away it’s a lot harder to hold onto. Songs like this and moments of clarity in between the bullshit and the work are what bring the idea BACK. It’s the last limb on the bottom of the tree you’re falling out of, and it’s there to catch just before you hit the ground. You’ve just gotta throw your hands up and try to grab it, because I promise it’s there. Hang on, climb back up, and keep going, because there’s a much better view at the top of the tree than from the bottom.

I’m working on getting to the next branch now, and I’m gonna tell myself to keep going.

Until I get to that next one, I’ll sit through this Monday with a thanks to Michael Franti and a good song in my head.

D.

"It's 3 a.m. and I wanna go to bed..."

2010-09-30T11:05:00.001-04:00

There is NOTHING fun about being woken up at 3 a.m. by cops at your door, but it could DEFINITELY be worse than why they came to mine Tuesday night. I was the victim of a hit and run, and my 1999 Jetta was totaled.

You may be thinking, “that sucks,” and it does, but it’s all about OPTIMISM, right? Looking at things HALF-FULL. Believe me, it’s the only way to roll through life happy.

But let’s get back to the knock first. I was out COLD for the night, dreaming about not being in school, when something woke me up. I have a wrap-around porch on my duplex that ends with a window attached to my bedroom, and somebody was RIGHT OUTSIDE. Whoever it was had a flashlight and was waving It around my window.

Then “BOOM BOOM BOOM!” Somebody was pounding on my door! I freakin’ froze up in bed, but I knew I had to answer it, not knowing what the intentions of the person would be. I got outta bed, left my lacrosse stick behind like a sleep-deprived idiot, and yelled, “Yo!”

“Police, open up!” they said. I was awake now…

“Oh,” I said, and opened right up. My mind was racing, having NO CLUE what was going on.

“Are you the owner of the black vehicle outside?”

“Yeah. What’s up?”

“You’ve been the victim of a hit and run.”

Shitttttttt, I thought. I walked outside, and sure enough, I was the victim of a hit and run. Cops don’t really lie about these things, but I was tired, dammit, and had to see it.

The guy who did it slammed into my car and fled on foot. My poor Jetta was pushed up onto the sidewalk with a snapped axel and a caved-in passenger side. One of my wheels was parallel to the ground, “Back to the Future”-style (You know, like when the Delorean flies in the second movie). It was totaled. And damn, it’s cold out at 3 in the morning…

Anyway, fast-forward real quick, and everything is going to be ok…for me at least. We got the kid’s insurance from his dad, and they’re going to come give me a quote on how much money I’ll get for a new car in the next day or two.

The KID, though, is screwed. Besides being drunk and committing a hit and run, the police found pot and pills in his car, AND he had expired tags. There’s a warrant out for him now, but I don’t if they’ve gotten him yet.

Crazy, right?

There are several things to take out of this, though. First, thank GOD no one was hurt, past the surface injuries the driver sustained. A car is a car, and it sucks, but everybody is ok. Second, I hope the kid will be all right. What I hope he gets out of this is a life-changing experience. I hope he looks at it as an event that turned his life around, and starts living it RIGHT. Moments like these define character, and the way you handle it can determine the rest of your life, so I hope he looks at it as a second chance instead of a terrible night.

Drunk driving is no joke. I know there have been a few times where I shouldn’t have been behind the wheel, and I’m SUPER-thankful and lucky that I’m here today to write this admission. DD’s and cabs are awesome, and 20 bucks on a safe ride is a lot cheaper than the cost of a lawyer. Or your life.

My car will be taken care of. Things are cool. We’re all still here. The rest doesn’t matter. Just gotta keep truckin’ and keep it half-full.

True.
D.

Theory Exorcism.

2010-09-27T11:56:00.001-04:00

I need something to write about.

Anything. I’m kinda lost at sea. I mean, is writing about not knowing what to write about a topic? I’m drawing blanks here. My creativity is being sucked dry by shitty theory writing for school. The time I put into writing about what I LOVE is being traded for time writing about communication theory and hypothesis.

Not trying to bitch. I guess it’s not truly writer’s block, but “intellectual writer’s block.” My creative mind is currently possessed by a demon made up of textbooks, scholarly journals, and computers. I need an exorcist made up of Nature, Music, and Free Time.

The Music is there. I listen to it on the way to and from school and when I work out. I do my best thinking on my 35 minute drive to school. The ideas flow between chords and songs, and I feel inspired with my coffee and my sunglasses. It’s my second-favorite time of day, besides seeing my lady. I feel happy and ready to take on anything, knowing my ideas will be successful. Only problem is, as soon as I walk into school and turn on my computer, they’re gone.

I don’t really know how to fix this problem yet, and I wouldn’t be writing about it if I did. I’ve always heard that it’s good to “visualize” what you want to happen before you get a chance to MAKE it happen. My lacrosse coach always told us to do this before games, and they say it’s good to do so before interviews. Kind of like a psychological warm-up. I visualize all these ideas, but I can’t make them happen due to lack of Nature and Free Time, so they disappear.

I could try to write them down and save them for later, but then others will pile up. They’re like dreams deferred, and they kind of fade to quiet like the end of a good song. The thought stays, and then the chords of the next one begin and it’s gone.

I’ll figure it out, though. I’m in this thing for the long run, and while I feel like I’ve been a little mislead, I’m still on a path to better things. In the meantime, I’ll keep searching for a way to tip the scales in favor of creativity. I’ll MAKE it shine, damnit. Love it too much not to.

Eight months left, and miles to go before I sleep.

D.

Too much STUFF.

2010-09-20T10:20:00.002-04:00

Watch this, because it'll open your eyes: http://www.storyofstuff.com/

And then read my take:

Ever listen to the song “Penny Lane” by The Beatles? It sounds SUPER happy, but when you listen to the actual lyrics, it takes a turn and becomes ominous REALLY fast.

“The Story of Stuff” reminded me of a cartoon version of this. It looks and sounds happy and fun, but when you really LISTEN to the message, it’s scary and sad.

This animation is something I think everybody should see. It’s important enough that I’m even going to post this into my fun, non-school related blog. It’s educational and enlightening, and it freaks me out.

I took notes throughout the animation of the facts that really stood out for me. How about knowing that of the 100 largest economies, 51 are corporations!? I bet the conspiracy theorists LOVE this one. Really makes you think about the whole BP situation in the Gulf. Sometimes you gotta wonder who really is running everything…

And America, come on! We really do think we own the world, don’t we? The fact that we would need 3-5 Earths if everyone consumed the way we do really caught my attention. We also consume twice as much as we did 50 years ago, and release at least 4 billion pounds of pollution a year!

Oh, and how about the fact that we have more stuff than ever, but we’re also unhappier than ever. There’s GOTTA be a correlation here. We have more stuff, but less time to use it. Apparently we have less leisure time NOW than we did during feudal society, and when we do have free time, we waste it on television and retail. The fun and real things in life, like family and friends and love, are overlooked, and we keep trucking forward and piling up the money so we can pile up the toys we’ll put down after a week.

All of this is ridiculous, but I can’t say that I’m any better than everyone who falls into this equation. This weekend alone, I went through a pile of my old “stuff” to find things to give to Goodwill. I rummaged through stacks of old t-shirts and analyzed which ones I could stand to part with. A lot of them were stupid graphic tees with cool logos or catchy messages, and even though I hadn’t worn them in a while, I thought, “man, I might want to wear this again one day.” I managed to overcome this for the most part, and ended up giving away about 30 shirts. Thirty shirts! I certainly don’t NEED 30 shirts, but it’s not my fault, right? Nope. It’s not my fault that I’m exposed to 3,000 ads a day, and told to buy new things because we’re groomed with perceived obsolescence to believe that the newest trend is the only way and that anything else is shit.

So no, it’s not my fault.

But yeah, it is. I don’t NEED to fall into this. And this little presentation certainly encourages me to avoid all of this to the best of my ability. I want to be a representation of this and go out like a soldier for sustainability. I’ve gotten better in the last few years because I’ve learned more about the situation and everything that’s going on in the world. Half the time that’s what it’s all about. We NEED to be educated on this stuff, because knowledge of the problem is the first step in the direction of fixing it.

Once we gain the knowledge, it’s up to us to act. You guys think we can do it?

Wolfpack 2003.v.2010.

2010-09-17T00:10:00.001-04:00

NC State just put a beating on Cincinnati, and I’m happy.

We’re 3-0 for the first time since 2002, and it feels like my freshman year of college again. We’ve got a strong offense (maybe not as strong as with Rivers that year, but strong) and a good defense (better than freshman year ‘03), so it balances out pretty well.

It’s pretty fitting. Good Wolfpack team. I’m like a “freshman” in a new school. Fall fast-approaching. Life’s a wheel that keeps on TURNING and it always amazes me how things come around again.

So much happens this time of year. To me, the start of football season triggers the beginning of the fall more than the start of school, and I love it. I’m a sucker for spring and the weather getting warmer, but I’m deeply in love with autumn and the changes the season brings. It’s nostalgia and cooler temperatures and beautiful.

Looking forward to seeing how my Wolfpack respond to this start and to what the autumn will bring us all. These kind of feelings definitely make the rest of the pressures I’m feeling seem a lot lighter…

Caveman Diet.

2010-09-15T12:03:00.003-04:00

I’ve gone paleo. It’s true. I’ve been eating like a caveman for the past two weeks, excluding the weekends, and I’m feeling good.

I did some research on the topic and it seems like a pretty legit diet. All it really involves is consumption of foods that were around 10,000 years ago, so lots of nuts, fruits, veggies, and meat. You’re not supposed to eat dairy, legumes, grains, or processed oils and foods. Check it out:

My problem is that I don’t EAT meat, so I’ve modified it in a way that I get plenty of fish and whey protein (I get that they didn’t have protein powder back in the day, but this is MY version, so back off). I’m also keeping some of the fake meats in my diet, which doesn’t fall into the purely-paleo path but keeps me fed and fit.

I’m eating lunch as I type right now, and it’s all fruits, veggies, and nuts. I know I sound like a rabbit, but it’s freakin’ delicious and fresh. The nuts cover good fats and proteins, and I’ve got plenty of vitamins and minerals coming in from the fruits and veggies.

I’m only doing this on a trial basis for now, but I like the results I’m already seeing. I feel great, my workouts are rockin’, and it seems like a good thing, so why not keep going?

I realize I might get bored of it after a while, but that’s what my weekends are for. Monday through Friday is all health when my Saturdays and Sundays are all pizza, fries, beer, and pancakes. Mmm, mmm. And I definitely cheat mid-week from time to time, depending on the occasion or how I feel.

Eating like a caveman isn’t so bad, and like anything, it gets easier the more you do it. I’m gonna run with it for now, and we’ll see what happens…

D.

True Blood finale.

2010-09-14T09:37:00.002-04:00

The “True Blood” season 3 finale was the other night, and of COURSE, they left us hanging for the next one.

I’ve watched it two and a half times now, and while it was fun, it wasn’t as shocking as the finales of the past two seasons have been, because they left so MANY loose ends by the conclusion of the episode. Instead of one BIG shock, they left us with about NINE.

Let’s take a look (SPOILER, if you care…):

1. Bill’s mission for the Queen: One of the biggest shockers of the finale was when Eric revealed that Bill was sent to Sookie by the Queen from day one to figure out exactly what she was. It got shadier when he told her that Bill let Sookie get beaten up so he could save her and link her with his blood. Of course, Sookie flipped out at the news of this, but Bill legitimately protested that he had no idea of why he was sent, and that he really did fall in love with her. She kicked him out, he left crying. The situation sucks, but I think he really does love her. No bad motives there, and with how writing works they’ll throw them back together by the end of the next season. If you haven’t realized by now, it’s never good to “Jim and Pam” or “Ryan and Marissa” your characters by hooking them up early in the series.

2. Sookie’s disappearance into the Light: We all knew Sookie’s background as a Fairy had to be further explained. There’s still a lot of mystery here, but I’m sure she’ll be back and inspired to use what she’ll learn from the others.

3. Did Sam shoot his brother? No. OR, yes, but in the leg or foot. Sam explored his dark side in this season, and we found out more about his past, but he’s good at heart. While his brother used him, I think he sees a lot of himself in the kid. He’ll give him a second chance. You may disagree, but I don’t see it any other way.

4. Tara leaving town: Tara’s been through so MUCH the past two seasons. She deserves a new start, and she’ll be missed, but there’s no way she’ll be gone for good. She’ll be drawn back by something having to do with her mother, because as hard as she tries, she can’t break that link.

5. Jason as a caretaker: Jason was left in charge of the Bon Temps Hillbilly Corps. He’s an idiot, but he’s a big kid and he tries hard. As always, he has no clue what he’s getting into, but he’s following his heart and I think it will actually turn out good in the end.

6. Lafayette and Jesus: Lafayette is seeing some messed up SHIT now, and it all has to do with the V he took and his link to Jesus, who revealed himself as a witch. It’s like he can see the inner evil of people (Rene in Arlene, blood on Sam’s hands), and he can’t escape it. He seemed scared of Jesus in the end, but I think Jesus will guide him and teach him what he needs to know to overcome and use these visions.

7. Hoyt and Jessica: Happy ending? Too good to be true. What the hell was that doll on the floor of their new house? Their relationship is lovable, but something bad has to bring it down. Again, that’s how writing works. Don’t forget about Hoyt’s mom buying a rifle at the end there. It’s obviously for Jessica, but something tells me Hoyt’s gonna be the one who gets hurt by her intentions. Like you, I REALLY want this to work out, but when something looks sunny, there are always shadows in the dark.

8. Russel and Godric: Two old vampires. Russel was left charred and buried in concrete, but he’s pissed off and he wants revenge. He’ll be back. And GODRIC is coming off as the Jesus of Vampires. He’s a ghost now, but he only wants peace. Something tells me he wanted to save Russel for a reason, like it would help out the bigger picture of things. It’ll be interesting to see if he shows up again.

9. Arlene and Terry: This is a secondary loose-end, but Arlene is still pregnant, and with Lafayette’s vision you wonder about the baby. And I don’t trust her methods of trying to end the pregnancy. Something weird is going on, and it’s gonna bite them in the ass.

Whew. So. LOTS to take in. Instead of punching us in the face with one giant opening, they hit us in the stomach with several loose ends. It was entertaining, but they’ve got a lotttttt of explaining to do in nine months.

Until then, stay outta the sun and let your fangs hang down.

D.

Shuffle.

2010-09-03T00:04:00.001-04:00

Haven’t had a free-style write in a while so I’m going for it.

MAN, I’m tired. Wired tired. I know I should go to bed and I’ve got a thousand things I need to do before then, but I’m not gonna do those either. One thing at a time, right?

I ate dinner down the street at Fishbones tonight and a bunch of musicians set up their amps and instruments across the intersection and started jamming. We were on the patio, and I wasn’t sure about it at first, but once the guitars started humming and the bass started groovin’, it was amazing. They had an ambient sound to their music which blended nicely into the orange-blue dusk lighting. I’m not usually into straight-up jammage, but they were doing it RIGHT, and it cooled the hot air down a lil for us all.

Ahhh, music. I’ve always appreciated it. You know this. I know this. But I’ve really been trying to ABSORB it lately. Life is in a stalemate with time right now, but it’s on the starting block of a sprint, just waiting for the gun. Oh, and it’s about to FLY.

Freakin’ grad school. Yeah, that’s the race for now, and as you know, we’re always racing SOMETHING.

But the MUSIC helps get me THROUGH it. I have a 30-minute commute each way everyday, and putting my iPod on shuffle takes me through everything from slow and peaceful melodies to fast-paced songs I like to run to. Each one is a button-push away from getting passed to the next one, depending on my mood (and how much coffee I’ve had).

Putting my iPod on shuffle is nice because I never know what song will come up. I’ve got music on there I forget about, music I listen to over and over, and music that takes me BACK to different moments in my life.

That last subject is something I am all ABOUT, and something I truly believe in. I’ve talked about it before, and I’ll talk about it again, but I KNOW that everyone has songs that take them to specific points of their lives. This is something I wanna write blurbs about anytime one of these songs comes up for me, and I encourage you to do the same. We can see if any similar songs come up and swap stories.

Pass it on, because I guarantee everyone’s been there at some point.

And if you wanna do it right, put it on SHUFFLE. Life’s a shuffle anyway, right? Yeah, we go to work and school and get into routines, but every day is different. Don’t get caught up in the redundant, but look at what you’re LIVING. Make it fun and make it count.

D.

Websites.

2010-09-01T16:35:00.001-04:00

My professor for Interactive Writing and Design asked us to introduce ourselves today and tell what website we visit first every morning.

My answer, along with half of the class, was Facebook.

Sad, I know, but I’m a Facebookaholic. I said I check it first because it’s good seeing what all’s going with everybody and if anyone posted anything on my wall overnight. Why does this matter to me? I don’t KNOW, but I ALWAYS check it.

And thinking about the time I spend on Facebook, I made the depressing calculation that if I spend a QUARTER of Facebook time with my guitar instead of on the computer, I’d probably be pretty dang good. But no. No. I like watching links to viral videos on YouTube and seeing who all is recently engaged instead. Idiot.

The positive is that Tumblr is the second site I check every morning, so I guess I’m going in the “write” direction…get it? It motivates me to write and it motivates me to post fun things, and it’s more focused than Facebook, so it at least FEELS more credible.

Anyway, if I can find a way to turn my Facebook time back and turn my writing time (or guitar time, or school time) up, I’ll feel better about it. But we shall see, haha…

Outkast.

2010-08-31T23:57:00.001-04:00

West Savannah.

Windows down on my way home and it came on my iPod. Took me back to Fall 2000, the start of tenth grade, and riding around in my buddy Dirk’s old Volvo. We were young, we weren’t freshmen anymore, and we had a friend who could DRIVE. Cool nerds who thought we were gangster.

Music is a time machine.

HBO.

2010-08-31T15:44:00.001-04:00

I keep forgetting it’s Tuesday, and that’s AWESOME. It’s my first day back in school so my mind thinks it’s Monday. GOTTA love it when you realize you’ve only got a four-day week until the weekend. It’s like waking up from a “naked in front of an audience” dream and realizing you were sleeping (unless you’re into that, of course).

The last week off was exactly what I wanted: relaxing. Spent a lot of time at the gym and a lot of time with my lady, and otherwise, a lot of time watching “True Blood.”

And it’s true. I’m obsessed. I like the show so much that I wish I was a vampire. It wouldn’t be so bad, flipping day and night and living like a rockstar. Amanda and I watched the first two seasons over the first part of break, but we were itching like V-addicts to catch up on season 3.

Itching so bad, in fact, that I looked online to see if it was available on HBO on Demand. Oh, and it was. Then I looked up how much HBO cost a month. Thirteen bucks.

Hmmm. Never had HBO before. Hmmm. Two months of HBO costs half the price of the DVD set. Hmmm.

GOT IT! And it’s been totally worth it. We are now one episode from being caught-up before the season finale. After that, see ya, HBO!

Nothing like beating the system. Whew. So for now, school. Later, livin’ like Bill Compton and watching the show until it’s drained DRY.

D.

Drew vs Food.

2010-08-30T11:16:00.002-04:00

Went to Richmond, Virginia on Friday with my mom to help my sister get geared up for her move to Florida.

It was a chill night, and marked two years since I first asked Amanda out, and two years since the Mayer show in Raleigh that she couldn’t go to. RIDICULOUS how fast the time goes. That show still stands out as one of the best I’ve seen, if not the best. He brought it ALL, and it was rainy and emotional and raw, and he played my trifecta all in a row: Gravity>Clarity>Wheel. Couldn’t have asked for a better evening (unless she could’ve made it, haha…)

Anyway, it was cool seeing a bit of RVA. It’s an eclectic city with a vibe similar to Austin and Nashville. A lot of it’s so laid-back that it’s hard to believe it was once the capital of the Confederacy. Guess it’s a concrete example of how things can change, eh?

Went to dinner with the mom and sis to a lil Thai place called “Ginger” where I ate THE spiciest meal I’ve EVER had in my life. It was killer, and I love spicy. I’ve always been a fan of sweating as I eat, but as I struggled through the dish I looked like I’d been at the gym in my jeans and dress shirt. I didn’t even order the spiciest flavor! It goes up to “Make me cry” hot, and I ordered the second strongest, “Thai hot.” The server asked me if I was sure when I chose the spice, and I said “yes” with a cocky grin on my face. HA. Dude smiled back as if he knew something I didn’t…

And he did. My food came out and after the first taste of the first onion, I knew it was going to be epic. The spice had a snowball effect that just kept BUILDING. I tuned out conversations and my mom saying “you don’t have to finish it, you know,” but kept eating.

And I was going to finish it, dammit.

With every bite I felt like Frodo on the quest with the ring of power. The spice was my Mordor and a clean plate was how I would destroy the ring and save the world. Sweat poured into my food and red wine calmed my palette, but I kept going.

Did I get there? YES!

My sinuses were Claritin-clear and I was drenched, but yes, I finished.

But that wasn’t the end. No SIR! We were in Richmond, so fried Oreos were a MUST! If you’re looking for it, Heaven is in RVA in the form of these guys at the Galaxy Diner. SO good.

After dinner, mom told me she felt sorry for how I was going to feel in the morning, but I laughed it off. The food was delicious, I was victorious, and it was a good night.

D.

PS: Mom was right.

Embracing the nothing.

2010-08-23T15:13:00.000-04:00

School is kicking my Tumblr’s ASS right now, but I’ve got a week off and I’m ready to WRITE.

Went up to the mountains for a quiet getaway this weekend and it felt like fall. Loved it. Don’t get me wrong, summer is still in full swing, but it was nice to breathe in cool air for a few days. I’m a big fan of every season, but my favorite times are the transition periods into the next one, when the weather changes and everything feels new. Parallels life on a lot of different levels.

Didn’t get out much while we were there, but I’m not complaining. Spent a lot of the time feeding a new addiction to “True Blood,” which is trashy awesome. I wasn’t sure I’d like it because EVERYBODY talks and raves about it, but it sucks you IN (pun intended). The characters are all great and complex in their own ways, and the plot lines are always pretty twisted. It’s also violent, sexy, and hilarious. I’ve been watching it so much that my Southern accent keeps popping out and the sun hurts my skin. It’s crazy.

It was nice getting to leave town for a few days and do NOTHING. It’s rare to soak in the nothing, and sometimes it wears you out more that doing SOMETHING, but after a while it helps you melt into whatever chair you’re sitting in or bed you’re laying on and you just relax. It’s kind of like stopping to smell the roses or admire a nice view. We run out of time to do things like this, and even when we make the time to do it, we often feel obligated to do something else.

Finding the time to do it and embracing the nothing is one of the most relaxing things you can do, and I hope I get to do it again soon.

D.

Musical double standards.

2010-08-15T00:23:00.001-04:00

Musical double standards.
There is a musical double standard.

What is it?

It’s guys listening to female singers. For some reason, society says it’s not cool for dudes to listen to chick singers. If you do this, you’re either “gay” (in a derogatory sense of the word) or you’re in the same family as the girl, but what are the odds of that?

Women can listen to it all and there’s no backlash. They blast female singers because they can relate to what they’re singing to, and they rock dude singers because they might be attracted to the guys, but they also respect the MUSIC. (Ladies, I mean absolutely NO disrespect. I’m just jealous.)

And, honestly, that’s what it’s all about.

Respecting the MUSIC.

So what’s wrong with a dude rockin’ the music of a lady?

I’m a fan of several female singers. I love Alicia Keys because she brings Motown with a modern twist and she can BELT it. I’m a fan of Michelle Branch because she carries the acoustic vibe of early John Mayer and she’s talented. I like Paramore because Hayley Williams makes me run faster on the treadmill when she sings about love and some of the bullshit that comes with it. There are several others, but what sucks is feeling the “need” to roll my window up or turn my volume knob down when I approach a stoplight, like it’s a “bad” thing that I’m feeling their music.

The double standard in music is whack. I’ve gotten pretty good about not turning the music down, but I still get that stupid feeling like people are gonna talk shit about the music I like. But hey, it’s MUSIC. It’s LIFE. Fuck it, right?

If they stopped to listen, they’d realize what they were missing. And if it causes an awkward glance from time to time, screw it. Think of the good it does for you and how that outweighs their judgement.

Then turn it up and keep driving.

D.

Ramble on.

2010-08-08T02:15:00.001-04:00

Sittin' on my porch again. Been out for a bit.

I'm in an interesting place right now. Things are cool, but a lot is changing. You know this. I've complained and celebrated it at the same time.

You ever have anything you complain and celebrate about? It's an odd combination. Same as being excited and nervous about something. One thing's great, the other not so much. I guess it's all about figuring out which side you're on. Half empty, or half full.

I'm half full most of the time, and without tooting my own horn, I like that about myself. I think looking at the world (especially as crazy as it is these days) in a positive light is important and builds character.

Things won't always go our way, but if you keep a good head about it, everything will be all right.

I went out in Raleigh last night with my good friend Daniel. We reflected on old times and kicked it like we used to. It was awesome.

Thing is, we both talked about being 25.

What is being 25? Is it marriage? Is it success? How do we weigh this age? Does it matter?

I honestly think the idea of success is different for everyone.

There's a definition for "success" in the dictionary. I don't feel like looking it up, but it's in there. We all know this. But do you believe in that definition, or your own?

As a 25 year-old going through what I think may be quarter-life crisis reflecting, I believe that success is a personal word. I think we all have our OWN version of success in our heads.

Our generation is made to believe that success is all about money and who you know, but I honestly think that all it boils down to is HAPPINESS.

Who is happy these days? Is happiness the fast-forward life that we choose to live? Is it money? Is it family?

I guess it's different for everyone too.

To me, right now, if you asked me what I thought it was, I'd say it was family, love, and LIFE. School is gonna kick my ass, but I'm happy with where I stand. I wanna make money to support myself and my future family, but I also wanna have fun.

I like where I am, but I'm not a fan of people judging people based on what their own definitions of success and happiness are. I don't like it when people look down on others because they don't think they're living up to certain personal standards. That's YOUR opinion...not theirs'! Get over it.

Live your life. Enjoy it. Embrace it. And support the fact that other people want to live theirs how they wanna live it.

Love it all.

That's what I say.

Damnit.

D.

August.

2010-08-04T07:52:00.001-04:00

August.

The coolest name of the months, but one of the hottest. It means back to school, humidity, and slightly shorter days. It’s a sleep month where instead of sitting on porches and soaking in the heat, it’s back to the grind.

August.

Eighth month of the year. 2010 is flying by, but I’ll say that again in September. It’s the end of summer to society, but not to the calendar. It’s the start of pre-season football and the trade deadline for baseball. New beginnings and last chances to get the perfect team together, because October is right around the corner.

August.

A time to rush during the week but slow down when you’re off. A time to soak in the remaining hot, orange sunsets and to listen to cicadas before they stop and to outdoor music before they move it inside where it’s constricted to only the paying audience. Everyone knows that like us, music should never be tied down.

August.

I like it.

Monday night.

2010-08-02T22:25:00.000-04:00

I’m sitting on my porch drinking a glass of red wine and listening to the NIGHT.

The crickets are humming and playing their legs like violins, and cars are driving by faster than they should (but I do it too). It’s cool out tonight. Crisp. One of the crickets is louder than the rest. The lead singer while the others provide backup. I can hear drums from a bar down the road. They stopped now, but I’m sure they’ll kick back in a second. Monday night is open mic, and it’s subtle from a distance, but it’s there. My mind is wandering. I miss my girlfriend and my sister and freedom. School isn’t freedom, but a new step. I like the step, but anything new is scary. But scary is good. I heard the other day that the Chinese character for “danger” is the same as the one for “opportunity.” I don’t know if it’s true, but I like it. It makes sense. Lots of things don’t, but that’s part of the fun of it all.

Right?

[Twos]day Tunesday.

2010-07-28T19:31:00.001-04:00

Yesterday was a long day. Not bad, just LONG.

It was my second day of class and rainy out, so instead of getting jazzed up and ready it was just the sequel. Same place, same people, different day. The main character’s [Drew’s] new struggle: “He’s gotten through the first day [cue music]…Now what’s he gotten himself into?” [Action scenes into end of trailer] Look for the finale in May: “Graduation” (if he survives).

But life is one step at a time, and while the second day wasn’t as exciting as the first, it was still only the second day.

Also, speaking of two’s, I made two near-wrong-turns today. First came on the way out of Greensboro when I started to take the exit for Amanda’s house and had to swerve back onto the road. Oops. More coffee today. The second happened on my way home for the night when I almost went to my parents’ house instead of my duplex. Oops again. Some habits are hard to break, huh?

Anyway, I made it through day two and wanted to share one more thing.

Since yesterday was Tuesday (new music day), I decided to write down the main songs I listened to throughout the day. These are songs I heard on my commute and at key points the rest of yesterday. None of it’s NEW exactly, but I wanna start doing this from now on. We’ll call it “Tunesday,” and you’ll get a glimpse into the setlist that made my Tuesday happen.

I’ll try to make it random and leave the iPod on shuffle for the most part, but there will be some songs I wanna play at certain times too.

Here’s the setlist for Tunesday, July 27, 2010:

COMMUTE

Grand Funk Railroad-“Some Kind of Wonderful”

Ben Harper-“Fly One Time”

John Mayer-“Back to You (Live from Cary, NC, 2002)”

Michael Jackson-“Black or White”

Keith Urban-“Somebody Like You”

John Mayer-“Perfectly Lonely”

LUNCH

The Roots-“The Fire”*

The Roots-“The Seed 2.0”

LAST SONG OF THE NIGHT

John Mayer-“Edge of Desire”*

*Selected on purpose

Cool, eh? Relatively random, but of course Mayer makes it in there a few times. Keep an eye on “Tunesday,” though. You might find some good new-old music to get you through your week.

Day three now. Here we go.

Drew.

Steel wool.

2010-07-27T00:36:00.001-04:00

I can tighten my pants because the first day of class is under my BELT! Gotta say it feels pretty good. It's only a week of seminars, but it's still SCHOOL, and it's the first I've been back in over two years!

The day started off pretty well, but I couldn't sleep the night before. I had the typical first-day jitters again, you know how it is. Rolled around a lot, and woke up at 5a.m. because I really had to pee. I hate this, because I was getting up at 7, but I only stay in bed if I have under an hour left to sleep. Any longer than that and you'll just roll around more. Or pee your bed.

Anyway, got up, did my pushups, and chugged my coffee. Then I was OFF!

Timed my journey from the door of my house to turning my car off in the Elon parking lot to exactly 30 minutes! Not bad, eh?

Then it was time for my first seminar. There are 16 of about 36 students in these pre-semester seminars, so I got to meet about half of the class. Everyone seemed really cool, but we all know we're in for a long year together.

I took lots of notes today and cranked out my homework as soon as I got home. It was a pretty good day, and while I'm still rusty in the school-routine department, I'm ready to steel-wool it up and hit it like it's my job again...because right now, it is...

Drew.

Beauty in the breakdown.

2010-07-25T12:54:00.000-04:00

Went kayaking on a local lake yesterday. It was the hottest day of the year, and we were surrounded by water we couldn’t drink or swim in, but it was beautiful.

Between paddling around and racing Amanda, there were several moments where we’d stop and lay back on the boat to let the wind and current take us around. We wouldn’t talk, but we’d listen.

During these moments, my mind raced around the state of the world and the thought of life. I thought about sitting in the quiet in the middle of this lake when so much was going on everywhere else. I thought about the oil in the Gulf and war and money and how fast everyone tries to move. I closed my eyes and listened to the birds and the zicadas and the paddles. It was so hot I could pretty much hear the heat too, and it was nice.

There really is beauty in the breakdown of things. As crazy as the world is, and as sad as the overall state of things can be, there is ALWAYS something beautiful nearby. You may or may not agree, but I’ve always been a glass half-full type of guy, and it’s definitely something I believe in. My time on the lake yesterday was a nice way to slow down for a while and soak some of that beauty into my head. As few and far between as these moments can be, they tip the scales into making the tough and wasted moments worth putting up with.

John Mayer made a great point in one of his concerts last week. He said that most of the time, we’re living through tough moments and bullshit, but the good times in your life always stand out. Focusing on these good times, you don’t realize how short they really are. “The best night of your life may only last from 10-2,” he said, “but you don’t think about it only lasting four hours. You think about how it was the best night of your life.” He pointed out that these moments become harder to find as you get through certain obstacles, but that embracing them can get you through anything. The guy knows what’s up.

I only spent two hours on the lake, but it was my last free Saturday before school starts. Change is coming, and it’s scary and good, and yesterday was a great way to relax and soak in the beauty before I start running for a while. It was simple, hot, and pretty, and I’ll hold onto it to get me through the tough and the normal…

D.

Third-person profile.

2010-07-22T13:21:00.001-04:00

I’m writing a third person profile of myself for the Elon I-Media website. We have to say a little about ourselves and send in a professional-looking picture.

Most of the examples I’ve read so far are pretty full of professional experience and internships. I don’t have any of this. I mean, I’ve got LIFE experience, but nothing for the paper. I can spin this, though. I know I can.

Let’s see:

“Drew Sykes is from Greensboro, NC. He graduated from NC State University in 2008 with a degree in English Creative Writing and a minor in Journalism.”

Ok. Good so far…now what?

“He has not used his degree for anything since college.”

No, no. Have to embellish a little…

“After college he began to work at a restaurant.”

Add a little more color:

“After college he served as a waiter at the prestigious local/organic pizza restaurant, Sticks and Stones, which has been featured in both Food Network and Signature Magazine. He has also half-maintained a blog on the side and been a regional roadie for John Mayer.”

Little more.

“After college he served as a waiter at the prestigious local/organic pizza restaurant, Sticks and Stones, which has been featured in both Food Network and Signature Magazine. There, he was given the spoken award of “Best Waiter in History” by his mother, and was often tipped over fifteen percent. Besides waiting tables, he has had several blog entries self-published through Blogspot, Facebook, and Tumblr, and has gone on tour with John Mayer, paying 1/3 of the artist’s salary through merchandise and ticket sales. Now that he’s returning to school, he looks forward to being an all-star student and dominating every class while juggling social life and writing novels on the side.”

Whew. Not bad, but maybe a little too much. How bout, just, DREW? Here we go:

“Drew Sykes is from Greensboro, NC. He graduated from North Carolina State University in 2008 with a degree in English Creative Writing and a minor in Journalism. After college he volunteered as a ropes instructor in Colorado for the summer and has since worked as a server at a local organic restaurant. Drew is an avid sports and music fan and hopes to work his way into writing and producing content for television and internet media. He loves to absorb and write about everyday life, and his highest goal is to climb the ladder and work as an on-air talent. He’s looking at the iMedia program as a great opportunity to strengthen his skills and jump into the fast-paced media field.”

I like it. Simple. Truthful. ME.

Now I’ve gotta find a picture…

"It's been a long night in {Raleigh}, too..."

2010-07-19T09:55:00.002-04:00

Two days removed from Mayer in Raleigh and I’m finally writing.

Two days removed and I’m still TIRED. I’ve always respected the guy for his music and passion to play, but I don’t know how he does it! My legs are shot and I feel like I’ve been on Spring Break in Cancun or something, and all I did was get into the show!

Anyway, he brought it again, and completely ROCKED it again!

Opened with “Vultures” for the second night, and segued into “Clarity” once more, which of course, I didn’t mind. I didn’t film it this time, and listening to him play it 40 feet in front of you is like listening to SUMMER. You can feel the warmth from the horns, you’re relaxed from the strumming of the guitar, and the piano puts you on a higher level of good vibes.

He went into “Why Georgia” full band next, which will ALWAYS take me back to late high school/early college. No matter where I am, whenever I see Mayer live, I concert call my buddy Matt Minnick during this song. Haven’t seen him in almost three years, but “Why Georgia” was the STAPLE of the first semester of our freshman year at NC State. We saw him play there within a week of school starting, and it’s been stuck with us ever since. Minnick, if you ever happen to read this, you’ll be getting a call in about two weeks from the DC show.

Mayer mellowed it out with “Do You Know Me” after this and gave Bob Reynolds another chance to shine. He kept the mood chill with “Who Says” next, getting a roar from the crowd when he said “In my mind I’m stoned in Carolina…” and “It’s been a long night in Cary, too…” (Who doesn’t love when the band or artists calls out your city or state?)

“Perfectly Lonely” turned the summer mood back on, and he followed with “Waiting on the World to Change”.

“Gravity” came next, which again, will always be his heart. He mentioned something about this song being for anyone who was going through anything difficult, and reminded them to keep pushing.

Mayer broke out “Heartbreak Warfare” after this, and had everyone jumping up and down by the end of the song. He brought just as much anger and emotion into this version as the one in Charlotte, so I’m thinking it’ll probably be like this the rest of the tour. Definitely fun.

He threw us another curveball after “HW” and started grooving “I Don’t Trust Myself (With Loving You)” with “The Black One” in hand, and kept the blues going with “Ain’t No Sunshine” once again.

“Half of My Heart” closed the initial set, and after calling people out who don’t like to sing, he had the whole crowd singing along to the song. The amphitheater turned into a giant bar and fans went even crazier when he sang half of Journey’s “Don’t Stop Believing” in the middle.

The encore brought John, Robbie McCintosh, and David Ryan Harris back to the stage with their acoustic guitars. From there, they went into a beautiful acoustic version of “Slow Dancing in a Burning Room”. Gotta love how he can play a song like that electric or acoustic and make it sound like two totally different songs. It was awesome.

Petty’s “Free Fallin’” came next, and the whole band came back onstage for “Edge of Desire” to close the night again. This song is definitely going to continue to get more and more powerful as the tour progresses.

Overall, it was a great night. He played a lot of the same songs, but even if he brought out the same set list, it’d be a different show. No matter what, he’s good to play the songs differently every time, which is one of the many reasons I like to go to as many shows again.

Looking forward to keeping track of his shows for the next two weeks, then it’s number three for the summer in Bristow, VA.

Can’t wait…

D.

"It's been a long night in [Charlotte]..."

2010-07-17T12:31:00.002-04:00

I was catching up on the John Mayer message board “My Stupid Mouth” the other day and read a post claiming that Mayer recently said he feels rusty the first few shows of every tour. The person quoting him went on to say “I like to think of it as fresh.”

Well, the 2010 John Mayer Summer Tour began in Charlotte, NC last night, and it was EPIC.

Mayer came to the stage with several members of his Winter Tour band as well as a revival of the horn section seen over the last few years, including saxophonist Bob Reynolds. They stepped up to their respective instruments and mics and brought a swagger that was anything but “rusty”.

John kicked the set list off with a little blues groove of “Chest Fever” by The Band that got everybody into rhythm. The fans were swaying and gold guitar in hand, he jammed into “Vultures” to officially start the tour.

From there he swapped to his acoustic, and the bass and keys kicked off the booming intro to “Clarity.” You can tell he loves to play this one in the summer, and it was right at home with the hot night and the return of the horns.

After “Clarity,” he took us way back to “No Such Thing,” and at this point, I had no idea what to expect for the rest of the show. We were three songs in, and he was already continually surprising us.

“Ain’t No Sunshine” came next, with its slow bass line and Mayer making the guitar sing. It was the only full cover he played, and he definitely did the song justice, groovin’ with a gritty blues vibe that fits perfectly into the sticky summer weather.

He picked up the pace after this and completely ROCKED “Heartbreak Warfare,” singing louder and faster than other live versions. His head bobbed, he jumped up and down, and you could really FEEL the frustration and emotion the song sings about coming from the stage. He joked after the song that “that was the ‘punk’ version of ‘Heartbreak Warfare’, folks,” and it was high energy!

From there he went into “Perfectly Lonely,” saying it’s a great song for the summer, even though no one ever REALLY wants to be alone. Then he broke out “The Black One” to play “Gravity” in the middle of the set! Hearing this so early threw even more of a curveball as to guess what he might play the rest of the night, because it’s been more of a late song in the past. Of course, it wouldn’t matter if he opened with this track, because his heart pours out of the guitar every time he plays it. It’s his blues prayer, and we’re the eager congregation listening to and relating to the message. Gotta love it.

After “Gravity” he pulled a 180 and played “Assassin.” It was “killer” (pun intended, thank you), and I love how he fluctuates his song choices from slow and soulful to rocking and loud so well. He definitely knows how to keep everyone on their toes.

“Who Says” came next, where everyone freaked out when he sang “It’s been a long night in Charlotte, too…”

Then he put his guitar down for a UKELELE! Most of the band stepped back as he began to pluck “Do You Know Me.” The lights got dim, the mood turned mellow, and Mayer made the uke sing like a guitar. As the song progressed, the return of Bob Reynolds was truly felt as he and Mayer jammed together in what turned out to be one of the coolest moments of the night.

Mayer picked up the pace again when the song was done and played “Bigger Than My Body,” which always gets people on their feet.

He then went into “Half of my Heart” as the last song before the encore, saying that it felt good to have a big radio hit again. He talked about how before this song hit the charts, he was ready to move on to the next record, but then BOOM, “Half of My Heart.” Mayer explained it like an old race-car video game where just as the car is about to slow down to a stop, you hit a checkpoint and BAM, you’re moving fast again. That’s what this song did for him.

The groove was nice, and he teased us with “Dreams” by Fleetwood Mac, as well as “Carolina on My Mind” by James Taylor, which really got the crowd going.

After this he thanked everyone and went backstage to prepare for the encore. The crowd rocked and clapped and screamed for several minutes, but he was nowhere to be seen.

And then the screams from the lawn burst open. He was on a platform in front of them and began to sing “Stop This Train.” Mayer has always made a point to thank the “lawn people” for their attendance at his shows, but this was something new, and a really cool gesture for the people in the back. You could hear their screams coming through his mic, but he kept playing and it was a really special moment.

“Why Georgia” came next, and the part that he gets the crowd to sing along to was louder than ever because he was swimming in a sea of fans at this point. As he progressed through the song, the rest of the band snuck back on stage, and he made it back to the front.

The crowd was still going crazy and the spotlight shone on Mayer again as he began the riff to “Edge of Desire”. The song picked up and the lights got bright again, and the band joined in for the final song of the evening. The longing and passion of the song poured out from the guitar, and Mayer adamantly thanked the fans as he walked off stage.

It was a great first night in Charlotte, full of energy and passion. While he played several songs from “Battle Studies,” he threw so many others into the mix that it will be tough to guess what he’ll play on any given night. If last night’s show was any indicator of how the tour will go, it’s going to be a great summer.

See you guys in Raleigh, and on the road…

D.

Resistance.

2010-07-15T18:16:00.001-04:00

I’m reading a book by Donald Miller called “A Million Miles in a Thousand Years.” It’s been pretty interesting so far, and he always makes great points I like to highlight and underline to save for later.

One that struck me today was actually from a guy named Steven Pressfield that Miller was quoting. In a book on writing that Pressfield wrote, he said “A writer has to sit down every day and write, regardless of how he feels…you can sit around and wait for inspiration to come, but you’ll never finish [anything].”

Pressfield went on to say that every creative person faces resistance when trying to create something good. “Resistance, a kind of feeling that comes against you when you point toward a distant horizon, is a sure sign that you are supposed to do the thing in the first place.”

This hit me today. I got home from the beach a little while ago. It was hard to leave, as it always is, but this time around it felt different. I’d been looking forward to the trip for a long time, and I knew inside that it was the last real vacation I’d have before school starts. That’s where the resistance came into play.

I always take a last walk down to the ocean when I’m about to leave the beach. Looking out today, the ocean was calm, but there was a dark storm to my right, the south. It was chilly out because it’d been raining off and on all morning, but it felt nice. I went down to the water and stuck my feet in, and knelt down to wash my hands and dip my old Auburn hat (which is my version of Indiana Jones’ fedora). It’s a ritual I go through whenever I leave the ocean. I like to stare out and imagine how far it goes. I turn my back to the commercialism of the area and soak it in to store the memory for when I get home. It’s good to think about when things get overwhelming.

Today was a little different. It was beautiful, but I had a weird feeling in my stomach. I knew it was the thought of school coming up so fast. It was this resistance. Resistance to change, or to something new. School will bring both, and I truly am excited, but I’m nervous too.

My mom was on the beach with me and I told her I haven’t been this nervous about something new since I was 18 and starting college. I’ve done a lot since then, but this one seems BIGGER.

But I like what Miller said, via Pressfield. I’m pointing towards a distant horizon, and I know I’ve got a ways to go before I get there. I like thinking that this hesitation-mixed-with-excitement is a sign that this is something I’m definitely supposed to do.

This got me thinking even more on the way home.

There are things in life where the anticipation is greater than the event. This can be a good thing or a bad thing.

With shots, it’s a good thing, because the anticipation of the event is MUCH bigger than the actual needle, and when you close your eyes and grit your teeth to deal with it, the doctor says it’s over before you even feel it.

With holidays like Christmas, it’s kind of a bad thing. As wonderful as Christmas is, the excitement leading up to the day is always SO GREAT that oftentimes the meaning and the event get overlooked. Don’t get me wrong, I LOVE Christmas and everything it brings, but it’s always kind of sad the next day when you realize another one has passed.

The resistance I’m feeling about school right now is a combination of both kinds of anticipation. The good kind is there, where I’m nervous about school and taking on the workload, but I know it won’t be nearly as bad as I think it could be. The other kind is there too, where I’m REALLY excited and ready to jump in, knowing I have to embrace it as it comes, because like everything else, it’ll be over before I know it.

I’ve got 11 days of freedom left. I miss the ocean and my family, but I’m ready to enjoy this last bit of time and get the sails ready for the next journey…

D.

Margaritas.

2010-07-14T20:11:00.002-04:00

It’s my last night at the beach with my family and I really wanted a margarita. Went to the grocery, bought the mix, and made it happen.

It was frozen and delicious, and I gotta say I thoroughly enjoyed sipping on it as the sun set and the thumbnail moon began to rise.

That being said, it made me think of a conversation I had the other day in which I used and example of something I’ve done before but in a way in which I acted like I’d never done it. I know that makes no sense whatsoever, so here’s a little more explanation before I get into it:

Last fall, I was craving a margarita. It was October-ish, so there were hot nights mixed in with the cool ones. I went to the store and bought the frozen mix and got home ready to blend away, but didn’t think about the tequila aspect of the concoction. When I got back, I realized that the only tequila in the house was some leftover Patron I’d bought to celebrate a birthday a few months back.

I realize that Patron is the high rolling brand. I take pride in drinking it from time to time, when the occasion is right, and I want to feel like John Mayer. Or T.I. I also realize that blending it into a $2 can of margarita mix is a waste, because you could blend gasoline into it and it would taste the same.

This being said, I picked up the little clear bottle, pulled the cork and dumped it into the blender. I REALLY wanted a margarita!

My dad walked into the kitchen as I was doing this and couldn’t believe what I was doing.

“How can you use PATRON in a MARGARITA?!” he said. “That’s such a waste!”

I’d like to say I felt shameful, but I didn’t, and it was delicious. He tells people this story even now, and no one else can believe it either. Oh well.

THIS BEING SAID:

I was talking to my cousin the other day and I used the analogy “That’s like using PATRON in a MARGARITA!” to explain the stupidity of wasting something for no good reason. I knew I was going to use this analogy, and when he laughed and agreed with me, I smiled inside thinking, “HA! I’ve done this, but nobody knows!”

Funny thing is, I do this relatively often. I can’t think of any other concrete examples right now, but this popped in my mind tonight. I feel like we’re all guilty of this from time to time.

You ever do it? Ever say something as a joke that you’re embarrassed about or don’t want everyone to know about that you’ve done and laugh it off like you have NO CLUE of anyone who would actually do something that STUPID? Haha…it’s actually pretty fun, because the people in the conversation think the joke’s on someone else when it’s actually on THEM!

Anyway. I used Jose this time. Salt on the rim and a slice of lime, too. Mmmm.

D.

Creativity Returns...

2010-07-12T23:40:00.000-04:00

I start grad school in two weeks. I’ve been out of school for TWO YEARS. Both of these facts seem unbelievable to me.

Never thought I’d go to grad school. I always figured the last time I’d apply to college was when I was 17 and deciding between State and Carolina. Even with a degree fresh off the press and in hand two years ago, I never thought I would apply.

But as time keeps moving, things keep changing.

I’ve had some down time today and I decided to look back over a handful of blogs I wrote in the months before college graduation. I’ve said it before and I’ll probably say it again: I was the same, but I was different.

It was refreshing to read the old material. I was going through a lot of different things at the time, but I had this confident outlook on everything. Something I always focused on at the time was moving FORWARD and picking up new experiences while avoiding the temptation and comfort of falling back to different lows and still points. Since then, this philosophy has become something I try to live by, and it can still be a struggle for me from time to time.

I really do want to write more. I say this all the time, but I really FEEL it now. Until the beach, inspiration to write has been kind of tough for me lately. Don’t know why exactly, except that I see it as working out or playing an instrument: the more you do it, the stronger and better you get.

My grandfather used to joke: “How do you get to Carnegie Hall?”

The answer: “Practice, practice, practice.”

Writing is totally the same way. Instead of moving to a heavier weight or learning a new song, the more you write, the more you can find inspiration from everything around you. Like the Force, it FLOWS (Star Wars nerd in me, sorr-nope not gonna apologize).

Two years ago, I was all OVER it, and I think getting back into the rhythm of school will help me again. Carra keeps saying it’ll give me an opportunity to really USE my creativity again, and the more I think about that, the more excited I get.

A lot has gone down in the two years since school. I worked in CO and I saw John Mayer play 11 times (counting the three shows I’ll see in the next few weeks). I started dating a girl I’ve grown to love and I started really missing my sister because she moved to another state (although we keep in touch pretty well again these days). I’ve been to the weddings of six friends (including one in which I was the Best Man and two in which I’ve been a groomsman) and I’ve set foot in 16 states. I’ve hiked the Rockies, touched two oceans, and sipped tequila in Mexico. I got one more tattoo but I’m ready for another. I’ve taken pics of concerts and sunsets and sunrises and the moon. I worked in an organic pizza restaurant for a great boss and learned more patience from the customers. NC State still struggled in sports and I still love them as much as I did when I was 12.

It’s been a ride, as LIFE always is, and I’m looking forward to this next step. It’s a great opportunity, and I’m thankful to be able to build on what I’ve already learned.

At the least, I’ll be able to look more impressive on paper, haha, and no matter what, I look forward to the return to creativity. It wasn’t gone…I just took a little break…

Two weeks. Whew.

Drew.

Trading riffs.

2010-07-11T23:58:00.001-04:00

Went out on the deck today with my guitar and stared at the ocean for a while. I needed some quiet time and just started playing. Didn’t know what I’d play necessarily, just that I wanted to hear the chords and feel the strings and the sounds.

It was cool because the sun was dropping fast behind my back and light looked orange on the sand and the reeds. They rocked back and forth with the wind as I watched the waves roll over the surf.

Things lined up for a while, and I just traded riffs with the ocean.

My mind wandered as I sat, and I thought about school and work and how fast life was moving. I watched a seagull or two fly overhead against the wind, and saw American and South Carolina flags blowing to my right. I looked down at my guitar at one point and thought of a lady in a meeting I used to attend who dealt with her own issues and told me her son played guitar. On my last day with the group she told me to “keep playing that geetar,” and that doing so would help me focus on bigger things. I hope she is at least where I am now in dealing with these things, if not better.

The reeds were crazy-green in the glow of the dusk and the waves kept rolling. Families walked by on the beach to pose for future Christmas cards in their white shirts, and as time kept moving, I kept strumming.

It was clarity, and it was nice, like church bells and wind chimes.

D.

On Watches.

2010-07-11T00:23:00.001-04:00

I'm a big fan of watches. Mayer kind of got me into them a few years ago, and now I'm hooked. I only have two right now, because I'm not loaded with money or anything, but I like the ones I have, and I'm always on the lookout for cool new ones. They're also something I always complement people for, whether I'm at work or out on the road somewhere. I like big faceplates and multi-colors and cool bands, and I like being able to look at the analog face on my wrist without opening the LCD screen on my cell phone or turning on my iPod. It's always a comfortable weight on my arm, and I feel naked when I'm not wearing one.

The only time I DON'T wear my watch (on purpose) is at the beach. The superficial reason would be fear of sand in the gears or water damage, but the REAL reason is that there's no point. Am I right? Besides liking watches, I'm a big fan of the concept of TIME in general. It's fluid. It's motion. It never stops, but it's not concrete. It just keeps going.

Wearing a watch is a way to try and measure it, but in reality, it's just an estimate. An estimate that keeps us both comfortable and stressed as we go about our daily lives, depending on what we're going through or where we need to be.

Not wearing one at the beach or while on vacation is kind of liberating. When you've got nothing to do and nowhere to be, it's nice to ignore it for a while. I sleep in here, wake up, hit the sand, chill, and go to bed when I'm tired (which might be pretty soon now). There's never a real schedule and we make it through the days in the most laid back way possible.

Time isn't measured here, but SPENT.

It's spent relaxing. It's spent eating. It's spent feeling the wind and listening to the waves and soaking up the sun. And it's spent hanging out with family.

I'll definitely put my watch on again when I leave here, covering the darker shade of skin I'll acquire on my wrist, because I'll need it when I go. But for now, I'll leave it on the dresser and measure time by counting waves and building sand castles...

D.

Day trippin'.

2010-05-20T11:06:00.002-04:00

Went to Chapel Hill for a lil day trip yesterday. REALLY wanted to go to the Planetarium with Amanda because we both had the day off and it was kinda gloomy, but we got there and they weren't having any shows. I looked at the hours online and saw that they were open, but my genius brain didn't think to look at the SHOW schedule.

Even though we didn't get to sit back and stare at the [fake but awesome] stars, we appreciated having a little getaway for the afternoon.

Franklin Street was quiet because the students are out of town and the summer camps and sessions haven't started yet. We walked around for a while and went in a few shops along the way and just ENJOYED the day. It was nice doing what we wanted without worrying about agendas or having to be anywhere. (Think "Nothin' to do/Nowhere to be/A simple little kind of free...) It was a cool day around a quiet campus and it was relaxing.

We made it back to my car after a few hours of roaming and decided to head to Raleigh. The city has been calling my name for a while because I haven't been in months, and I have to get my fix of nostalgia from the place every now and then. Since we were SO close, I offered to take Amanda to Pullen Park, which I figured would be a great area to have a romantic little walk. There's a cool duck pond there, some nice trails, paddle boats, and a train, and I've been wanting to take her there for a while. Seemed like the perfect opportunity. And then I drove by it on Western Blvd. Just like the Planetarium, it was CLOSED! And not only closed for the day, but until SUMMER 2011! The ponds were drained and they're renovating the whole park! I was bummed because I was 0-2 on the day in attractions AND because we wouldn't be able to go there until NEXT YEAR.

But ah well, right? Bottom line is that we were out of town together and having fun...and right down the street from the Village Draft House, one of my favorite restaurants in town and one that has special meaning to me in that I used to go every first night of every semester in school.

And did I mention it's also home to THE greatest fried pickle chips in the world? If you didn't know, you know now. These things would make Atheists believe in a Higher Power. Not lying. Ship a few boxes over to the leaders of Al Qaeda and they'll quit burning our flag and start flying it over their caves. If you've never been and if you're ever passing through Raleigh, stop by and at least get some to go, because they're unreal.

Whew, done with the pickle spiel, but anyway, we had a nice early dinner on the patio of the Draft House and soaked in a little evening sun before we hit the road back to Greensboro. I love taking Amanda to the area any chance I get, and I loved being there, even just for a meal. I'm sorry I didn't get a chance to call anybody while we were there, but it was such a short trip that it would've made it even harder to leave. So if any of my Raleigh people read this (Phil Jones), I'm sorry. I will get down there and kick it with y'all soon.

I drove us down Hillsborough Street after dinner as we left town and admired my school in the late sunlight. It was a little more hectic than Franklin St because of all the construction, but it was and always will be beautiful in my eyes. The smells and sounds and paths at NC State will always bring me the mixed emotions of happy memories and the bittersweet feeling of moving on in life, which I'm sure will increase as my time away increases from the two years I'm sitting on right now.

Once we passed State, I stopped at a gas station for some drinks for the ride home. The old guy working there was asked me how I was doing and I said "Good", hesitated, and said, "but kinda sad. I used to live here and I'm just passing through this evening. I miss it."

He asked me, "How long did you live here?"

"Five years," I said.

He smiled and said, "That's not THAT long."

I laughed and said, "Yeah, you're right, you're right, I guess it's not."

I paid for my drinks and got back in the car with a smile on because he was right. In the scheme of LIFE, 5 years can seem like forever, but it's not. Raleigh gave me 5 amazing years, and I'll always love it, but that's only a fifth of my now 25-year-old and growing self. I'm climbing new steps and sharing it with others and moving FORWARD. It's pretty cool.

After this, the drive back was easy. Interstate 40 West to Greensboro is always a good drive, but these days it's better when I have Amanda with me. It's a part of my life I'll always want to share, and it'll always be there whenever I want to go back.

D.

"Sprummer" Song Flashback v.2:2005.

2010-05-15T10:29:00.003-04:00

"Sprummer" song number two takes us back to the spring semester of 2005 at NC State. The choice, which will be obvious to some of my friends: "Hate it or Love it" by The Game ft. 50 Cent.

THIS song got played multiple times a day, whether we were just chillin' or getting ready to go out, or already out. The beat is cool and it feels like summer, and the lyrics "Hate it or love it, the underdog's on top/and I'm gonna shine, homey, until my heart stop" grabbed our attention because they were catchy, and for some odd reason, we felt like we could relate to them, being the 20-year-old party-searching college kids that we were. We were at the end of our second year of school, and NOTHING was gonna hold us back from being on top and in the spotlight.

Hearing this one IMMEDIATELY takes me back to spontaneous parties at Uhouse and cookouts and getting ready for Buffett at Phi Tau. It was probably my least productive but most fun semester at school. My priorities were kinda mixed, but I learned a lot in the non-school categories of life in those months.

We'd make it to Thursdays and the weekend would begin, and there was ALWAYS something going on. If we couldn't find anything, we'd make it happen ourselves, usually at Uhouse, which often ended with calls to PizzAmerica, trips down (or sitting on) Tryon, and even one time with a certain "mace incident" that turned out pretttttty crazy. Whether you were a friend or a stranger, there was always a couch or a floor to crash on in time to sleep in for whatever happened next.

Nights that didn't end up at Uhouse brought us to Phi Tau, where by this time of the year we were STRONGLY gearing up and getting hype for our annual Buffett party. The hot days lead to cool nights of bamboo harvesting for the fence we built around the back deck, and closer to party day, we covered the whole downstairs with sand. Our house became a beach in Raleigh, and when the big night came, we had a line of people stretching down the block waiting to get inside. I'll never forget weaving the bamboo through the fence, or watching brothers direct traffic and stop Wolfline busses in front of the house. The band was also killer, and we were definitely on top that night, celebrating what turned out to be our last Buffett party, because we haven't had one since.

It's CRAZY hard to believe all of this was FIVE years ago, but anytime I hear this song, I think about all the fun we had that semester. I can't take 50 Cent seriously at all anymore, and I don't like his new stuff, but I still rock out to this one with the windows down, especially at sunset in these beautiful "sprummer" evenings...

Drew.

PS: Thanks to Ryan Daniels for playing this song into the ground.

My sipster.

2010-05-12T10:50:00.002-04:00

Carra came through Greensboro last night on her way to Florida for the summer. She's set to intern for the non-profit organization, To Write Love On Her Arms, or TWLOHA.

The group's mission statement says "To Write Love on Her Arms is a non-profit movement dedicated to presenting hope and finding help for people struggling with depression, addiction, self-injury and suicide. TWLOHA exists to encourage, inform, inspire and also to invest directly into treatment and recovery."

Now, I've always been a proud brother, but as she continues to find herself in the world, it amazes me to see the constant good she does for others. I've had my share of struggles in the past, and battles with things I'm still fighting today, and she's always been there to help me out or listen when I needed her. Even though I'm the big brother, I look up to her in a lot of ways. It's pretty cool knowing that she's taking this goodness and will to help into a bigger picture. She's helped me and helped others, and I KNOW she's gonna change lives this summer.

Here's a video of her about the chapter she started at VCU, as well as an explanation of what they do through TWLOHA:

Watching this and knowing Carra, I am super-excited for what she and the group will accomplish this summer. It's a great opportunity, and I'm happy for all of the lives that will be changed for the better from their work. Might even save a few...

Gonna miss her, but I'm proud!
D.

"Sprummer" Song Flashback v.1:2004.

2010-05-10T22:55:00.006-04:00

Spring and early May have gotten me super-nostalgic since I started and finished college. This time of year always takes me back to cookouts, longer days, volleyball, and end-of-year parties. I don't miss the exams, but I miss the fun that we had in completing another school year and gearing up for summertime.

Besides the weather, I associate certain songs with this time of year as well. My friends and I all had a song or two that we'd play to the GROUND for different seasons, and the ones in the spring really stand out for me today. Everybody has songs that take them back to certain times in their lives, such as relationships with friends and lovers or different good and bad experiences. It's a cool concept, and something that gets me EVERYTIME I hear these songs.

All of this being said, I want to showcase these "Sprummer" (Spring into Summer) songs that range from spring of my freshman year to today. I'll still write other blogs, but I'm definitely gonna feature one for every year since 2004. It's gonna be YOUR job to tell me where these songs take YOU.

SO, for song number one, I'll take you back to the end of my freshman year at NC State with: "I Believe in a Thing Called Love" by The Darkness.

Remember this one? Haha...the first time I heard this song was when I saw the music video on vh1, and I remember thinking, "What the hell IS this?!" And then it grew on me. Like crazy. It was one of those songs I liked but didn't want to admit until I found out other people felt the same way, haha (still trying to get over that with certain music today). The video is hilarious and the style of the music and the band is really old-school modern. I heard it today when I was riding around town in my car and it IMMEDIATELY took me back to the end of my time in Owen Hall at NC State.

Hearing it again reminded me of living in the dorm and always leaving the door to our room open. We were all friends by the end of the year, and everybody came and went to hang out in every room as we pleased. We'd all survived our first year of college, and taken a HUGE step forward from being 18 year-old kids to 19 year-old adults. There was more of a swagger in all of our steps, and we all had places to be and things to do that last month of school. Bulk party-hopping and trips to the dining hall were everyday occurances, and we embraced as much of the end of the year as we could.

The last night in the dorm began with the final episode of "Friends" being aired, and a trip driving around town and getting lost in my old Explorer. We smoked cigarettes and rocked some tunes with the windows down and really tried to BREATHE Raleigh in one more time before we all left for summer. Our first year was under our belts, and we all felt bigger for it.

Things changed as we all went on to live in separate places, but a lot of us stayed in touch. Whether we hung out a lot or only saw each other out and about, our time in Owen Hall always brought us together, and the music from those days will always take me back to those fun times.

Nothin' like the O.H.
Drew.

Birthday Bowling.

2010-05-09T17:27:00.003-04:00

Went out last night for the finale of my 25th birthday celebrations. What'd I do, you ask?

Went BOWLING.

The idea to do this popped in my head back in February and stuck with me since. Instead of hitting the town again, I just wanted to bowl, have a few beers, and eat some nachos.

Now, I've played plenty of Wii bowling in the last few years, but I haven't REAL PEOPLE bowled in over two years, and well, it kinda showed (not that I was ever any good before). My total in 3 games came out to my average total in one Wii game. I'm not gonna throw any numbers out to ya, but think about that.

OK, so I bowled a 45 in one game. That's all I'm saying, haha. ALMOST broke 100 once too...almost.

But who cares, right? Because it was killer fun. Had a few brews at the alley and dug into some nachos while they blared old-school hip-hop through the speakers and turned up the blacklights for cosmic bowling. While I didn't learn anything to improve my game, I definitely know it's something I wanna do again soon.

Until then, back to the Wii for some practice...
D.

XXV.

2010-05-07T18:49:00.015-04:00

Quarter-century. Wow.

Can't BELIEVE the birthday has already come and gone, but it was a great one, and I feel like I definitely brought 25 in on a positive note.

Started the day early because I had to take my car to the VW shop to get a few things fixed. Even though I'd stayed up late the night before, it felt good getting up when I did because there's always some air of excitement surrounding your birthday. You know what I'm talking about, right? Sleep and fatigue are erased by that good feeling of it being the day you were brought into this crazy world. Of course, I could look at it differently as I get older, but I'd like to think I'll always feel this way!

Anyway, rolled over in bed, turned on my light, and hooked my iPod into my speakers so I could start 25 off with my song, "Clarity". Turned it up right in my ears and eased outta bed with a smile on my face. I knew it was gonna be a great day, and got up feeling like 25 is gonna be a great age.

Had my coffee, took my car in, and stopped by Walgreen's on my way home to pick up a new razor. Walked in the store with my mom, and BAM, the snare-drum kickoff of "Bigger than my Body" started blaring through the store speakers! Of course I got hype, because it was playing on my b'day, and I like to interpret events like these as happening for a reason, as big or small as they may be. However you look at it, it made me happy for about four minutes.

The razor-buying end of the store experience also made me smile, because the one I wanted was locked in a cabinet, so I had to push a button for customer service. As soon as I pushed it, the loudspeaker stated, "Customer service needed in the shave aisle. Customer service needed in the shave aisle. Thank you." Now, there's really nothing funny about that, but what if they had these buttons in every section of the store. The drug store. Where people go to buy personal items they don't necessarily want the staff and patrons to know about. Can you picture it? Haha, NOW it's funny, even though these buttons don't exist (I'm 12 at heart). Ah well...

After customer service unlocked my new Shick Hydro 5 Blade Men's Razor (tm), I walked to the register with my mom and pulled out my wallet to pay, but she beat me to it, and said "I'll get it." That was very cool, of course, but I hadn't shaved in a while, so I probably looked like some pubescent kid getting his first razor with his mom for his first shave. Cute, eh?

Came home, showered, and shaved after Walgreens, and I must say that my Hydro-shave experience was DELIGHTFUL. No irritation. Then Amanda came over and we ate un petit dejeuner (breakfast in French...gotta be cultured at 25) of cereal before I had to go to work at 10:30. She brought a baller personalized balloon for me and a button saying "Birthday Boy" she wanted me to wear for the day, so, of course, I put it on.

I definitely didn't mind heading to work on my birthday, because it was a short lunch shift, and sadly one day I'll have to work a full day when I have a big-boy job and it falls during the week. Got there and it was a pretty relaxed day, but I was distracted. It probably wasn't my BEST day of serving, but I had fun with it, because it was my BIRTHDAY, and it went by really fast. Got a few "Happy Birthday" wishes, but the button didn't really help my tips. Ah well, haha.

Amanda came over again after work and we went to McCoul's for a late lunch. Sat outside in the beautiful afternoon sun and enjoyed lunch in a bustling downtown Greensboro where we witnessed a marching band heading down the street and saw a protest in front of the Police station. Gotta love Cinco de Mayo.

From here we went on to pick up coffee and head to a local park where she practiced for a final performance she had the next day. It was really nice relaxing in the sun for a bit, and catching up for the night ahead.

As always, time flew, and faster than normal since it was my birthday. We realized it was time for dinner, so we head on back home where Mom and Dad were cooking it UP!

Since I'm still staying away from meat, I had Dad grill up some Jerk Salmon. I'm also a HUGE fan of classic, cheap, yellow Kraft Macaroni and Cheese, so I had Mom make some of that, as well as some home-made fried okra. Amanda chipped in and made one of her sweet "Amanda salads" as well, and dinner was GREAT! We ate on the porch and it was really nice getting to sit and talk about life and birthdays and the world for a while.

They brought a cake out after dinner and were about to sing when Carra called from Richmond. I picked up really quick and put her on speaker and told her to sing with everyone since she couldn't be here. It was really cool having the 'rents, the girlfriend, AND the sister (from afar) there at that moment. Missed ya, Carra, but was glad to talk for a few!

We went inside when we were done and I opened gifts with a toast of champagne. Got the new USA World Cup jersey from my parents, as well as a reminder that they're helping fuel my Mayer concert experience this summer, which is awesome, and a really cool mixture of movies and music from Amanda! She also made me my first-ever tribute video, which was a REALLY cool surprise! Check it out:

Let me know if ya learned something! I know I did, haha.

Anyway, time kept flying, and Amanda and I head on to Sticks and Stones for b'day celebration with friends. Several folks were already waiting to celebrate when we got there, and a few others showed up for what turned out to be an AMAZING night!

We stayed at Sticks 'til it closed, and just hung on the patio. It was beautiful out! The stars were shining and the weather was RIGHT. It was nice just HANGIN' with my work friends OUTSIDE of work, and cool that Brooke, Tommy, and Plumlee showed up as well.

From there we went on to Wahoo's where we owned the back corner for the evening and continued to chill. My friends played Mayer for me on the jukebox, as well as Bobby Brown's "On Our Own", the theme from Ghostbusters 2, which will ALWAYS be a classic in my heart, haha.

I got to visit with everyone for a bit, and really appreciated everyone coming out that night. If any of you read this, thanks again for everything!

Closing time came too quick, but Amanda and I met Brooke and Tommy at Herbie's to end the night. It was poppin' in there, but we got a table and I dug into an egg and cheese biscuit with a side of fries. It was delicious.

We finally parted ways close to four, and Amanda took me home to crash. It was a GREAT birthday, and I couldn't be more thankful for my friends (near and far), my family (near and far), and my girlfriend (who puts up with me on celebration nights, and dang, every night).

We're set to do a little more celebrating this weekend, but I must say that I have a REALLY good feeling about the age of 25. I'm looking forward to everything I can accomplish at this level, and to everything I'll learn in my NEXT quarter-life, as far away as that is right now...

(or is it?)

Drew.

Goals and such.

2010-05-03T23:09:00.003-04:00

MAY.

It's May. Already. Lots of good to come from that though. I mean, come on, it's my BIRTHDAY month!

Anyway, I've got some big changes coming up soon with school starting in July, and it's my goal to myself and to YOU to make sure I soak in as much of the everyday present as I can between now and then. I'm super-excited for starting something new but bummed about leaving something I've grown to love in the meantime.

SO, this being said, it's my GOAL to write three blogs a week until school starts. That's two and a half months of three blogs a week. Not too bad, eh? Yes, I'm counting this one (I know it's a proposal blog, but take 'em as they come...they'll all be different). We'll see if I stick to it, and I'll give a final report on it all the week before classes to see how I did!

As for this first one, it's 2 days 'til my 25 b'day and my emotions are conflicted between excitement and the reality that I've lived a quarter century. Don't wanna call it a quarter-life crisis YET, but we'll see how I move as I get through it, haha...

Anyway, It should be a pretty fun week, and if I go by my promise, I'll be in touch with you soon!

Drew.

Meat-roofied.

2010-04-27T23:06:00.004-04:00

Haven't updated on the whole vegetarian thing in a while, so here's a little story for yah.

Lent came and went, and Amanda and I decided to keep up the vegetarianism. We'll still eat fish every now and then, but for the most part, it's all fruits, veggies, dairy, and protein.

Anyway, it's been a solid two months since I've eaten any meat and I feel pretty good overall. I've lost a few pounds, which I wasn't trying to do, but I'm working out really hard too, and I'm happy with how I look.

These two months have been pretty easy, and I felt pretty good about going strong. Until last night...

I got off work around 8 and met up with Amanda to have dinner at the Filling Station, the restaurant across from Sticks and Stones. They have baller salads there, and some pretty good vegetarian wraps.

I wanted something different last night, so I got what they call the "Park Sampler". With this, you choose three items from a list of chicken salad, tuna salad, pimento cheese, black bean or red pepper hummus, or garden salad. I chose the black bean hummus, garden salad, and tuna salad. Thought it sounded like a nutritious and balanced meal.

Our food came after a short wait and I started to dig in because I was pretty hungry. I jumped on the hummus first, which came with some dope pita chips, then focused on the tuna salad. It looked delicious, and after I tried a bite, it tasted delicious too.

I kept eating it, and as I chewed, I realized that it didn't really taste or smell like tuna. Kept eating though, because it was good, and I figured it was ok. Then Amanda looked at me and said, "Is that chicken?!"

It totally was! Haha, I kinda looked down at it, dropped my fork, and said "Shieeeet!"

I got meat-roofied and I didn't even know it until it was too late! All that dedication and will-power to stay away from it for two months and counting all crashed down on that moment! If I ate meat again, I wanted to make it count, with a pepperoni pizza or a BBQ sandwich! Not CHICKEN SALAD! I don't even normally EAT chicken salad! Haha, I was bummed!

Anyway, I told my server, and she was pretty embarrassed and felt terrible. She brought me tuna (which was AWESOME), and comped my meal, so I guess it was a small price to pay for ACCIDENTALLY breaking my streak. But ey, I won't really count it. It was an honest mistake, and chicken salad looks a lot like tuna salad. Should've realized at the lack of smell, but ah well.

So for now, the vegetarianism continues. I'm feelin' great and it's becoming easier, so we'll see how it goes.

In the meantime, I'll make sure to keep an eye (and a nose) on my tuna salad...hmmm...

D.

163 years of birthdays...

2010-04-26T23:35:00.004-04:00

Amanda and I celebrated 3 birthdays of significant elders in our families within 24 hours this weekend. It was pretty cool.

Here's the run-down of our schedule:
Sat. 2-4: Amanda's Great-Aunt Helen's 90th Birthday Party, Greensboro.
Sat. 7pm: My grandma's 93rd B'day party, Gaston Country Club, Gastonia.
Sun. 2: Amanda's grandfather's 80th b'day party, Greensboro.

Check it out. Parties for people turning 90, 93, and 80. Add up all those years (163), and imagine ALL of the experience the three of them have, and everything they've seen in their lives! We're talkin' the Depression (for two of them), WWII, all of the craziness of going to space for the first time, a complete evolution of music (could talk about THAT one for a while), phonographs to iPods, radio shows to reality shows, Pearl Harbor to 9/11, Coke to New Coke to Coke Classic, telegraphs to the internet, and so much MORE.

Needless to say, it was quite a weekend of honoring our elders, haha. Gotta say it was great getting to meet and hang out with so many people of both sides of Amanda's family, and I was REALLY excited to get her down to Gastonia for the first time. I loved seeing how happy the three birthday folks were, and I hope that if and when I reach any of those ages, I'll have families as beautiful and fun as those celebrating this weekend to laugh with when the time comes...

Grad School.

2010-04-21T01:17:00.003-04:00

Took the GRE's back in October. Didn't know exactly what I was getting into, but I was happy to take 'em, just to have a chance to keep moving forward. It's crazy how plans can be made and then changed in a second. My original plan was to take the test and apply to UNCG, hoping to get in. In the meantime, I got a brochure from Elon University talking about a one year program in "Interactive Media". It called for Comm majors and other people of that nature to join an intense program that would teach different media and audio/visual programs in an attempt to fast-track students into the media world. It seemed like the perfect call for me.

Anyway, I checked more into the program and decided I definitely wanted to apply. UNCG would be good but this was more of a sure-fire track into media than the Theory route. I went to an open house there and got even more excited about it, but was slightly discouraged when I found out they only accept 36 students out of 100 and more applicants.

I applied anyway, not sure what the results would be, but wrote what I felt like to be a killer personal statement to try to get into the program. You all know I love to write, and this seemed like the perfect program for ME and for what I want to DO. So, that being said, I got my application in, along with three letters of reccomendation, and the following "personal statement":

My name is Drew Sykes, and I’m a writer. I’m 24, I graduated from North Carolina State University in May 2008, and I’m ready for the next step of my life.
Since I finished school I’ve been a ropes instructor in Colorado, a roadie for John Mayer, a blogger, a guitarist, and a server at a local organic pizza restaurant. Through it all, I’ve been a student, and I’ve been looking for the right place to continue my education.
I know the Interactive Media program would be the right fit for where I am in my life right now. You had me at the brochure, and getting to see the facilities through the open house sealed the deal.
While at NC State, I majored in English Creative Writing with a minor in Journalism. Writing is passion of mine, but I don’t want to be an author “when I grow up” (whenever that may be). Don’t get me wrong, I love what the title “Creative Writing” entails. I mean, I’m a huge Stephen King fan, but I don’t want to be him. I do want to use my writing, however, and I know that the skills I would learn in the Interactive Media program would allow me to take what I can do and share through the frame of the big picture that is mass media today.
As for the Journalism aspect of my education, I’ve always been a fan of the press. I loved Superman as a kid, so I guess I kind of subconsciously followed the footsteps of Clark Kent. My grandfather was also a journalist, most famous for covering the first story of the Sit-in Movement in Greensboro in 1960. While I always looked up to his work, I don’t want to go the route of the newspaper, for it’s now a dying medium. The Interactive Media program would allow me to take my journalist foundation and create material for the audience of the next generation.
I’ve always been a people person, and ultimately, I want to get into broadcasting. If I could walk into a store and choose a job off a shelf, I’d point behind the counter and say “Just give me one of Ryan Seacrest’s jobs. Maybe one of his host jobs. Thanks.” Of course, life doesn’t work that way. I realize that the media field is one of the most competitive arenas out there, but I’m ready to work my way to the top. I’m confident in my writing, and combined with the behind the scenes skills I would learn in Interactive Media, I know I could climb the ladder even faster.
Attending NC State University for my undergrad was always a dream of mine. My dad went to school there, and I grew up loving the Wolfpack with all my heart. While I was excited to be a part of the Pack, I only had a general idea of what I wanted to do as a freshman, so I entered the First Year College program. Unfortunately, joining this program put me into such a broad field that I didn’t know what to do with myself. I took general classes that covered every end of the education spectrum searching for something I could relate to and love. I enjoyed the social aspects of school but I couldn’t find anything to put my heart into on the education side, so I just got by with my grades and kept searching.
All of this changed when I discovered I could use my passion of writing as a way to succeed in school. After declaring my major as Creative Writing, I channeled what I learned about myself in my first years of college and focused it on doing well in class. The education side became fun for me for the first time, and my work showed it. It’s amazing how much easier class became when I could put my heart into my studies. The pressure was off, and I ended my undergraduate career with my best grades and great relationships with my professors.
I have no regrets on my slow start to school, and I couldn’t be happier with how I finished. Ending my time at NC State on a positive note gave me the confidence to take everything I learned and run with it to the next step of my life. I’m now ready to take the momentum from my last year at State and carry it to the Interactive Media Program.
If I’m accepted into iMedia, I’ll bring this confidence I learned in the finale of my undergraduate career. I want to show you my passion for writing and I want to pour my heart into your program. I also want to bring my most valuable asset by sharing my voice. I guarantee I can give iMedia a voice that everyone can relate to, and I want to enter the program ready to grow with those around me.
I know that being a part of Interactive Media would be a great opportunity to take what I’ve learned in life and in school and run with it. I’m ready for the next step in my life, and I want to be heard.
My name is Drew Sykes, and I’m a writer. I hope to see you in July.

BOOM: so that was my letter to Elon. Waited around for a while, and had to explain a few things, but I really put my heart into it and felt good about it...Honestly, I do my best writing when I have something important or meaningful to say.

So have I heard back yet?

Yes, I have...

The result?

I GOT IN! SO: Ladies and Gentlemen, I will be going to Elon University for my MA in Interactive Media in July!

Couldn't be more excited about the future right now!

Seacrest, here I COME!

SYKES, OUT!

On old times. (Kind of...)

2010-04-10T02:44:00.002-04:00

Okay. I'm back. Writing like a champ for no reason again.

I'm watching "American Pie: Beta House" on Comedy Central right now, and the movie sucks, but I love it. It's your typical college party movie, but I'm not gonna lie: I'm a sucker for cheap humor. Of course, it exxagerates EVERY possible college stereotype, but it's pretty funny.

At the same time, movies like this take me back to my own personal collegiate years, which only ended two years ago. Seems like a lifetime now, but it wasn't that long ago. Looking back on Phi Tau and everything, I miss it. It was never the typical frat when I was involved, and I had some great times when I was involved. Where else would you have a roomate with a hedgehog or latenight cook-out four times a week or a slip-n-slide IN THE HOUSE? I mean, it's crazy. This time of year REALLY brings out the memories of Buffett and building the bamboo fence and playing volleyball in the April sun.

But anyway. I'm a nostalgic kid. Y'all know that. I could write a movie about my experiences with Phi Tau and at NC State, and if I ever get famous, I probably will.

Love it and miss it. That's enough for now before I get too into it.

Peace for now.
Drew.

Beatles on American Idol.

2010-04-08T10:53:00.002-04:00

I'm a sucker for "American Idol".

Never thought I'd openly admit this, but it's true. Got kind of into it last season, but thanks to Amanda and the fact that it's cheap and easy to watch, I've become addicted this season.

I know what you're saying and thinking. "Drew, you're a sell-out." Well, sell-outs usually live pretty happy lives, right? Sorry to disappoint.

This season isn't considered to have the strongest lineup of contestants, but I'm a fan of most of those who are left. To make it more interesting, they did songs from Lennon/McCartney this week, which is how my attention was originally drawn in two years ago.

A lot of Beatles fans weren't too happy about this song list, however, because they believe that the show is full of no-talent karaoke singers. I even got into a debate with a bunch of people who attend the Beatle festival, Abbey Road on the River, about whether or not it was a good thing they would be singing these classic songs. Most of them argued that it would be awful, and that it was only Sony's way of trying to exploit money out of the Beatles lineup. I disagreed, however, saying that whether the contestants did a good or bad job, it would still be exposure for the Beatles and could open the eyes of young people to a higher level of music. Think of all the kids out there who watch Idol and only listen to the spawn of Disney and acts like Justin Bieber. This episode could grab their attention and pull them in a much more dignified musical direction. Even though the songs being performed aren't the original, I know that if a cover is interesting, it makes me want to check out the way the first artist performed it. Hopefully Idol will do the same for these kids.

One of the many good things about the Beatles is that they created a foundation of music so beautiful that future performers could take it in any direction or genre. While new versions of the songs can be different, they can also be a cool and innovative new look into the original classic. The "I am Sam" and "Across the Universe" soundtracks have already done this, and I think it's fun to see where other new and old artists take the songs as well.

As for this season of "American Idol", the contestants did a pretty good job with the music overall. My top four favorites showed up with strong versions. Casey performed an acoustic blues version of "Jealous Guy" by John Lennon, which you could tell he really felt as he sang. Siobhan brought a pure and beautiful cover of "Across the Universe" that really highlighted the fundamentals of music without going overboard with crazy notes or hurting the song. Big Mike tore UP an R&B version of "Eleanor Rigby", strings and all, and Crystal brought a powerful acoustic version of "Come Together", complete with didgeridoo. My alternating fifth favorite, Lee, also did a great cover of "Hey Jude", bringing out a bagpipe player and getting the audience involved like the Beatles would do.

Here are a few vids:

The rest of the singers did OK too, and in my opinion, it was definitely the best show of the season so far. Of course, singing the Beatles could have a little something to do with this, but hey, it was awesome, and I'm gonna go ahead and say that a lot of the people who were against it that watched it probably liked it too.

Anyway, I'm gonna keep watching the show and cheering on my favorites like all of the middle-aged women and teeny-boppers who get into it. Not gonna be embarrassed or ashamed by my new-found love in this reality program. Gonna watch it with pride until the end. Might even vote for the first time if it comes to it. We shall see.

Otherwise, I'm gonna start writing to YOU people more often. I'm really feeling talking more about music now that it's spring and getting warm out. Always brings out memories of older times and good tunes, so be prepared for some of that.

Until then, be easy, and I'll be in touch.
Drew

Mayer XVI/March

2010-04-03T19:24:00.005-04:00

Dear March,

I'm sorry that I screwed you over and didn't write a single blog during your time this year. I'll make up for it in 2011.

To everyone else, sorry I've been distant! The warm weather brought me back though! I'm ready for spring!

Some cool stuff has gone down in the last month. I'm almost done being a temporary vegetarian, and MAYER XVI was siiiiiiiiiick!

Here's the setlist from Greensboro:

John Mayer, Greensboro Coliseum, 3/15/10
Heartbreak Warfare
No Such Thing
Bigger than my Body
Slow Dancing in a Burning Room
Perfectly Lonely
Victoria>My Stupid Mouth>Your Body is a Wonderland
Free Falling%
Waiting on the World to Change
Say
Assassin
Vultures
Half of my Heart>Don't Stop Believing*
Gravity

Encore:
Who Says
Why Georgia

%Tom Petty cover
*Journey Cover

The show was GREAT! I got to sit third row, and took Amanda and my parents! It was sweet getting to see some of the new music live, but most of all I'm glad they finally got to see Mayer in concert! Can't wait 'til he kicks his summer tour off in Charlotte...

Anyway, here are a few pics from the night...hope you enjoy!

Get hype for more Mayer and more writing!

Drew.

Gigs and dancing AT my lady.

2010-02-28T15:12:00.003-05:00

Amanda had a gig last night. She AND the band rocked it. Had a lotta fun dancing "at" her (not with her), since she was in the middle of a performance. They balled over a set of mostly Beatles with some C,S,N, some Doors, some Clapton, and a few other artists from the time period thrown into the mix. It was a good time. Had the 'rents come out, and the sis, and one of my cousins, so that was cool. Also managed to get some folks from work out there.

Of course, I'm not the most sociable person when it comes to her gigs. I kinda play the groupie/roadie role. Run errands. Elbow drop dudes who try to holler. Dance up front. Make faces at my girl. It's a pretty good little setup.

Time went by super-fast last night while they played. They rocked it from 9-1, which seemed like a long time, but it was over pretty much right after they started. Through the sets, they played a nice lil rendition of "Suite: Judy Blue Eyes" by Crosby, Stills, Nash, and Amanda knocked out the "Across the Universe" version of "I Want to Hold Your Hand". Her dad balled on the drums, and the two guitarists shredded some amazing solos. Can't forget Dan, the bass player, who covered Petty like it was his job.

I also got some sweet dancing in over the course of the night, and kept getting dragged to the floor by a woman who said I looked like John Lennon and wanted me to dance in front of Amanda while she sang. Who could turn dancing in front of her down, anyway, right? If I can't dance WITH Amanda, I'll dance AT her. Figure that's ALMOST as good. Almost.

Went to Herbie's for some late-night breakfast after the show and didn't make the trip home until about 4:45. Nothin' like a little grease to help ya sleep.

I drove home in silence last night, and didn't realize it until I was about halfway back. It was nice. I guess I had enough music running through my head, or thoughts running through my mind. (Thoughts playing music in my head?...something like that).

Anyway, after I realized it was quiet, I just LISTENED. Listened to the engine and the tires on the road and the wind. The roll of it all reminded me of being small and riding home from places late at night and trying to sleep in the car, but really only fading in and out. It was always the kind of tired where you dreaded brushing your teeth because you knew that anything other than going straight to bed would only hurt and wake you up. Know what I'm talkin' about? I definitely melted into my bed when I got home in the end there. Slept til noon today and needed every minute of it.

Could totally go back to sleep now, but it's 3:30, and it's my Dad's b'day (HAPPY B'DAY DAD!), and I've got work at 5, so for now it's time to tread on and truck it out until tonight.

And until later...PEACE.
Drew.

Vegetarian Drew.

2010-02-24T23:39:00.003-05:00

'Ello, folks. How's everybody doing?

So. I gave up meat for Lent this year. Not something I normally participate in, but I wanted to give it a shot. Last time I actually gave up anything that I cared about to the point where it was difficult was 2006 when I gave up sweet tea, but in those days I was a little rounder, my teeth were a lil tea-stained, and I drank the stuff all the time. Don't really drink it anymore, but four years ago it was tough! I chugged a Biggie sized sweet tea from Wendy's the night before and suffered through the 40 days, but I made it. Shoot, it's probably part of the reason I rarely drink the delicious syrup anymore. Either that or because I found out that sweet tea REALLY is no better for me than soda. It wasn't as bad as finding out about Santa, or how many spiders we swallow in our sleep in our lifetime, but it was close...

Anyway, this year I'm doing the vegetarian thing with Amanda. We're still allowing fish, but we're a week into it and we haven't jumped in that pond yet (HA, get it?). The longest I've gone before this period was 10 days last month when I did it just to do it. Don't get me wrong, I still love my cheeseburgers and Carolina BBQ and chicken, but I've cut back like crazy.

Only thing I've been worried about in cutting meat for a month and a week is the protein factor and losing weight. I work out a lot, so I'm obviously concerned with wearing my body down from lack of protein consumption. The good thing is that I've got plenty of supplements and I'm compensating through eggs, whey, and other dairy products. I've also discovered fake meat made of soy and whey, which is good too. Looks like the real thing AND tastes (mostly) like the real thing. Rocked some fake ground beef in our spaghetti tonight and it was MONEY.

The first week was easy, but it'll be interesting to see how tough it gets. Shouldn't be too bad because there are plenty of good ways to get around it. I'm also interested to see how I FEEL physically, because meat has been getting such a bad rep in the press recently. Documentaries like "Food, Inc." and other programs have been bashing certain factors of what we eat, and I'll be excited to see if I feel better over all once it's been out of my system for a few weeks.

I'm not saying that I'm going to give it up once the 40 days are up, but I may continue to cut back on meat consumption. I'll still do the BBQ at family reunions and the burgers at Tailgates, but we'll see what I'm feelin' as it comes otherwise.

I'll keep ya posted on how it's coming, and I'm sure the last 33 days will go a lot faster than we think...

Drew.

Blogs before bed v.20.10.

2010-02-13T01:27:00.002-05:00

Good evening, folks. Remember towards the end of the summer when I tried to whole "Blogs before bed" thing? Well, here's an updated, 2010 version for ya. Don't get too excited, but enjoy it while it lasts. Like seasonal beer. And Christmas.

I found myself in a hurry this afternoon. It wasn't a big deal and could have been prevented, but either way, I ended up having to rush to where I was going. I worked this morning and came home to an empty house only to waste time for a while. The house is definitely quiet when my parents are gone, but it's SILENT when they take our dog Maia with them. Kinda eerie. Anyway, I got back from work and ate a little lunch with the full intention of going to the gym after the food digested. Of course, the opposite happened, and I got online for a bit and talked myself out of working out by taking a time-out on my pillow with the lights out.

My late-afternoon nap was nice, and it turned out I needed it pretty bad, but I had the plan of waking up with plenty of time to spare. What happened? I hit snooze. Three times. My snooze is nine minutes long. You do the math. After knocking out half an hour of extra broken sleep, I made a cup of coffee and jumped into the shower. From this point on, I was in a hurry.

Anyway, the point I'm making in all of this is that it seems like whenever you're in a hurry, everyone else in the world is in slow motion. They're all on vacation on some tropical island sipping margaritas while you're plowin' through four feet of snow to get down the street.

One of the errands I had to run during this time of hurry included a stop to Target. I found what I needed, and tried to get to the registers as quickly as I could. Of COURSE, the rest of the store was oblivious to this and everything else in life, and nobody was following the rule of walking on the right side of the aisle. I finally made it to the line and got out, but not before visualizing myself in a real-life "Frogger" game where the people are the cars and the aisle is the road. Ever do that?

Visualizing is fun. I'm sure you do it. It's leftover imagination power from your childhood. I like to do it in my car too, when a hype song comes on the radio. I'll throw the pedal to the floor for a second and imagine a high speed spy chase. It's sweet.

Speaking of visualizing, how bout the torch ceremony at the Olympics tonight? I didn't realize Superman's Fortress of Solitude was in Vancouver! Or that it could catch on fire! Pretty cool though, ey? Funny, funny.

Anyway, this has been my first good ramble in a while, and it felt pretty good. It's been a fun week full of b'days, and Hershey's and Hallmark day is coming up SUPER-fast. I guess now I can say Happy B'day to my Mom as well, because it's officially the 13th, so, Mom, if you read this, HAPPY BIRTHDAY!

Hittin' the hay now, guys. State/UNC tomorrow, and lots more ADB b'day to celebrate.

Goodnight.
Drew

SHOUT!

2010-02-04T22:44:00.011-05:00

I had the honor of being a groomsman in my good friend Luke's wedding this past weekend.

Weddings are great, and it's definitely starting to turn into wedding season for my friends and people of my age range. Kinda crazy, but they present a great opportunity to break away from everyday stress and have FUN.

For me, one of the coolest moments of the reception is the dancing and the music. If you don't have dancing at your wedding reception, please don't invite me (no offense to anybody whose wedding I may have already attended without music). The whole point is to let loose, because HEY, it's your wedding day, and we're all here to make it AMAZING for ya. No one wants to sit around and drink lemonade and eat tarts. I'm just sayin'...

Anyway, Luke's wedding was off the hook (bringin' that one back), and I wanted to share a little visual of how much fun it actually was with you.

There are certain songs that wedding bands play as cliches. "Wedding Crashers" showcased several of these, and the one I wanna talk about today is "Shout". Those in attendance through the ice and snow at Luke's reception were fortunate enough to rock it out to a version of this song played by an AMAZING wedding band, the "Brothership".

While the song was going on, I broke out my camera. I'd had it out a lot that night, but for this particular strand of four minutes, I took it out, danced, and KEPT taking pictures! So instead of really posing (outside of a few random ones), I got about 30 CANDID pictures of people breaking it down during the song.

So, from my lens to your eyes, here it is folks. "SHOUT" from the wedding of Luke and Katie Sirakos. Enjoy.

Groundhog New Year Promise

2010-02-02T12:34:00.002-05:00

Hello.

I need to blog. And I will, I promise. Soon. Getting geared up for some cool things in 2010.

Talk soon.

Love,
Drew

PS: Happy Groundhog Day.

Christmas Carol Countdown.

2009-12-07T22:53:00.011-05:00

Christmas music has been everywhere since the day after Halloween. Of course, out of respect to Turkey Day, I refuse to really listen to it until after Thanksgiving, but by then, it's on until Christmas Day.

Different Christmas tunes have been important to my family and me throughout my life, and like most music, certain ones play more important roles at different times. Here's a list of some I've always been into as well as some I've started to appreciate in more recent years:

1. Charlie Brown Christmas. Can't beat it. Most of it's instrumental, but it's so classic and mellow that it's the perfect background music to the end of the night. It's quiet enough that it's not overpowering to the room, but obvious enough that it takes me to the famous Linus speech whenever I hear it. I used to play it in my boombox when I was a kid and fall asleep to it during the holiday season. My favorite way to listen to this one is when the presents have been opened and the only lights on in the house are the lights on the Christmas tree.

2. O Holy Night. This one gets me the most of all of the spiritual Christmas carols. The crescendo of the song gives me chills as the music rises and the lyrics hit the line "fall on your knees/and hear the angels' voices!". I love every version of this song, from the traditional styles to the newer versions from Josh Groban and Christina Aguilera. Aaron Neville also DOMINATES the song in a Motown way with his adaptation of the song. Love it.

3. Jingle Bell Rock--the Bobby Helms version. This one will ALWAYS remind me of Christmas morning at Grandma and Grandaddy's house in Gastonia, NC. Grandaddy had a tape that was ENTIRELY made up of this song on one side, and he'd take pride in playing it every year. The cool thing is that, suckers for tradition that we are, we STILL play that tape over and over on Christmas morning every year. I'll always think of him getting the tape started, and I love that we play it in his honor even today. I'm ready to hear it again in a few weeks...

4. Blue Christmas--Elvis. Love this one, because it's bittersweet and it's catchy. I was never the biggest Elvis fan, but hey, he's the King, and I definitely learned to appreciate him more after visiting Graceland this year. His voice is great in the song, and the background vocals really take it away. Sheryl Crow has a nifty cover of the song too. I don't WANT a Blue Christmas, but I'll blast the song every year.

5. A Wonderful Christmas Time--Paul McCartney. Annoying, but it's PAUL! I mean, come on, it's catchy, right? It's one of those songs that sort of makes me cringe, but I can't change it at the same time. My eleventh grade English teacher HATED it, so what'd I do? Burned him a 12-track CD. The track list? 1-12: A Wonderful Christmas Time by Paul McCartney. Come on, y'all! He was a BEATLE! I'll keep rockin' it.

6. Happy Xmas (War is Over)--John Lennon. Great song. Political. Powerful. Love the chorus of kids singing along and the pure PEACE that it stresses. It gets me every time, and balances out Paul's Christmas song. I rock this one too. The Fray has a mean cover of it as well.

7. A Neighborly Christmas--Drew Holcomb and the Neighbors. My newest favorite. I had the pleasure of serving a Summer Staff Session with Drew and Ellie Holcomb in 2008. They're great people, and as musically talented as they are nice. Drew carries a Sinatra-esque vibe on this record, while Ellie's voice has an old-school, raspy feel that puts a modern twist on classic music. Every song is fun on the album, but their version of "Baby it's Cold Outside" REALLY stands out. Check out the album on iTunes and watch their video for the song HERE. Also, be sure to grab their other albums as well!

8. A Very Special Christmas (1&2). These two collections are my all-time favorites, because they REALLY take me back to my childhood, and they're probably the ones we listen to as a family the most even today. From the Pointer Sisters' version of "Santa Claus is Coming to Town" to Aretha Franklin's "O Christmas Tree" that always made my sister and I laugh, the two collections include the best variety of classic and modern Christmas songs out there. Can't forget Run DMC's "Christmas in Hollis", Madonna's "Santa Baby" (that my sis and I used to fall to the ground for because she was the bad guy in "Dick Tracy" the movie), or Bruce Springsteen's repetitive "Merry Christmas, Baby". Great collections.

Of course, I'm leaving out countless other great Christmas tunes, but these are some of the best. I'm sure you're familiar with most of 'em, but if you're not, check 'em out, turn on the tree lights, pour some egg nog, and ENJOY!

Merry Christmas,
Drew.

Productivity Cycle.

2009-12-03T23:19:00.003-05:00

Yesterday was a productive day. You wanna know how a productive day for a 24-year-old college grad who works part time at a restaurant and is still trying to figure out the next step of his life goes? Since I had the day off, here's a quick outline:

9:17 a.m. Alarm goes off, I hit snooze. I never set my alarms on 0's or 5's, but usually 3's or 7's. My snooze lasts 9 minutes, so I often wake up on 5's or 1's, which means I usually hit the button twice for 18 minutes of extra broken sleep.

9:35(ish) a.m. Woke up. Fell outta bed. No comb across my head. Dragged into the kitchen with our dog, Maia, at my heels to pour a bowl of cereal and my first cup of black coffee of the day. She always follows me because she knows I'll drop a piece into her bowl. Here's how it goes: I pull the cereal out of the cabinet, grab a bowl, pour it, toss a piece in her bowl (clink!), pour the coffee, pour the milk, nuke the coffee if it's cold, and walk into the living room to turn on the tv. Most of the time it's Sportscenter, but if it's mid-week and it's early enough, I catch the music videos on VH1 (gotta watch 'em when you can to avoid the ridiculous "Celebreality" they're always brainwashing our youth with...).

10:07 a.m. Facebook. Tryjm.com. Twitter. Johnmayer.yuku.com. In that order. It's embarrassing, but I do it. I'm sure you do too...

11:00 a.m. Gym time. This is early for me. Mad thanks to Harley Pasternak for the 5-Factor Workout. Been using it for two years and I still love it. Yesterday was back and bicep day, which is always crucial. Also ran for a bit to the tunes of "Battle Studies" and others. The chorus of "Assassin" into the guitar solo is killer for when it's time to push it.

12:30ish. Back home. Protein shake (because I GOTS to get SWOLE!). Shower. PB Sandwich, and let the errands BEGIN.

1:15 p.m. Drove Mom to pick up her car. Some douche keyed it a few weeks ago, and now the paint is FIXED.

1:45ish. Men's Wearhouse. Tux fitting for my buddy Luke's wedding. It was quick, and I'm gonna look like a pimp. Can't wait.

2:15ish. Four Season's Mall. My mission: New Shoes. Went into each show place at least once to find the best deal. Ended up with some red and white Air Max 90's and a smile. Could have and SHOULD have knocked out some Christmas shopping, but I'm waiting to save that card for the maximum stress effect which should kick in in about two and a half weeks.

3:30. Back home. Room cleaning time. Picked up piles of laundry and made it so my carpet is visible. It's blue, like my eyes.

4:20ish. Snack break. Stephen King novel. Waiting for my girlfriend to get out of class.

4:45 p.m. Amanda gets out of class and comes over. We kick it for a bit.

6:30 p.m. Amanda and I roll to UNCG for a class discussion she needs to attend for an assignment. I'm not in school, but I like going to these because I feel like a student again. They're fun when they don't matter for a grade. Nice to stimulate the brain again. Grad school might not be so bad after all...(remind me I said this if I ever complain about it down the road.)

8:00 DINNER! At home, with the rents and Amanda. Turkey Sausage Soup. Spicy, healthy, and delicious. Mmmmm.

9:30 p.m. Back to Amanda's so she can get some work done. This is the time of year I definitely do NOT miss from my school days.

1:00 a.m. Back home again.

1:16 a.m. Goodnight text to Amanda, lights out, DONE SON!

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9:17 a.m. Alarm. Snooze twice.

9:35 a.m. Repeat breakfast routine. Get ready for work. Annnnnnnnd here we go again...

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SO, kids, that's how a productive day typically goes for someone in my position. That is BALLER for a day off. Didn't sleep in, worked out early, and got some stuff DONE! The real test comes now in keeping my shoes white and my room clean. Oh, and finding a job or going to school for the sake of a future CAREER. But hey, one step at a time, right?

Until then, I'm gunnin' for grad school apps and Christmas. Woohoo!

DS.

Journal Stories.

2009-11-29T22:25:00.003-05:00

It's Sunday night of Thanksgiving weekend and I'm sitting in the living room looking at the Christmas tree. It's fully decorated and equipped with bright LED lights for the first time this year. They give off a nice blue glow instead of the pinkish glow the old ones did, and they use 88% less energy than the others, which is nice. Underneath the tree is still barren, but that'll change soon enough.

Amanda's sitting here doing homework, getting geared up for the end of the semester, and I've got Sunday Night Football playing in the background on the tv. While it's still technically November, the surf is heading out to sea for the tidal wave of good cheer and love that Christmas will bring in a few weeks (quite an analogy, eh? Glad ya liked it).

That being said, I've given you a list of things that I'm thankful for, and of course, I could have written a lot more, but instead, I want to share with you an abbreviated version of some of the stories my Grandma told us the other night. They're always great to listen to, and I wrote them down in my journal to save them somewhere concrete.

I'm not going to elaborate on these stories right now. What I'm going to do is type out the EXACT entry from my journal from the night before Thanksgiving. Keep in mind that it was late, I'd had a glass of wine or two, and I was tired. I didn't feel like writing, but I had to get it on paper, because it felt good and made me happy. My parents and sis were in the room, and some movie was on TV, but I scribbled away for a few minutes. Here we go:

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11/25/09

In Gastonia. Grandma just went to bed, but we're here for Thanksgiving & she told us lots of cool stories tonight. She and Granddaddy have (had) been to ALL seven continents. They've basically set foot on every major land mass in the world. So cool! She talked about how they crossed paths with Patton's son, & how he called Grandaddy "Doc," and told him to call him "George." Also, they went to Russia, lost their luggage, and she had to get a peasant's outfit in a "dollar" store in Leningrad. She also talked about how she had one of the most spiritual experiences of her life on a boat to Antarctica with the Chaplin & Dr. while a major storm was going on around them. We're talkin' waves above their boat.

It was so cool hearing her stories. Grandma could seriously have a "Forest Gump"-type movie made about her. 92. 4'10". Strong. Definitely wanna be as strong as her when I grow up.

And speaking of that, I wonder how she sees me & the cousins. She obviously saw her kids grow up, but we're the next generation. Does she see us as her little grand kids or young adults? Both, I'm pretty sure. It's interesting to watch the perspectives and think about their differences.

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So there you have it. A short concrete version of what I heard the other night. I know it's more of a teaser, and I could totally elaborate (which I might later...I really DO come back when I say "I'll do it later" sometimes), but for now I wanna keep it raw, like the cursive in my journal.

Hope you enjoyed it, and while there's one more day of November, I also hope that you get excited for Christmas as the spirit starts stirring in the coming weeks. Goodnight for now.

D.

Thanksgiving 2009.

2009-11-26T23:18:00.003-05:00

Thanksgiving Day. Lots to report, but it's all hand-written in my journal for now. I'll get to that later...maybe. Seems like anything I say "I'll get to that later" about tends to be forgotten, but I've got lots of cool things written that I want to share with you here as soon as I can, so hey, I'll get to it later...

Anyway, I'm sitting here, bloated, full, glass of wine by my side, and typing. Thanksgiving was spent in a leisurely way today, with tv viewings of the Macy's Day Parade, football, a "Home Alone" marathon, and "Elf". Of course, not focusing on the tv portions too much, I also ran a little over two miles today and read a good chunk of my latest Stephen King book (what can I say, I'm a sucker for King, but you knew that).

Outside of the television, workout, reading, and relaxing, we took our annual Sykes Kid Christmas Pictures, which we've done since infant-hood, if I can use that as a word. These pictures have transformed over the years, from being easy when Carra was a baby to the tough years where Mom and Dad dressed us both in white turtle necks and managed to get good pics between our shouts of "get OFF me" and "don't TOUCH me" to the soccer jersey years to now when we wear what we want and model pose for the camera between shots (whew...outta breath...love long sentences). Of course, my sister and I are both glad to have the pictures taken every year, and it's a lot of fun looking back on them all and seeing how much we change between Christmases, and how much we've grown up since the tradition began. I know Mom and Dad love it too, and I have a feeling we'll keep taking them for a while. I'm definitely not complaining. They're cheesy, but they're the good kind of cheese.

After this "full" day, the REAL festivities began. Grandma was busy all day, and the rest of the family began to arrive around 5:30. There were 14 people and 3 dogs at dinner, and the FEAST began around 7. I can justifiably call it a FEAST because that's what it was. We had turkey (white and dark meat), rice, gravy, cranberries, dressing, turnip greens, creamed corn, crowder peas, rolls, olives, carrots, and my Grandma's pickles followed by PUMPKIN PIE that I'm going to go back and find more of in a minute for dessert. It was AMAZING (as always), and I'm dragging with a well-earned and deserved food hangover now. MAN, the gym will be nice tomorrow.

Anyway, Thanksgiving was definitely a success, and not overlooked like it tends to be by the Commercial-Christmas-Society we tend to live in. Yeah, Christmas movies were watched today, but we focused more on the MOMENT than a month from now, and it was great, and DANG, I know we've all got plenty to be thankful for. I would give you a list, but it's SO cliche...

Ahhhh, screw it! It's a cheesy time of year, and I'm a cheesy guy. To close out this blog, here's just a SAMPLE of the things I'm thankful for in 2009:

-The people I love. There are a lot of you, and you know who you are. Many of you will be mentioned again under this bullet, but the group of you gets the first spot.
-Amanda. You make me better. Thanks for your support through everything, your laugh, your smile, your kind heart, and your love. Couldn't be happier than I am when I'm with you.
-My parents. Thanks for taking me back after five years of college, and keeping me for a good chunk of time longer than I expected. Thanks for being fun, and for being cool with me as I "figure out the next step". Growing up has been interesting, but I continually appreciate the way you are there for me through everything.
-My sister. My favorite sibling. Thanks for being an inspiration to me in more ways than you know. Even though I'm the older brother, I look up to you in a lot of ways, and I'll always appreciate that. You are awesome, and I admire the way you live your life.
-I'm also thankful for my friends. Some of you I rarely see these days. We're in different states, cities, and places in our lives, but all of you have shaped me into who I am today.
-my 92 year old Grandma. SO thankful for her, and the rock that she is in my family. SHE COOKED OUR THANKSGIVING FEAST FOR US TONIGHT, AND SHE IS AMAZING! Her stories are great to hear, and they give hope during these hard times.
-Football. Haven't kept up with it as much this season because it's been a tough year for my Wolfpack and my Panthers, but I'll follow them 'til the end, and I'll be yelling at the TV come Saturday when we play UNC.
-Mayer. His music fits my life, and he's the man. Can't WAIT 'til he comes to Greensboro!
-Sticks and Stones. It's a great place to work in this "Figuring out the next step" phase of my life. I love the people I work with, and working there always has its fun moments. It'll be an experience I always remember, and something I'll look back on and say I enjoyed.
-The holidays. I love 'em. They bring us all together and the traditions are great.
-The future. Still don't know what I'm doing, but like I always say, I'm ready for what's next, so bring it on. School, career, LIFE.

And on that note, HAPPY THANKSGIVING, and good night!
Drew.

I'm back again.

2009-11-18T00:50:00.002-05:00

Gonna write.

Gonna write because it's getting late, and it's been "BATTLE STUDIES DAY" around the United States.

"Battle Studies Day?" You ask? Yes. November 17. The release date of the one and only JOHN MAYER's 4th studio album, and might I say that it is SICK. It grows on me every time I listen to it, and it's even better now that I actually have a hard copy.

I'll review the actual record later, but I've definitely celebrated its release RIGHT today. Woke up excited and listening to it, and went to Target to buy two hard copies. Gave one to Amanda, who needed an official version, and I'll probably give the other to my parents, who I think I might actually be bringing to a Mayer concert in Greensboro in March. More on this later...

Anyway, the last few days have been crazy hectic. Yeah, there's a lot to say, and yeah, I know I've been ignoring this blog like whoa the last month. I'm sorry, it happens. Mayer played a live show on tv tonight and I've stayed up enjoying a few brews and rockin' out to the music, so I wanted to write.

So much to catch up on since I've last been here. And believe it or not, there are a few long stories I need to tell, but the bottom line is that I could never be more thankful for Amanda, my family, my friends, and my close family friends than I am now. I've said this before, but it's amazing how much this can increase and change as life goes on and new and crazy events unravel. We were very lucky this past weekend to have something occur that could have been a lot worse than the results that showed up. I know this is vague, and I'll probably write about it later, but for now, I'm running with the feeling of thanks I have in my heart. My family is amazing, and I'm so grateful.

So many things are happening now too. 2009 is racing to the finish line and the holidays are FAST approaching. I'm still jobless when it comes to my career path, but it's ok, because I'm gunning for grad-school if I don't find anything in the next few months. I'm calm and ready for what's next.

The cool thing about this particular blog entry is that I'm just typing. It's all I've been doing this entire entry. I don't really know where I'm going with it now, but Thanksgiving is coming up, the Caldwell-Sumner was this past weekend, and basketball season is about to start. WOW. Lots going on, but as always, I've got an excited feeling in my heart. I'm loving life, as confusing and uncertain as it is right now, and I know that whatever happens next will be what needs to be.

Word to that, and good night.
DS.

Tenth Month.

2009-10-07T21:51:00.004-04:00

October. October? OCTOBER!

Touche, 2009. Just when I thought you were slowin' things down a bit, you hit me in the face with the onset of the tenth month of the year. I should've known better.

So. Yeah. October. It's starting to FEEL like fall now, although the leaves haven't really started to change yet. It's too cold for the A/C but too warm for the heater to come on so the house is perfect during the day and it gets to that cold in an I don't wanna get out from under the blanket" kinda way at night, so I like it. It's also given me the chance to get on a green tea kick the last week or so. No sugar, hot water, green tea. Amanda and I have been all about it, and hey, it's good for the soul (and the immune system...watch out, Swine Flu!).

October really is a good month. I talked about September being the start of fall, and the feel-good atmosphere that brings with it, but October is when all of this really gets kicking. It means the fair, changing of the leaves, the heart of football season, and Halloween. It also brings the PLAYOFFS in baseball, which, once again, my Braves failed to make (Braves 2010! Woohoo!). It's a great month to get scared in a fun way, and to get wrapped up in that trick-or-treat hype you got as a kid.

Anyway, props to October. I know I'm kind of letting my fingers type without thinking tonight, but I'll take what I can get. It's been an interesting few weeks since I last wrote here. All good and great for the most part, but I took a slight step back in one aspect of my life I didn't want to have happen again. I'm still struggling to find a middle ground with it. I don't want to be controlled by it, but I also want to be strong enough to resist the pull of falling back to where I used to be. The line is too thin for me to stand on it sometimes, and gravity is always working against me. Just gotta stay strong.

But October, yeah. The theme of this blog. Tenth month of the year. Back to getting scared. Amanda and I have one haunted house down, and we want to hit up at least one more before Halloween. We went to "Spooky Woods" in High Point the other night, and it was great. Got stuck with a bunch of high school kids on the trail and laughed at their reactions as much as our own. The place is perfectly designed for the fun scare, starting with a Texas Chainsaw type of house and going through a corn maze and a castle with rooms set up to look like all of the scariest horror movies. I went about 7 years ago, and it's really improved since then. Definitely had several jumpy moments that turned into laughter pretty quickly. Can't wait to catch another one.

I'm super-tired now and about to crash, but some pretty cool things are coming up in the next few days. Amanda's got a GIG Friday night of all acoustic Beatles stuff which will be a lotta fun, and SATURDAY, we're heading up to DC to kick it with Ryan in the city for a couple of nights. Two shifts of work between now and then, and the weekend will BE here! Can't wait. Going to sleep with that thought.

Gnight.
D.

Musical Nostalgia.

2009-09-21T02:29:00.003-04:00

"Wheel" with the windows down just took me back to this time six years ago. Freshman fall at NC State. Cool weather, late nights, and far enough into the semester to be comfortable with the place.

I was the same, but different. Eighteen, mop-topped, a little preppier, but still smiling a lot. NC State was in front of me rather than behind, and my biggest concerns involved getting football tickets and stocking the room with Easy Mac and Ramen.

"Heavier Things" was a constant that could be heard from my open room or the two 12 inch sub-woofers in my Explorer, and I could relate to the music more than ever now that I was on my own. I was learning lessons and making mistakes and decisions away from home, and the songs on the record picked me up or gave me advice when I needed it.

I can still remember playing "Clarity" for the first time on my laptop in Windows Media Player, before my iTunes days. It was real, and it hit me from the beginning. College was new and crazy, but the song helped me brush the worries away and enjoy that particular moment in my life, because at that time there's no way I could have known just how fast six years could fly by. Crazy, eh?

As much as I love the rest of Mayer's music, I'll always be a sucker for the nostalgia that "Heavier Things" brings me when I listen to it at night in the fall. It took me back again tonight, and still gave me the hope and comfort it did when I was a little younger and different, but had my heart in the right place, as I feel I do now...

With as fast as things move and as uncertain as things are these days, I'll take that as a good thing.

D.

OFF.

2009-09-17T12:26:00.002-04:00

Today is my first day off in 9 days. I know I only work part time, but off days are still GREAT. Days where I'm scheduled for dinner shifts can seem like days off, but there's always the thought of work in the back of my mind, and with that they can still be tiring.

My goal was to get up today and get some things DONE. So far I've eaten cereal and had two cups of coffee. Not bad, right? Yeah, I know, nothing productive yet, but I'm gonna get on to some G.R.E. stuff in the next little bit. I'm setting a table and chair up in my sister's room for a temporary "study station" to leave up until after the test. I'm now OFFICIALLY registered to take it on Monday, October 5. This way I can have a few weeks to study for it, I'm motivated by the deadline, and I'll get my results back just in time to finish my application by November 1. Not too bad of a plan as long as I actually study a little.

As for work itself, it's been an interesting week. Nothing too crazy, but there was one instance that gave me a pretty good laugh. Since I've been working at Sticks, I've gotten to know or recognize the majority of our regulars. A lot of these people are really cool, regardless of how they tip. There are some that run your ass off and tip well, and others that trap you in good conversation and don't leave you shit, but you enjoy the time with them. Of course, like any server, I'm a big fan of the ones who treat you AND tip you like a friend instead of a pizza-slinger.

Anyway, the other day this one regular came in with his wife. The best way to describe him is with the word "grouse". He's a grouse. That's not necessarily a word, but it sounds right for this guy. I'll break it down even more for ya. If he were on Sesame Street, he'd be Oscar. If he was a dwarf, he'd be Grumpy. The guy never smiles, and he always wants his white wine glass chilled. I greeted him and his wife a few weeks ago when we had a busted A.C. and they immediately complained about the temperature. Of course, as the messenger of the news, I got the evil looks as if it was my fault we had a bad system, and the guy says "Welp, sorry," and walks out before his wife realized he was leaving (I'm not defending her here, she's almost as bad as he is, but I thought it was funny he left her behind).

Fast forward to a few days ago and the A.C. is fixed and the couple returned. I sat them, crossing my fingers they wouldn't sit in my section (which they didn't, whew), and of course they commented on the air (yeah, thanks, I noticed it was fixed too). They ordered drinks from me, which I passed on to their server. As the night progressed, their pizza appeared in the window, so I ran it out to them. Just like with any customer, I placed it down with a smile and told them to enjoy. Before I could finish putting it on the stand, the guy looks at me and says, "I've got a question for ya." Giving him the benefit of the doubt and thinking he's going to be friendly for a change, I look at him and say, "What's that?" As his perma-frown increases, he asks, "Where did the pepperoni go?"

I feel my half-fake smile fade as I put my tail between my legs and stare this asshole down. "Uhhh, I don't know, sir. Did you order it with pepperoni?"

"Well, I THOUGHT I did," he says.

So I pick it up and say "I'll get it fixed," and as I turned away I stopped, fake-laughed, looked at him and said, "Psht, and I thought you were going to ask me a SERIOUS question...HAHA..."

Didn't deal with him the rest of the night, but felt pretty good about getting the last word in. Of course, I couldn't have done this if he had been my table, and probably shouldn't have anyway, but hey, sometimes you gotta walk away with what holds up as a LITTLE pride in your own mind. You can get away with a lot more than you think with people like that. I laughed about it, because it's hard for me to understand how anybody can be that unhappy all of the time, but what can you do? Ha, I brushed it off and smiled, because he'll be back regardless of little things like that...

Woohoo. Battle stories. Gotta love 'em. And the grumpy regulars. Smile, folks. You'll get less wrinkles.

Not much else to say right now, but it's gonna be a gym/dinner/movie date night tonight, so I'm pretty excited about that. It's also the third weekend of college football, and some good things are happening over the next few days. I still get excited about weekends, regardless of how much I have to work over them. People are happier, and friends are free when I get off work. So yeah, weekend time is gonna be nice.

Until then, I'll be around. Peace outside.
DS.

Double SHIFT.

2009-09-12T14:10:00.002-04:00

Typing this one up between doubles at work.

Last night was CRAZY-busy in the pizza-slingin' world. It started off so slow you could hear the crickets, and then: BAM! BUSY. This is how it always happens. You think you're gonna get out of there at a decent hour for a weekend night, and then the customers remember that it's the weekend too, and decide they're gonna camp out over one extra beer for 30 more minutes. Of course, it's not all bad, because in being busy and staying later, you make more money. Simple economics: opportunity costs. Leave early = low money. Stay late = make more money. But then again, on weekends, time IS money. Never realized how true that was until I started waiting tables.

Another thing I realized while I was running around throwing pies last night was that, DAMN, I've gotten GOOD about balancing food and drinks and carrying multiple items. Don't get me wrong, I've still got a ways to go to catch up with a lot of people in the service idustry, but I'm getting better every day. Learning to use different parts of your upper body as third and fourth arms and hands gets pretty crazy, as weird as that sounds. And with a tray...WOW. It's like a pickup truck for food.

Anyway, work was crazy, but I made good money, or I made Beatles Rock Band if you wanna put it a different way. The non-collector's edition (you figure it out). I REALLY want this game, and the fact that Beatles music is being played non-stop on every station is making it even worse. Even VH1 is playing video game music videos of their songs! It's ridiculous, and I've gotta get it. I'm on the verge of getting some stuff done and driving to Best Buy just to stare at it. "Lead us not into temptation..." Ohhhhh, man...we'll see.

For now it's time to rest and maybe throw in a run at some point. I only got 5 hours of sleep last night, and I'm doing fine now, but the crash is sure to happen. A nap may be in order, but I'm going with it while I can.

Until then, there's plenty of early season football to watch,Cherry Lemon Sundrop to drink, and Jay-Z ft. John Mayer on YouTube...

Watch that one and you'll see that even HOV is impressed. What have I been trying to tell y'all for YEARS?!?

That's what I thought.

PEACE.
Drew.

Defy Gravity.

2009-09-09T11:53:00.006-04:00

It's what I do.

Check out my new custom NikeID running shoes. Designed by me, for me.

Inspiration (if you couldn't figure it out):

I ran in 'em yesterday and kept staring down at them. I can FLY in these things! Gotta love new motivation to run...

Catch me if you can.
D.

PS: Today feels like a good blog day. #2 and counting so far...

One year, Labor Day, and sunsets...

2009-09-09T00:41:00.003-04:00

Today was a catch-up day from a great weekend away at the BEACH. Caught up on the gym, caught up on sleep, caught up on healthy foods again. The only easy part was the sleep...whew.

Anyway, the weekend was AMAZING. Celebrated ONE YEAR with Amanda down at Ocean Isle over the last few days, and straight-up bummed it at the beach. One year. It still amazes me how much we've done and experienced over the last 12 months, and how fast it's all flown by. One thing I'm sure of, though, is that I'm looking forward to making even MORE great memories as we venture into this new year together, and whatever the future holds for us.

Our actual anniversary was Friday the fourth (which is actually the first birthday of this blog too...hmmm...HAPPY late BLOGDAY, blog!). We got to the beach the night before and had the luxury of sleeping in until the late hour of 9:30ish (the sun was pretty bright, but hey, no complaints). The day went fast, but we made it to the lower point of Ocean Isle to catch the sunset, and when I say sunset, I mean SUNSET. You could see it falling as we walked down the open beach, and the weather was perfect. There were wisps of blue and purple and orange in the air, and as the sun continued to go down, it melted into dozens of different shades of red and yellow. Once we got to the point, we stood at the channel between the ocean and the Inter Coastal Waterway and in the golden reflection of the sun. Now, I'm trying to give you the best description I can of this sunset, because I don't have pictures yet. I'll post them when I get them, and they're beautiful, but they still won't do justice to what we saw that evening. Imagine the entire color spectrum glaring against the contrast of the dark clouds. Remember the abbreviation from physics? ROYGBIV. They were all there, and it was brilliant. The waves were crashing and fighting each other in and out of the channel, and the sun turned the beach orange as it began to hide behind the trees on the horizon. It began to fade to red towards the end, and then it was gone, leaving us with an orange sky straight from the tip of God's paintbrush to our eyes. WOW. And then we got a giant full moon to light up the waterway. Crucial.

The rest of the weekend was spent relaxing and enjoying our time together. We biked Sunset on Saturday and discovered Bird Island, a lagoon behind a jetty at the lower point of the beach. Here we made a few friends and talked for a bit, which we always seem to do on our trips. People feel our vibe, and we feel theirs. It's cool. It was a beautiful day, and really the last of the sun we saw until Sunday night. Other than biking, we bummed around the place a lot, which was nice because we don't get the opportunity too often. Watched movies, popped popcorn, and cooked in the kitchen. We saved money from this, had some great meals, and spent time TOGETHER, which is the main reason we were there. It was great.

Besides enjoying our celebration, I got fired up to start doing some serious things in the next few weeks now that we're back. As much as it hurts to say it, Labor Day Weekend is kind of the unofficial end of summertime. Now that summer is unofficially over, I'm ready to get rolling with some positive changes in career status. The economy still sucks, as it has since I started this blog a year ago, but there are other possibilities. I'm going to look harder for jobs, but grad school is also more in the picture now. Don't know for sure if I'd go, but let me say that I bought a G.R.E. study book today, and I'll be signing up for the test in the very near future. Who knows what could happen with this in the coming months. All I know is that, as always, I'm excited.

Outta hear for now, but I'll be back soon. Goodnight.

Drew

October in August.

2009-08-31T22:47:00.003-04:00

It's 65 degrees outside right now. 65 DEGREES! How cool is THAT? Pun intended, of course...

It's been a crazy-weathered day today, and it really feels like Fall, so I'm getting excited for the coming months and everything they'll bring. Football starts this weekend (Thursday night for my Wolfpack), and even though it's still early, the Halloween stores are starting to open.

Don't get me wrong, I love summer, and I'm not counting summer out yet. There are still officially 21 days of summer LEFT, and I know it'll get hot before it's over again, so I CAN'T count it out yet, but the onset of autumn is always nice. The days get shorter, the weather gets cooler, and the holidays are in sight. It's also a time for change, not only with the leaves and the temperature, but also with schedules and LIFE. I'll always coincide the start of fall with the start of school, and now that I'm not a student, it gives me the excitement I need in order to change my own surroundings and really focus on finding a job or taking necessary tests in order to go BACK to school. Oh, and some dude named John Mayer is releasing a new record soon too.

Speaking of the changes coming up in the next few months, I'm afraid to say that my car situation may be a part of this. My trusty ol' Jetta has been flaking on me since the start of summer. It's gotten a lot of mileage added to it in these hot months, and it's seen a lot of cool places, but it's slowing down. A lot has already been done for it between trips, but it recently got damaged in a hit and run, and now the clutch is starting to stick so bad that the gears do not change properly. It's a bummer, because the dents caused by the hit and run are already going to cost a third of what the car is worth when it's in good shape. Throw in the cost of repairs to the clutch and it could be all she wrote, but we'll see. Just like I grew attached to my Explorer, I've grown attached to this one, but the next few days and weeks will decide whether or not I'll be driving something else in the near future.

Of course, with all of the changes that fall will bring, I've got a handful of constants that I'm looking forward to hanging on to and seeing what the future holds. As often as I say it, I still can't believe how fast time moves, and I can't believe that I'm days away from being in a great situation for a whole year now. If you'd asked me about this a year ago, I never would have known I could've been as happy as I am right now. It's pretty crazy, and I love it...

So right now, I'm optimistic about the coming changes as well as watching things get better in something that is already great. Some big dates and events are coming up, and I'm looking forward to every one of them.

Until then, I'm gonna enjoy this weather, and I'm gonna say my goodbyes to summer...

D.

Blogs before bed #5.

2009-08-25T01:00:00.003-04:00

Wednesday night, but I don't wanna count the previous few days out of the picture yet.

Made it to Raleigh under the radar twice this weekend. Went down Friday to watch Amanda's dad play drums with Greensboro rocker Evan Olsen, then made it back Sunday night to watch O.A.R. rock it out at Regency Park Amphitheater in Cary. Breezed through and didn't tell anybody I was coming because I'll be back again next weekend!

Friday night was a good time. Amanda and I left the 'boro when she got off work and booked it to the Village Draft House for some good eats before the show. We started off with their fried pickle chips, and it was all downhill in a good way from there. Once we got out of there, we made it to Napper Tandy's where we met up with her dad as they were getting set to play. As we walked around the pub, I ran into a bunch of old State friends who by CHANCE were there to celebrate a going-away party. It was CRAZY random, but cool, because I hadn't seen these folks in over a year really, since graduation. What was even cooler was that several of them seemed to "know" Amanda through the pictures we've posted on Facebook. They were all happy for us, and it was great running into them.

As for the tunes, Evan Olsen is always a good show. He plays several different cover songs every time he hits the stage, and ranges from Prince to Beatles to 90s rock to singing rap. Stan (Amanda's dad) held the beat down while the crowd (including Amanda and me) danced the night away. Towards the end of the show, Amanda and I ran BACK to the Draft House to grab a set of to go fried pickles for her mom. We made it back just in time to munch away, and her mom LOVED them. Next it was time to hit the road home, but we definitely enjoyed our first evening in Raleigh for the weekend.

Saturday flew by with a trip to the gym and a busy night at work, and then it was time for SUNDAY, or, O.A.R. DAY! I'd been looking forward to the concert since I last saw them on Mayercraft, and I was really hype to take Amanda for the first time (of course, still MORE hype to get her to Mayer eventually...).

We started the day at good ol' IHOP here in town (Mmm, pancakes) and left for Raleigh in the mid-afternoon. Once we made it there, we decided to take a little walk around NC State.

Ever have that feeling like you belong somewhere, but you've kinda moved on in life? That's how it was to walk around NC State again. I've been to Raleigh several times since I graduated, but I haven't actually been on campus since May of last year when I was finishing school. It felt like I'd just been there while we wandered through the Brickyard and out to the Court of the Carolinas. I took Amanda into the buildings and through some of my classrooms, and it was really cool having two different aspects and periods of my life come together like that. We sat on one of the benches I used to frequent when I'd cram-read before class and looked at the area, and it felt RIGHT. I definitely enjoyed giving her the tour and letting her see what I saw for nearly five years. It was surreal, but in a good way.

After this, we headed to the venue but stopped at Lake Johnson for a few minutes. We stood out on the big plank bridge and stared at the water for a bit, just relaxing and taking everything in. Then it was time to head to the show, which was GREAT. OAR hit the stage with a bang, and we made our way to second-row standing room, so we were super close. The crowd was pretty crazy, but the concert was a lotta fun, and I'm glad Amanda got to seem them rock it out (although she is STILL coming down from McCartney last week...I would be too...).

Anyway, we got outta there and grabbed Snoopy's before coming home, but it was definitely a nice weekend to cap out an AMAZING summer. I know I haven't written much about it, but hey, it's why I've been away from this thing so often the last few months...

As for this week, it's already flown by. It's basically Thursday now, and Ryan is coming to town this weekend, so there will be lots of reunions. Definitely gonna be a good time...

Feel like I'm rambling now though, and I'm kinda delirious, so I'm callin' it a night for now. I'll be in touch.

D.

Blogs before bed #4.

2009-08-21T01:28:00.002-04:00

1:28 a.m. Interesting night.

I'm eating a leftover cold blueberry/rasberry pancake that I made with Amanda last night at midnight. There's nothing like midnight pancakes. The idea popped in our heads a few nights ago, and it was a nice little snack last night. The down side was that we learned the hard way how hot my stove gets and burned a few of them to the point of crispiness, but it all worked out. I did have to take the smoke detector off the ceiling to prevent it from going off though. Safety first, right?

Anyway, the cakes were (and still are) money, and it settled our craving for the time being. I'm telling you, we get weird cravings from time to time. Well, not necessarily WEIRD, but SIMILAR. These cravings usually come in the form of breakfast of some kind, like eggs during random hours of the day and night. Or bacon. Popcorn is also a pretty common non-breakfast craving we'll get into. We've definitely knocked out our fair-share of Orville Redenbacker over the last several months. Mmmm, latenight food. Sherbert is a good one too.

Today was long but short. Slept in a bit after staying up pretty late last night and made it to lunch at Sticks with Amanda before she had to go to work. Got home after that and got slapped in the face with the idea that I had stayed up pretty late last night, so I napped until about 6, only to wake up and go BACK to Sticks for work in our new 7:00 shift time. Made a whopping...hang on a sec, gotta count...ok...a whopping $30 at dinner, and ate our sandwich special when I got off. So to sum it up, today was: two meals at Sticks, three hours of work, and 30 bucks in my pocket. The plus of this equation was lunch.

Caught up with Plumlee for a bit after everything, though, which was good because he'd been working at camp all summer. Always good catching up with friends.

Blarrrrgh, but now I'm running outta things to say. I'm bummed that I'm this far into this thing and I don't have a single witty analogy for you. What's up with that?

Couple of things to look forward to in the near future though:
-O.A.R. on Sunday: Can't wait for my 7th show, AND to see them in Cary again, WITH Amanda. Also very psyched to see Daniel and Sara, my Mayer friends from the NC Coast!
-RD rolling to NC: That's right. Ryan is coming to visit next weekend. My brotha. Haven't seen him in over a year, so it'll be cool catching up with ANOTHER friend.
-Labor Day Weekend: Long weekend, with more meaning in it than I've ever had before. Very happy and excited about this.

Until then though, sleeeeeeeeeeeep well. I just let this one sit after an hour-long phone convo, so it's now 2:37. Definitely a "Blog before bed" tonight. Time to hit the pillow.

D.

Blogs before bed #3.

2009-08-15T02:43:00.002-04:00

Tragedy struck today when I was offered a ticket to see Paul McCartney and couldn't take it.

That's terrible, right? It was a last minute deal, but I could've made it if I could've found someone to cover my shift tomorrow night. I would've set my alarm, chugged some coffee, and hit 85 south blasting "Why Georgia" and gunning it for Atlanta to get there in time for the show. I like that spontaneity.

Coulda. Woulda. Can't. Dang it.

Still set to get several concert calls throughout the evening though, so again, it'll be nice to HEAR him live even if I'm not there. Although how baller would it have been to be able to dance with my lady to the music of the Beatles BY one of the Beatles? Very baller, if you're still looking for an answer. This concert is like her Mayer. After it goes down, we'll both owe each other tickets to our favorite artists' shows. It'll happen eventually.

Also, I managed to misplace my car key today. Notice I say "key" in the singular instead of "keys", since I drive a Volkswagen. I've got one of those little switchblade keys that seem REALLY cool, but actually REALLY suck, because they fall apart, they don't attach to key chains, and they cost $250 to replace. Anybody know what I'm talking about? Don't get me wrong, I like switching it open and closed as much as the next person, but it's smaller than my cell phone and falls out of my pocket all of the time. Tomorrow morning is going to be spent tearing my room apart to find it. Can't wait.

Outside of the Paul and keys dilemma, tonight was a chill little night spent catching up with old friends. I went out to Fat Dog's after work to hang out with people I've known since high school, including one friend I've known since kindergarten and another who has just gotten engaged. It was nice hearing about where everybody is these days, because we're all on different pages, but we're all still growing up. Wherever we may be as individuals, we're still down to have a good time as a group. Gotta love that kinda friendship.

Anyway, I'm kinda ramblin' now. Nothing spectacular to reflect on tonight, but it was good. Pillow time for ME. Until next time though, goodnight moon, goodnight sky, goodnight ADB, and goodnight Friday.

Drew.

Blogs before bed #2.

2009-08-14T01:48:00.003-04:00

Ok folks, even though the title says "#2", this is the first OFFICIAL entry in the "Blogs before bed" series. It's ten 'til 2 a.m., and the real question is, are YOU as excited as I am? You should be.

Today flew. That's right. Flew. Soared in after kickin' it late last night until I woke up around 10 this morning. The sleep before that was one of those where I was so tired I felt like my body had a vacuum cleaner built around it trying to take me into dreamland. You ever get so tired that it hurts to lift your head or your eyes, but kind of hurts to shut them and rest at the same time? Not too fun, eh?

Anyway, woke up to the same alarm clock I've had since I was nine. It's that classic digital clock/radio with the red numbers and the fake wood panels on the sides. Pretty much 76% of people my age have or have had it, but I can't get rid of it. I tried using a different one my freshman year of college, but it was too bright and it came equipped with nature sounds that just didn't sound natural. Needless to say, it didn't work out, but oh well, that's life sometimes. Anyway, my old trusty red digits finally got me outta bed after slapping the snooze button three times and gaining a nice 27 extra minutes of sleep (thanks to my nine minute snooze increments). Even thinking about the sound of that alarm makes me cringe right now, but it's the only thing that can get me outta bed. Kinda like my own personal fake electronic rooster.

Got outta bed and went to work at Sticks. It was a pretty typical Thursday, so I had a couple of tables and pretty much hung out and drank sweet tea the rest of the time. Gotta be careful with that though. There are lots of delicious, empty calories in sweet tea, so I only fill the bottom of the glass when I drink it. Of course, I do this throughout the day, so it adds up, but I still feel better about it. Whatever works, right?

Finished the shift channel surfing and came across some semi-old-school Mayer on Palladia. Watched him jam out with Buddy Guy and played it on surround sound in the restaurant. It was nice.

After this I rolled over to walk the dogs with Amanda and hit the gym, only to go BACK out for Mexican food and completely negate the experience. It was delicious and worth it. Next we helped her mom with an errand and got into a discussion with her about different trends of collectibles that people have gotten into over the years, and it sparked a memory of a slightly embarrassing business venture I got into as a 12-13 year old kid.

It was back in the day when I was BARELY too old to enjoy action figures and stuffed animals, but JUST old enough to appreciate the value of a buck. It was also 1997-98, when Beanie Babies and Star Wars figures hit the planet by storm. Some kind of light bulb went off in my head then, and I thought of a GENIUS plan to collect as many of these items as I could without unwrapping them or cutting off the tags so that I could resell them one day at a much higher price. Pretty smart for a tweener, right? The only problem was that every soccer mom and flea market merchant in the country had the same idea. Damnit. Sad thing is that I still have boxes full of these things in my closet, waiting to be resold for [less] than I paid for them ten years ago, although DING (light bulb as I'm writing), they COULD add up to a pretty sweet plane ticket if I can find some buyers. Hmmm...

Speaking of the nineties, we also watched a movie called "The Whackness" tonight, which was pretty cool and has a title that is VERY quotable for whack situations, such as how the economy is these days (WHACK), and how Michael Vick thinks he's gonna get signed by a new team (WHACK). Anyway, check it out if you get a chance, because it takes place in '94, so it's got a killer soundtrack...

Moving on, it's not officially FRIDAY, and I've got work at 6 tonight followed by a weekend with no girlfriend (WHACK). SHE gets to go to ATL and see SIR Paul McCartney in concert live at Piedmont Park. Pretttttty cool I must say. Not gonna lie, I'm gonna miss her, but she promised me a concert call or two, so I'll at LEAST get to hear him rock it out.

As far as Greensboro is concerned, some old friends are in town, and of course, the Beaver Boys are always ready to kick it...(don't ask).

So for now, goodnight, ladies and gents. Or good morning. Either way. And have a STELLAR weekend.

I'll be in touch...
DS.

Blogs before bed #1. [Sort of]

2009-08-12T14:50:00.002-04:00

Ok, ok, it's the middle of the day, and the title is misleading, but it's catchy, right?

I was riding back from a little evening trip to Charlotte with Amanda yesterday, and she told me that I need to get back into writing blogs again. (I promise I'm not whipped, because I agree. Well, not much at least...) I've kept my distance from this thing over the summer for various reasons, but mainly because it's easy to get distracted in these laid back months. I know she likes to read them, and I'm pretty sure you guys do too (at least the few of you that check this out from time to time).

Back to the title. In order to get more into writing again, I want to start a "Blogs before bed" series. I'm not going to change my entire blog, but from time to time I'm going to start writing out my thoughts and experiences from the day or week right before I go to bed. Believe it or not, that's a really good reflection time for me. Something about being really tired gets me thinking deep thoughts. Anybody feel me there? Maybe it's just me, but hey, I'm running with it.

Anyway, yesterday was a fun little day involving a fun little adventure down to Charlotte for the mall and some dinner. We actually got there around 7:30, so we only had an hour and a half to walk around before it closed. No worries though, because we're spontaneous enough to take what we can get and enjoy the moment.

And speaking of enjoying the moment, we hit up Cheesecake Factory right after the mall closed for QUITE a delicious and classy meal. I got my usual stuffed chicken tortillas (which can never be bad outside of the fullness you feel after eating them), and Amanda got some dankilicous jumbalaya. We capped it off with a little lemon rasberry cheesecake and some coffee to spark our energy and guide us home. Mmm, mmm, bihatches.

The way back was smooth but muggy because it had rained that evening and the windows were cracked. She didn't have any cd's handy, so we cruised home browsing the airwaves, which actually turned out to be pretty fun since neither one of us really listens to the radio anymore. Outside of the usual chart toppers like Katy Perry and the horrible, terrible, ghastly Nickelback (which was avoided at all costs), we caught several Beatles songs and classic rock tunes.

While station surfing, we also came across every Lifetime-watching woman's favorite radio host, Delilah. Oh yes, that soothing voice that seems to calm every nerve for every occasion. After listening to her for a bit, I thought, "what would Delilah sound like if she got really pissed off?" Can you picture it? Think about her getting mad at her kids and speaking in that voice of hers. "Ralphie, pick up your damn blocks and clean your room. I'm tired of always picking up after you." (Read that with her voice in your head, and notice there aren't any exclamation points...). And could you see her getting mad at an ignorant caller? "Sir, that question truly offends me. Have a good night, and please go [expletive beeped out] yourself."

Believe me, it's a much funnier thought if you HEAR it than if you read it, but ah well. It'd be a genius stand-up joke, right? Thought so.

As for stand-up itself, if you get the chance, go see Adam Sandler's new movie, "Funny People". It's hilarious and REAL, and gives you a great look into the world of stand-up comedy and how it's done. While most of it is funny in that classic Sandler/Seth Rogen way, it turns around and hits your heart several times by the end. Seeing it will surprise you in how dramatic it actually gets, and the coolest part of it is that it's really about a second chance. Those of you that know me know I'm all ABOUT this idea and what you can do with it...

Still workin' on that one.

But anyway, I'm signing outta here for now. I've run my mouth and typed enough keys for today, but I'm psyched about my new series and hype to be back narrating my life for your reading pleasure. I've missed this...

Drew.

"Times are hard..."

2009-07-14T23:08:00.003-04:00

"Times are hard."

Seems like that's all you hear these days, huh? I mean, if I had a DIME for everytime I've heard that since I graduated a year ago, I wouldn't even NEED a job. I'd be good to go.

But anyway, just because times are HARD doesn't mean you can't have FUN in the meantime, am I right? OK, a lotta people are getting laid off. OK, I don't have a salary or insurance as a waiter. OK, the economy is continually getting it's ass kicked. That's whatever. Times change, they go up and down, it's a rollercoaster, and so many other cliches from the book (whatever book that may be).

Go out and have FUN. Embrace your situation, don't sulk. I've tried that, and it sucks. It's easy to get down on yourself these days. But there's really nothing that can be done about it. Ride it out, and when it's better, you'll be fine. You're PROBABLY fine now. I know I'M fine now. Writing it out definitely helps, but think how well you'll have it when things get better! If you're doing OK now, imagine how you'll be when you're riding high!

I've been lucky enough to spend most of the last week and a half with my family and my girlfriend at the beach. The time I've spent down here has allowed me to catch up with myself and to BREATHE again. It really is tough to remember how to BREATHE sometimes. Frontier in CO has reminded me of this the last two years, but not going back this year, the beach has done it.

Jobs will come back out in the future. I have a feeling it will be sooner rather than later, even though that seems like forever from now for those of us who aren't part of a real company or covered with insurance. But in the meantime, smile with what you've got. If you've got a good family, realize it. If you've got a great girl/boy/companion/spouse/friend/whatever, be thankful. I'm lucky on the family/girlfriend aspect of things now, and I couldn't be happier. The rest will come down the road, but until then, I'm gonna keep kickin' it.

It's definitely easy to get down, but when "Times are hard", take those effin' lemons and make some friggin' LEMONADE...because it's summertime now, and who DOESN'T like lemonade in the summer?

Drew

Sprinting in the Streetlights.

2009-06-23T01:18:00.003-04:00

Had another "good to be here" moment earlier. (No worries. I have these all the time, but some stand out more than others.) I think they're starting to string together because there's some kind of unspoken correlation between summertime and feeling good about life.

Tonight's moment happened while I was walking Amanda's dogs with her, and we walked under a bright streetlight. The lighting was almost indigo, and the mica grains in the street sparkled as we passed the illuminated area. Walking through, I had almost a flashback to being a kid and SPRINTING at night. I don't know about you, but I ALWAYS felt faster at night than during the day. I know it had to be an illusion in my head, but the combination of artificial lighting and the purple/blue tint it creates makes things look like they're moving faster than they really are. I remember looking down at my legs as a kid while I'd run under these lights and they'd be a blur of color with red Chucks blaring at the ends. Felt like the Flash in those days.

Anyway, nothing like a little nostalgia on a summer night, eh? Hope your summers are treating you well so far, and if you get a chance, sprint under a streetlight sometime this week.

D.

Lucky Man.

2009-06-18T02:11:00.003-04:00

Just had one of those "dang, I'm glad to be here" moments in my car. Weird when they happen, right? It's 2:11 in the morning and it finally stopped raining and it's cool out. The stoplights and streetlights were reflecting green and red in the puddles on the way home, and things feel RIGHT. I like it.

I watched the movie "Henry Poole is Here" tonight with Amanda, and it was AMAZING. Without giving anything away, it's basically about finding the faith that things will work out and embracing LIFE and all of its ups and downs. It's also about a SECOND CHANCE, which those of you who know me KNOW that things like that are important to me. Definitely check the movie out if you get a chance.

Also, watching it really did remind me that I AM lucky with my life right now. Bad weather and crazy work experiences should never bring me down. Nope. I have a job, I've got a great girl, and I'm thankful for the support of my family and friends. Things feel GOOD.

The little "moment" I mentioned above happened on my way home from dropping Amanda off at her house. I blasted "Lucky Man" by the Verve in the car, and saying goodnight to her with the combination of cool air and good music woke me up and sent me straight here to write.

Others on the road may have thought I was crazy, or that I shouldn't have been driving, but no one was really around to witness me feeling this way. My hand was out the window and I was letting it flow up and down in the wind. My favorite part of this is always when I let my fingers bend up enough to catch the breeze and send it shooting up my arm, causing it to rise like an airplane. It's just as fun when I bend them back down and send it crashing until it gets caught again, as if the wind is actually water. Love that feeling.

Time to write again.

2009-05-17T13:14:00.002-04:00

The last two weeks have been a WHIRLWIND! We're talkin' marathon with no water, no breaks, no rest, no relief, give it all up until the end type of race here, and it's been interesting.

It all started with my birthday back on Cinco de Mayo, or "Cinco de Drupac," as it's been called the last three years. Since then I've gone through emotions ranging from all-out fun and happiness during the celebrations to the opposite with the loss of a loved one, and back AGAIN to celebrate her life with those around me.

The loved one I'm talking about is my grandma, Jamie Sykes. She passed away after a long battle with Alzheimer's a little after midnight on the 13. While we knew that her time was coming, it was still a tough experience, but we got to say our goodbyes (or "see you laters" as I like to call them) before she moved on. I know now that she is at peace and in a much better state than she was in her final months. There's a bittersweet relief that comes with that, because on one hand I already miss her like crazy, but on the other, she's not suffering anymore. I don't think there's any real way to describe how that feels in words, but it's something we'll all eventually go through. Whenever this happens, the best thing you can really do is look at the glass half full, raise it, and be thankful for the time you had together, because in the end, that's all that matters. I'll always hold on to the memories I have with her.

I've been constantly on the go through all of this, and it hasn't caught up with me yet. I decided that the way I cope with this kind of thing is to get out of the house and to DO things with the people I love. I kind of called myself out about this when I realized I did it during the loss of my two grandfathers as well. It's not that I don't want to be around, it's just that I feel like going out and having a good time helps take away the down side of it all. I guess everybody has their own way of dealing with these kinds of things.

It's looking like I'm going to keep running through the week ahead as well, but in a good way. I've got three days of work before I hit the road to head to Louisville, Kentucky for the largest Beatles festival in the US: Abbey Road on the River. I'm looking forward to being Amanda's groupie when she takes the stage, and I think it'll be a great experience overall. Kind of like a mini-Mayercraft perhaps, with lots of fun people, music, and good times. This will LITERALLY be here before I know it, so if any catching up is gonna happen, it's gotta take place over the next day or two. If it doesn't go down, I'll just keep going and let the exhaustion nip at my heels for a little longer. I have a feeling it'll be worth it.

The weeks ahead will definitely be full of good vibes, because summer is pretty much here, and everyone is feeling happy. The trees are green, the sun is shining, and everybody wants to dance. I like it, and I'm looking forward to whatever happens in the next month.

For now, though, I want to make a little blomise. That's right, a blomise. I just made it up. If you haven't figured it out, it's my version of a "blog promise." Catchy, right? My BLOMISE is to write more. I love it, I hope you love it, and I've gotten away from it for a while. It's time to get back into the game, so here I come. I've missed you guys.

So until next time, keep it half full, keep dancing, keep running, and enjoy the kickoff of SUMMERTIME.

Drew

Writer's Block.

2009-04-22T18:35:00.002-04:00

I'm strugglin' with the bloggage, guys. I think Mayercraft resurrected the slacker in me. What can ya do?

Things are good here. The weather is nice. Spring is on a roll. My b'day is in 13 days. Summer is coming. The job is strizzle. I'm in the process of applying for others. Woohoo.

This is definitely that time of year where I would save up absences and bounce out of class early because of the nice weather. Too bad you can't do that with work. If you're still in school, cherish those unexcused absences while you still can.

And speaking of school: UNCG may have my name on it for some follow-up education. We'll see. I've got some time to figure it out.

That's it for now. Time for a cold one and some chill action. Baseball game tomorrow night.

D.

I know, I know.

2009-04-06T01:45:00.003-04:00

...I owe you Mayercraft pics and stories. I know.

You'll get them soon, I promise. I'm still sort of coming down from it all, trying to get back into the routine and soak up the good times while they're fresh.

Coming home was bittersweet, but the last few days have been a blast. I'll tell you one thing: there's nothing like getting to the airport after a long and amazing trip while being extremely tired but walking up the terminal and seeing a certain someone that makes you weak in the legs to the point where you're flying and you somehow find the energy to hurry up and get to them so you can EMBRACE.

That might not make sense, but DAMN...it does to me, and it's good.

I'm rambling though. It's true. It's late, and I'm tired, and really only good things are going through my mind right now. I mean, spring is in the AIR. Yeah, it's gonna get colder this week, but PSHT. Today was MONEY warm, and everybody's feeling it. Today also marked ONE week 'til my sister's b'day and ONE month 'til mine. Cool, right?

Oh, and today was OPENING DAY for Major League Baseball. This is a great thing because even though my Braves have struggled as of late (and I'm sure many of your teams have had their own troubles too...), the good thing about Opening Day is that it's a FRESH START. Braves in 2009? Probably not. But hey, as of TODAY, it's possible, and sometimes, that's all you need...(a boy can hope, right?)

Anyway, my bracket is screwed, I'm on an O.A.R. binge, the weather is warm, time is flying, and as of tonight, the Braves are undefeated in 2009. Two out of those four are good things, and one of them really isn't that bad, so I'll TAKE it.

Goodnight people.
Drew

Mayercraft First Report.

2009-03-31T16:11:00.002-04:00

Epic. That's all she wrote. Plus Internet cost too much. Oh, but more later. You know it.

Love,
Drew

T-minus 6 hours and counting.

2009-03-25T23:29:00.002-04:00

Well, it's here. MAYERCRAFT!

I'm leaving the house around 6 hours from right now, at 5:45 in the morning to hit up the airport and catch my flight to LA. SO HYPE RIGHT NOW! I've still got a good bit of packing to do, but I'm so excited that I'm not too worried about it.

Don't have time to write much now, but I wanted to give you the heads up and let you know that I'll be posting several "mini-blogs" (NOT Twitters) from my Ipod while I'm on the ship. I won't have a computer, so they'll be short and to the point, but get ready!

ALMOST time for sun and music!

Ahoy, yo!
Drew.

Slow motion Monday.

2009-03-23T22:30:00.003-04:00

Monday night and I'm writing to write.

Had a BALLER weekend full of work, basketball, live music, and latenight biscuit action (mmm, country ham. mmm, biscuits). I've been catching up with myself since then, but in a good way. Finally made it back to the gym this morning and whooped my own ass for a while. It was fun.

Work was dead today, but enjoyable. I've got a feeling things are really gonna pick up once we get the patio out and people start coming out of their winter holes for a little sunlight. Once we get the outdoor seating (and liquor), the yuppies and hippies alike will flock to the place like geese flying south for the winter, and things will be MONEY (pun intended). Just gotta make it through a few more slow weeks before that happens.

Speaking of making it through periods of TIME, I've only got TWO more shifts of work between now and MAYERCRAFT. I can't believe it's already here, but I'm crazy excited. I've been going through things I want to do during the day in Cabo, and I'm trying to decide between snorkeling or an ATV desert "excursion". Too many choices, but I definitely wanna do more than sit on the beach all day...not that that would be bad...hmmm...

Anyway, this time three days from now I'll be on the BOAT getting ready for a lil red carpet treatment and waiting to set sail. Hypeness is in the AIR.

Between now and then, though, work, work, gym, gym, and lots of quality time with a certain Koala, and THAT is something to look forward to on it's own...

Drew.

Twitter-ish Saturday.

2009-03-21T15:49:00.003-04:00

The last day of winter brought me 13/16 wins in the first round of the NCAA tourney. The first day of spring brought me only 10/16. Thanks a lot, ACC. Wait to show up to play in March. Ah well, it happens. Still feeling pretty good about my bracket overall.

Speaking of the last day of winter and the first day of spring, hard to believe that's already here! It's basically the end of March, and as usual, New Year's feels like yesterday. We're flying into warm weather and sunny skies, and I LIKE it, but I wouldn't mind having it slow down a little on the way...

Warm weather though. Gotta love it. I guess I'll be feeling that soon. MAYERCRAFT is only 5 days away! Still feel like I've got a LOT to do between now and then, but it's really only a few more shifts of work and I'm THERE. Can't wait to hear some quality music with the backdrop of the ocean...

Work time now, but It's been a good weekend so far. Definitely looking forward to tonight for some live music out on the town and more basketball.

Enjoy the rest of your day,
Drew.

Synchronicity.

2009-03-18T19:23:00.006-04:00

Been thinking about employment a lot lately. It's always a fun topic, especially in these times. I'm in no rush to dive into a career (although I obviously want a "real" job in the coming months). I just want to be able to support myself. It has nothing to do with pride, or the fact that I'm living at home. I'm happy with my situation, and I'm thankful for it every day. More than anything, I'm just ready to be able to support myself to the point where I can be out on my own. It really is that time, but with the way things are today, it won't be easy.

I wouldn't say I've been stressing about it necessarily, but it's been in the back of my mind the last few weeks, and especially since I officially finished my resume. Did a lot of thinking about it yesterday too, and I realized that I really am happy with 99% of my life right now. I love the job I DO have now, I love my family and my friends, and I'm with a great girl. That's all I need, honestly, but what I WANT is that last percent. I'm GREEDY for it, and I can SEE it, but I can't reach it yet.

As I brought this whole idea up to a special person in my car, my odometer was right at this reading:

It says "141414" if you can't read it (you know I had to get a pic...). We actually drove around to get it there, but once I talked it out, she put the number and my problems together and said, "See, everything lines up." And it does. I know simple signs like that sound cheesy, but they're cool in their own way.

Things line up around us all the time, and we don't always see it happening, or feel like going through the motions we need to go through to get there, but we DO. I think one of the best feelings in the world is when something lines up for you and catches you so off guard that you don't really see it until you're well down that road and enjoying it. I've had a lot of experience with this over the last few months, and I'm thankful for that every day.

Bottom line is, don't stop moving forward to where you trying to go, but don't miss out on other things on the way. I'll find a job in my career path. I'm a determined guy. Some of you know just HOW determined I can get more than others, and I like to think of that a a good thing. But it's whatever. Things line up. And I like it.

Drew

PS: Carra, things will line up. It's a pain in the ass, but give it time. Love, Your Brother.

March Madness.

2009-03-15T21:43:00.000-04:00

Sunday night and MARCH MADNESS IS HERE!

The brackets are out and I'm ready to start making my picks. Don't have time to go into too much detail now, but I'll list a few things before I move on.
-UNDERDOG PICK: VCU. Why? Because my sister goes there and she's a baller at graphic design.
-SLEEPER PICK: FLORIDA STATE. Why? Because Toney Douglas is unreal and they just upset the number one team in the nation. They also wear baller black jerseys.
-FIRST ACC TEAM OUT: CLEMSON. Why? Because they peak in early January every season.
-TEAM THAT GOT SHAFTED FROM THE TOURNEY: AUBURN. Why? War Eagle.
-TEAM MOST LIKELY TO BLOW A HUGE LEAD: ARIZONA STATE: Why? Because Herb Sendak is coach.
-MY NATIONAL CHAMPION: UNC. Why? As much as I hate to say it, Hansbrough isn't going to graduate without one. I don't see it happening. Of course, this definitely depends on the health of Ty Lawson as well, because Bobby Frasor can't make a free throw to save his life.

I'll get back to this again later. Until then, do your research and feel free to pick teams based on their mascots...I've seen that work.

Drew.

ACC Semis.

2009-03-14T14:55:00.002-04:00

Watchin' ACC Basketball and drinking a CLSD now. Couldn't stay away from the computer now that I'm back and in the mood for useless typing and writing.

Florida State is playing UNC right now, and I don't think I've ever cheered as hard for the 'Noles as I am right now. It's really not a normal thing, but they're wearing some BALLER black jerseys, and it's been so long that they've done anything in the ACC that I wanna see them succeed. Plus, they're playing Carolina, who gets the red carpet treatment any time they're on the court. (I'm not jaded, I promise. I'm just a State fan.)

These games are always fun to watch, but the downside is that they show the same commercials over and OVER again. Just saw an ad for Red Lobster for the fourth time and I decided that the only good food item they offer is their Cheddar Biscuit, and those are free. Everything else is real average.

Also, Geico, ease up with the advertising. Your only good campaign is the Gecko. The cavemen: LAME. The Money I could be saving by switching to Geico: DRONING. Seriously though, I would totally hang out with that little gecko.

Anyway, I love this time of year. In February we got love in the air, and now that it's March, it's all BASKETBALL. Can't wait to fill out my bracket on Sunday.

For now, Go 'Noles, Go Duke, and watch this if you're bored:

D-pac.

Dodge's in March.

2009-03-14T12:29:00.004-04:00

Haven't written in a while. Haven't felt like it. Sometimes I wanna write, sometimes I don't. Sometimes I have things to say, sometimes I have nothing to say and I write it anyway. I've got a lot to say today, but I'm not gonna say much...yet.

One thing I'm gonna throw out there is an endorsement for the best/nastiest fried chicken in the world from a little place called "Dodge's" in North Myrtle Beach. You get six wings and two jo-jos (or potato wedges to the uneducated) with a roll and a drink for 5 bucks. "Is it good?" you ask me. Of course. And better yet, it's in a gas station. Nothing says good chicken like fried chicken that's sold with the scent of gasoline in the background. And are you ready for the real kicker?

It's open 24 hours. Oh yeah. So if you want to wake up with a grease hangover, go in after midnight. And if you don't feel like chicken, I definitely recommend the egg rolls or pizza sticks. Mmmmm, mmmm good.

Plenty more to say later and pictures to post from an amazing week with an amazing girl. I'll get to it eventually. For now, here's a preview:

And if you make it down to the area, go to "Dodge's". Don't believe me? Ask my friends.

Drew

clar-i-ty (n): the clearness of thought or style; lucidity.

2009-02-27T15:31:00.002-05:00

Sometimes all I've gotta do is listen to this song, and my day turns around.

"And I will pay no mind, won't be worried 'bout no rainy weather..."

E.G.B.A.R.
Drew.

Brain freeze.

2009-02-26T19:10:00.003-05:00

Today has been BEAUTIFUL. It was so beautiful, in fact, that I ran OUTSIDE instead of going to the gym. Here's the cool thing about running outside when it's still technically winter: you feel like a champion. I'm telling you, I was to running as John Mayer is to the guitar this afternoon, because it felt like spring. Everybody knows how it is when you run outdoors in the winter. You struggle and you get that coppery blood taste in the back of your throat. Today was like running in the summertime when the sun is out, but cool to the point where there's a constant fan on your face. I liked it.

Speaking of cold, though, I had a painful little experience during an instance of brain freeze yesterday. I got a smoothie after the gym and chugged it a little too fast (couldn't help it, it tasted good). I was driving, and it happened: brain freeze. It's like getting the breath knocked out of you but in your head. You feel like your cranial piece is stuck between two falling rocks while getting drilled at the same time. Not fun, right? As it happened I realized I was holding my head with a crazy-looking grimace on my face, so I started to laugh by myself, and I wondered what other people would have thought if they'd seen me at that moment. It made me laugh harder, and then my brain thawed, so I was happy again. Woohoo.

Gotta love brain freeze, am I right? I rank it up there with lemon juice in papercuts and getting punched in the throat. Throw 'em in a hat and draw one! Maybe not...

Anyway, it's Thursday evening already and I'm chugging along to the weekend which will be full of work as well as my dad's b'day. Hopefully it'll be a good one money-wise, because a week from TODAY I'm headin' down to good ole Cherry Grove with Ms. ADB. Can't WAIT, and I've only got five shifts of work and a resume to get through between now and then. Not bad, right?

New "Office" tonight. And State/Wake. And "Earl". And four weeks 'til Mayercraft. (Yes!).

Peace outside.
Drew

P.S. Remember kids, Freezo the dog says, "Don't drink frozen beverages too fast."

Gastonia.

2009-02-23T23:27:00.003-05:00

My grandma is awesome.

I had a few days off so I rolled down to Gastonia today to see and hang out with her. One thing that's great about coming to see her is that it's always relaxing, and when you leave, it's another one of the ways you can hit "reset" on the feeling tired area of your metaphorical personal Nintendo. Hanging out with her is also a great way to hear classic family stories and good advice on important things, like life.

I got to her house around 2 today, and we immediately ventured out to pick up my cousins Chandler and Chase to take them to the dentist. It was great getting to see them for a while, because even though it doesn't happen too often, we're a close family, and I love kickin' it with the cousins.

After this, we got home around 4:15 and sat to talk for a while. We caught up on everything from work to family to what I'm doing the next few weeks, and as I yakked away, I started to realize how tired I was. It used to be that when I was in school, my exhaustion would hit me whenever I'd come home. Now that I'm done and living it home, it hits me when I come to Gastonia. I told her I was going to go lay down for a bit, and she figured she'd do the same. I set my alarm to allow me to sleep for an hour which turned out to be the right thing do to, because I was out as SOON as I hit the pillow. Once it went off, I came back down the hall to find her just as asleep as I was.

She got up a few minutes later and finished making dinner. One major plus of coming to visit her is that the food is ALWAYS amazing. Tonight she cooked her lemon chicken with brown rice and homegrown turnip greens (sorry to make you jealous, Carra), and it was ridiculously good. Along with dinner, she told stories of my grandfather, which is something else I always enjoy.

Since the weather's been crazy-cold lately, it reminded her of the year they got engaged. She talked about this, and how after he proposed, he would come visit her in Chapel Hill as often as he could, because he was living in Winston-Salem at the time. She said that the weather that year was crazy, and that "it seemed like it snowed every Wednesday that March." My grandfather would usually visit on the weekends, and she said that after one major snowstorm she called the bus station to see if they were running trips. They told her they weren't due to the weather, so she figured he wouldn't show that particular weekend. However, my grandfather was a determined and good guy, so even though she didn't expect it, sure enough, he drove himself and showed up at her door for his usual visit. I thought that was pretty cool of him, and it's definitely something I'd like to live up to.

She also talked about the economy, and how even though things are bad now, they'll go up again eventually. Now, obviously this is something we hear a lot, but hearing it from her is that much more credible, because she's been through this situation several times in her almost 92 years. Even though times are hard today, I believe her, and you should to, so breathe a sigh of relief folks. Things will get better.

Anyway, after a helping and a half of amazingness on a plate, we went to the living room and watched a little TV together. Grandma made the good point that there's either nothing on or several things on you want to see at once, and I quickly agreed. Tonight was a channel-surf night until nine when "Heroes" came on, but in the meantime we enjoyed good conversation until she went to bed.

I'm looking forward to sleeping in here tomorrow (she stressed that I sleep as late as I want--what a good host, huh?), and then grabbing lunch with her before I hit the road home in the afternoon, knowing that this is something I definitely want to do again soon.

So for now, goodnight everybody, and sweet dreams.
Drew

Laughter = Coffee.

2009-02-23T10:00:00.002-05:00

Woke up relatively early so I could get a good start to the day. Ate my cereal and drank my two cups of coffee (one black) to get my metabolism going for the gym trip I'm about to make.

And then I saw this, and realized that a good laugh that needs to be shared is even BETTER than coffee for waking up in the morning. Check it out:

This could possibly be the most entertaning Mayer cover I've ever seen. He reminds me of Fez from "That 70's Show", and I'm LOVING how much he gets into it. The best of it comes at the end, so if you don't feel like watching the whole video, go to the solo at 2:25 and watch from there...

Hope this started your week off on as much of a high note as mine. Gym time now, Gastonia for the night later.

Drew

Back to the King.

2009-02-22T23:11:00.003-05:00

I've said it before, and I'll say it again. I'm a huge Stephen King nerd. After a short hiatus from his books (I'm still coming down from my "Dark Tower" high), I've decided to go back and read some more.

Finished "Pet Sematary" tonight, and it was amazing. I was skeptical at first because it started off kind of slow, but as I read, I realized that it was only King developing his characters so that you the reader would grow attached to each one. In doing this, he draws you in and makes you feel like you're a part of the book and the growing problems of each person as things start to fall apart. You also see the characters as they go from normal and happy to completely insane. He takes the best intentions and love of the main character and stirs it up with a twist of evil so tragic that you're left feeling sorry for him and stunned by the plot in the end of the book. Genius.

He's completely taken the ancient Greek tragedy style and thrown it into modern times. To summarize without character names, Father meets an old wise man who shows him a place where things can be brought back to life. Of course, when the things come back, they're not the same, so he's warned not to do it. The little Son dies, leaving the family completely broken, but the Father remembers the burial place. He tries to put things back together, but in doing so, everything else crumbles, and his best intentions leave him worse off than before. Again, genius.

Anyway, if you're looking for a quick read, definitely check it out. I'm stoked to rent the old crappy movie version now, just to see how different it is and if it does any justice to the book.

Next up for me is "Everything's Eventual", a collection of King's short stories. Definitely excited to switch from the novel format and see what he's got up his sleeve...

DS.

Biscuits are good.

2009-02-21T12:56:00.004-05:00

Had a nice little Friday last night.

Started off with some good conversation down at Natty's and made it up to the Blind Tiger for a Zeppelin cover band called "Kashmir". They call themselves the "best Zeppelin tribute band in the world", and they were definitely legit. The lead singer looked and sounded like Robert Plant, the guitarist was RIDICULOUS, the drummer had some sick solos, and best of all: the bass player looked JUST like Horatio Sanz from SNL. The highlights of the night came during their versions of "Ramble On" and "Over the Hills and Far Away". They played for over three hours, which was great, but by the end I was so tired from dancing that I would stop and not realize I was standing still until I'd get called out about it. Anyway, I definitely got my Zeppelin fix for the next year, but it was an HONOR getting to see "the world's best Zeppelin tribute". Of course, I'm sure 'world's best' is thrown around on these bands just like it's thrown around coffee shops on every corner in New York (picture Buddy the Elf: "Congratulations!"), but who's counting?

After leaving the show, I got slapped in the face by hunger, so going to Herbie's seemed like a good idea. I chugged a sweet tea as soon as I could, and ordered the amazing combination of french fries and a country ham biscuit. I decided a long time ago that biscuits are my favorite form of bread. Think about it. They're ridiculously good. Rolls are nice, baguettes are good with cheese, but biscuits can be good with ANYTHING. If I had it my way, I'd use biscuits instead of bread for everything from sandwiches to even burgers. Mmmm, mmmm. Cornbread is a close second.

Anyway, the late-night meal was amazing at the time, as eating past midnight always seems to be while you're enjoying the food, but I'm feeling it now. Ah well. It's the weekend, right? "Ya owe it to yahself!" And dang, biscuits are good.

Got to sleep in today, too, which was nice and much needed. It's always a good start to a weekend when you get to sleep in until right before a State game. They're on now, and we're up 15-2. Hopefully it'll last, but sorry folks, I gotta go watch this. Work later, then Saturday night.

Enjoy yours.
D.

Randy Jackson wears a giant watch.

2009-02-19T13:53:00.003-05:00

Sitting around the house catching up on DVR'd tv shows and wasting time/putting off going to the gym (I'll get there).

American Idol is on now, and I'm not really paying attention, but damn, Randy Jackson has a huge watch. I mean, it looks like he could get a workout just from raising his arm to look at the time. I'm impressed.

I know you're saying "rewind for a second, did he say 'American Idol'?" Yeah, I did. No, I haven't gotten sucked into it like a lotta people are, but hey, it's fun to watch from time to time. Don't hate.

Right now it's actually a pretty nice break from Sportscenter. Recently all they've had to talk about is Michael Phelps and A-Rod. I've got a little beef with sports media right now. Don't get me wrong, I was SICK of seeing Phelps' face EVERYWHERE sixth months ago after winning all of those medals. I mean, I was proud of what he did, but it got old pretty quick. Now though, I'm sick of seeing the media shoot him DOWN. Give him a break! He didn't cheat at the sport. He didn't hurt anybody. He didn't father any random kids. He just got caught in a bad position. But remember, he won EIGHT gold medals! Michael, I got your BACK, dude.

And the A-Rod deal, come on now. I'm not a Yankee fan OR an A-Rod fan, but this is getting ridiculous. Let the guy play his sport. Yes, he lied bout doing performance enhancing drugs, but when he DID do them, they were LEGAL. Ok, so it was a dumb move of him to deny it at one point, and it was dumb that he even DID it, but technically no rules were broken. Baseball's a month and a half away, and I'm crossing my fingers that this will be DONE by then. We'll see.

I'm not feeling Sportscenter today anyway, after UNC laid it down on my Wolfpack last night. It was a respectable loss. Sort of. Ahh, the life of a State fan. It's never been easy.

But enough sports complaining. I'm done for now. American Idol. Big watches. Music. New "Office" tonight. Woohoo.

D$ykes.

Heckuva weekend.

2009-02-15T20:12:00.002-05:00

What a WEEKEND!

Started off with what was probably one of the luckiest Friday the 13th's I've ever experienced. I opened up at work and got through a decent lunch shift only to stick around and have a birthday lunch with my mom, which was great. Happy birthday week again, Mom.

The afternoon rolled around pretty quick and suddenly it was time to rock it out for Amanda's 21st. We went BACK to Sticks and Stones for a great dinner and took our time enjoying the food and the company in a corner table. Her 'rents brought her a cake, which we scarfed down after our pizza, and we headed out to get ready for the party when dinner was over.

After dinner we went on to the Blind Tiger, where the real festivities began. We mainly went to watch the headline band, Holy Ghost Tent Revival (think of an even-more local version of the Avett Brothers), but enjoyed the other acts in the meantime while we sipped on drinks and danced our hearts out.

And speaking of the headline group, let me give all of you a little piece of advice. There's a scene in Ghostbusters where Ray gets shocked by the main ghost at the end of the movie for saying he's not a god. After this goes down, Winston yells at him and says "Ray, the NEXT time someone asks you if you're a god, you say YES!". Well, Friday at the bar, I went up to get a drink, and apparently I was rockin' the style the band wears for the most part, and the bartender looked at my money and said "Aren't you in the band?". Of course, being the honest guy that I am, I said no, and he took my money. It didn't hit me that if I'd said I was I could've gotten it for free. Ah well. I'll be quicker when it happens again. So there's my advice, folks. The next time someone asks you if you're in the band, YOU SAY YES!

Anyway, Holy Ghost went on around 12 and had the whole place dancing and clapping and stomping feet. We were all drenched in sweat and loving it by the end of the show.

Afterwards we went back and hung out until about six in the morning, which definitely made the bed seem hella-comfortable.

Saturday came too soon but Friday was worth it, and with it came Valentine's Day. I've given my two cents on this "holiday" before, and I'll say my name for it again: Hershey's and Hallmark Day, but hey, this year I was actually pretty excited for it. I made it low key for the most part, and cooked Amanda's favorite dinner for her: eggplant parmesan. We ate by candlelight and just enjoyed each other's company. I couldn't have asked for anything more on Valentine's Day, and honestly, I couldn't be happier with how it was spent. Here's to you, St. V...

On top of all of this, work went by pretty crazy today. I was kind of left by myself, but I held the place down with a little help from my boss and luckily made mad bank. I closed it all out just now with a nice dinner with my parents at Lucky 32.

I guess the weekend's not officially over, but it's been a whirlwind, and I'm still loving it. I've still got 3.5 hours til Monday, so I'm gonna go enjoy it for now. Peace outside, folks.

Drew.

Ahoy, yo.

2009-02-09T22:12:00.005-05:00

Mayercraft 2 is BOOKED.

Well, I guess the actual trip was booked back in October, but as of today, EVERYTHING else is taken care of. I got my ticket to Mayer's Eve, ticket to the VH1 Save the Music show (which includes a Red Carpet), AND my plane ticket to LA. All I've gotta do now is wait and pack.

I've told a handful of people about this, but kept it quiet for the most part until now, and let me say that I couldn't be more excited. It's a four day cruise on the Carnival Splendor from Los Angeles down to Cabo San Lucas, Mexico, and the music is non-stop on the way.

I'll be flying into LA on March 26 to board the ship and throw my bags down, only to immediately go out to enjoy the sun and an open bar for the start of "Mayer's Eve", a pre-cruise celebration that involves DJs and cocktail attire. Once this gets into full swing, I'll make my way to the main arena for a VH1 benefit concert involving John Mayer, Gavin Rosdale, Sara Bareilles, Jordin Sparks, OAR, and Guster. And this is just the first night!

The ship sets sail the next afternoon and we spend a day at sea on the way to Mexico. Mayer is giving two full-band performances and an acoustic show on the deck of the boat on the way there and back. I'll also be rockin' out to OAR, Guster, Justin Nozuka, David Ryan Harris, and several other acts throughout the event.

Once we get to Cabo, we get a day at port, so I'll definitely be hitting the beach while I'm there.

After some time south of the border, we get back on the ship and rock it out the whole way back. Besides the concerts, the boat will have several different forms of entertainment, ranging from karaoke to mini golf to a casino to all-night pizza bars that will save several of us from the regular bars. It's gonna be awesome.

I'm also really excited to meet so many other people that are as big fans of Mayer's music as I am. That's right, folks. There are others like me out there, and there are lots of them!

I've gotten even more hype about this the last few days because of the Grammys (where I realized I cheered for Mayer to win like I cheer for my sports teams--sad, right? No shame, though. No shame). He won 2 last night, which was great, and now his next big event is the cruise, so who knows what he'll bring out (I'm keeping my fingers crossed for some new tunes, but we'll see).

Anyway, it's a month and a half away, but you know I'll be counting it down until I get on the boat...

Ahoy, yo.
Drew

Citizen Cope.

2009-02-08T12:12:00.001-05:00

I guess it's about time I write about the Citizen Cope show in Raleigh.

First of all, it's easy to sum it up by saying it was amazing. I've always liked his sound (Side note: "Citizen Cope" refers to the lead singer, Clarence Greenwood, so he's a person, not a group. I didn't know this until Tuesday), but I never knew much about him or his music outside of a handful of songs. The show was at the Lincoln Theatre, so being a smaller venue, the tickets were a good deal and Amanda and I knew we'd be able to get close to the stage since it was general admission. In weighing all of this out, we decided it would be worth the money and the drive to catch the concert. We were right.

Doors opened up at 7, but we took our time trying to get there and stopped by an old friend's house. It was my first time going back to Raleigh since November, so I felt a tug of sadness and realized that I really do miss the place. Thinking about it though, it's more the people that I'm really wanting to see again soon. And the memories that I'm missing. But that's not what I'm writing about now, so no more tangents...

After driving around town for a bit, we got to the Lincoln Theatre at 7:30 and the line stretched down the street. My problem with shows is that I get to the ones I DON'T need to get to super early and nobody's there, but when I take my time, every ticketholder ends up being in front of me. As it turns out, this didn't matter, because as soon as we got inside, we crawled our way to the front of the group and ended up standing behind only one row of people.

The opening act was a chick named Mieka Pauley, and she rocked the stage with a solo acoustic performance. Her guitar playing was very Jack Johnson-esque, and she had a real chill vibe going on. She was definitely entertaining, starting strong by using her guitar to drum a beat and singing her heart out. The highlight of her performance came towards the end with a cover of Jeff Buckley's "Hallelujah". She teared up during the song, and definitely did it justice.

Citizen Cope came on around 9:30 and the crowd went wild. It was his second night in town, and he recognized a few of the fans from the previous show, which was cool. I only knew about 5 of his songs going into the concert, but I immediately became a fan of everything else he did as he played. Most of his music is very anthem-like, and a lot of it has a marching feel to it, which is great. He was really good about getting the crowd involved, and everybody loved singing along.

Their version of "Let the Drummer Kick" had everybody bouncing their heads, and "Bullet and a Target" had everybody doing backup of the chorus while Cope sang the verse. Another highlight of the show came when he played the song "Holdin' On". I'd never heard it before, but it was slow, so I started swaying with Amanda, and as he got into singing, he said "I love it when people start touchin' on each other when I play this song" and looked right at us with a smile. The lyrics of the song really fit our situation, and after that, we officially found "our" song (cue the "awww"s).

After the show we stopped by the Village Draft House and chowed down on their fried pickles. They were amazing, and I freaked out even more when I realized it was Tuesday, so it was RIB NIGHT! Talk about the memories, eh? It was definitely a great way to end the evening, and we drove back to Greensboro talking about how great the show was, and how we'd found our song (cue the "awwww"s again. No shame here).

Definitely looking forward to the week ahead, but before that gets here, enjoy a few pics from the show.

Latas,
Drew

#3 on 2.

2009-02-02T22:20:00.000-05:00

Today is Groundhog Day, a holiday that I've pointed out before as being mad-underrated. I won't go into too much detail about it tonight, but I'll let everyone know that Punxsutawney Phil has officially predicted another 6 weeks of winter for 2009. Bummer.

Of course, there are some major events going down in these final 6 weeks of winter, so there are definitely things to look forward to while riding out the cold. "Like what, Drew?", you might be asking. And I'd say, "Like this:

1. Citizen Cope concert in Raleigh tomorrow.
2. Important birthdays on the 11th and 13th.
3. Friday the 13th. This one's got a double meaning, because the NIGHT is gonna be money, AND the movie is starting. Nice.
4. Hershey's and Hallmark Day, a.k.a. Valentine's Day. This is one I usually bash, but I'm actually looking forward to it this year. Woohoo.
5. More resume action. Yes, the economy still sucks, and yes, I feel like the underdog now, but you can't score if you don't shoot. That's word.
6. Another important birthday on the 28th.
7. March 2nd. "Keep me where the light is..." Day.
8. Spring break for you people who are still in school. I'll find a way to make my own.
9. MARCH MADNESS. Oh yeah, it's six weeks away.
10. Six weeks from now, I'll be two weeks away from Mayercraft. Nice."

So there you go. Six more weeks of winter may be a slight bummer, but a lot of good things are happening in that time period. Get hype for the coming months, because Spring will be here soon...sort of...

Drew

8:07 a.m.

2009-02-02T08:07:00.000-05:00

Made it to sunrise. Felt pretty good about it. Clear day so far. Pretty tired now. Took some pictures. Enjoy.

D.

Still awake.

2009-02-02T05:42:00.001-05:00

It's 5:42 and I'm still awake.

I hope you're asleep now, and that you're sleeping well.

Since I'm still up, I figured I'd try to watch the sunrise. In order to do this, I checked Weather.com to see what time this was supposed to happen, and it said 7:19. That's a good chunk of time away from now, but at the same time, it's not. The question is, is it worth staying up for? It's kind of like when you go out to dinner and eat most of your food, but you've still got some left and you're still kind of hungry. You know that if you eat a little more, there won't be enough to save, but you'll be satisfied. If you SAVE the food, you'll be stuck still kind of hungry, but you'll have enough for another meal or a good snack later. Of course, if you REALLY think about it, how often do you reheat the food once you take it home? For me personally, I usually throw it out after a few days of looking at it under the bright white lights in the fridge. Overall, I think it's a better decision to go ahead and eat the last bit of food. It makes sense, you become satiated (which is a fancy way of saying you reach the perfect level of fullness--yes, I paid some attention in nutrition class and listed to "Something's Missing), and you don't waste anything in the process. Good deal, right?

So yeah, it's a new month and a new day. I think I'm feeling [and needing] this sunrise. Screw doggie bags. You only live once.

Goodni--
I mean, Good Morning,
Drew

[P.S. I'm slightly delirious, but my head's on straight]
[P.P.S. Never force anything.]
[P.P.P.S. Catch a sunrise soon if you can]
[P.P.P.S. Follow your heart, you'll never fall apart]
[P.P.P.P.S. Done with the cliches for now. Gonna wait for the sun...]

2life 2.

2009-01-28T14:55:00.000-05:00

How fast can two years go by? You wanna know? Look at where I was two years ago, right now, and fast forward. Crazy, right?

The new Drew turned two today, and it’s insanely hard for me to believe that. Looking back at where I was compared to where I am now, it really is like a second life. I was never on any crazy downward spiral, but I wasn’t going up in any way either. It was more of a downward roll I guess, gradual and set to end badly eventually, but all that changed.

Something or someone was looking out for me that night. Thinking about what went down, along with seeing how things have panned out since then, I have no doubt about that, and it’s been a ride. Through all of that, I really feel like I’m here for a reason. The question is, have I already accomplished what I’m supposed to have done since then, or is it still on my horizon? Could it be both? Have I done something I wouldn’t have done if I hadn’t gone through everything then? Yeah…I know that part is true, on a lot of levels, and I like to think that the answer is both. Most of what, if not everything I do from here on out will reflect back to that moment of starting over and waking up with a new outlook on how to live.

Rebuilding isn’t and hasn’t been an easy task. Look at sports teams going through rough seasons. Coaches call these “rebuilding years”, and fans groan at the term. When something breaks or shatters, it can be put back together, but it won’t ever be exactly the same as it was before. It’s there, but the pieces won’t line up the same way.

The last two years have been a continuous rebuilding process for me. Oh, I’m here. I’m together. But I’m not the same. In this rebuilding I’ve gone through the usual ups and downs of life, and honestly, I’m still searching for that perfect balance. It’s there, but sometimes it’s hard to see. I can definitely see it better now than I could before.

In the two years I’m talking about, I’ve gone from having a constant back-burner burden on my shoulders to being scared of letting something control me to having that burden disappear to fighting the pull of the old temptations and resisting the old me to the best of my abilities. I’ve also accomplished more in this time than I really had in the three years before everything happened. I got my life together for the most part, I finished school, I have a DEGREE, and I’m looking forward to whatever I’ll get into in the coming months and years.

I wrote this quote two years ago today, and I wanted to bring it back up:

“…you never know what can happen tomorrow, and if you're EVER given a second chance at anything, be thankful, and remember that things in life could always be worse…

…Do something for me. Always keep your head up and don't ever leave anything unsettled. If you really think about it, most of what brings you down in life won't even bother you a year from now…”

Reading it again, I feel pretty good about what I said, and how I’ve lived since I wrote it. I’ll never forget how I felt at that moment, but I’ll always be thankful for it. That quote still stands out for me today, and it’s how I want to live and think the rest of my life.

Here’s another one I’ve shared before that I wanted to throw out there again:

“Simple happiness is at a premium…and I can’t think of anything more valuable I want to own right now…” - JM

This can’t be more true, and even with the way things in this world are going in these times, I feel like it is something I own today. I still don’t know what I’m going to do with my life in the long-term, but I know that right here and right now, I’m happy. With everything I’ve learned in the last two years, that’s all that matters.

Remember that the life behind you is done. It’ll make you who you are today for the better and for the worse, but it’s DONE. I’m not saying to forget about the past, because it’s crazy important to think about how you’ve become who you are now. What I’m saying is to take what you’ve got today and run with it. Use the things you’ve gone through in the past to make yourself who you want to be and who you know you CAN be, because once you do this, I PROMISE that everything in life will be a little bit sweeter.

You can hold me to that.

Drew.

Kay Yow.

2009-01-25T23:22:00.000-05:00

NC State lost a great one yesterday with the passing of Coach Kay Yow.

I never really followed the women's basketball team growing up, but Yow was always a prominent figure for the Wolfpack nation and I could tell what she meant to the university. The first time I really remember seeing her as a coach was when she lead the team to the 1998 Final Four. The men's team hadn't been to the tournament since I'd been old enough to care about basketball at this point, so it was awesome getting to see the Pack do well on a national level in this way.

I learned more about Yow as I got older, and really felt how much of an inspiration she was when I became a student at NC State. Her face was present throughout the school, and the story of her constant battle with breast cancer was well-known to all. This battle never brought her spirits down, and she was always a presence on the court, as well as a strong activist for the Jimmy V Foundation to raise awareness and find a cure for cancer.

Kay Yow was a great basketball coach but an even better hero. While battling cancer, she became the example of how we should embrace life no matter what cards we are dealt. Her efforts on the court were strong (700+ wins), but her support to cancer research and the Jimmy V Foundation off the court was even stronger. Her legacy will be remembered through the game and through future advances in cancer medicine and treatment, and she'll always be a reminder to never, never give up.

Thanks for everything, Coach Yow.

Resume Action.

2009-01-24T16:30:00.000-05:00

Just finished the first hard-copy draft of my resume. Writing it really wasn't so bad. It's kind of like when you go to the doctor, and you KNOW you've gotta get a shot, and the anticipation of getting it SUCKS, but once it's done, you're left sitting with a cartoon band-aid and asking the question "That was it?".

Doing this has literally been a stupid invisible burden on my shoulders the last few months, and it feels good to have something in writing. It's not pretty yet. There are no bullets or fancy lines to divide the sections up, but it's DONE. Now all I've gotta do is clean it up.

And send it out.

Nothing else to report for now. Keep your fingers crossed for me and the economy, and we'll see what happens. You know I'll keep you posted.

In the meantime, watch this to keep yourself busy:

D.

Woke up laughing.

2009-01-11T22:35:00.001-05:00

Had a good conversation about dreams the other night. One thing I realized during the talk was how great it is to wake up laughing. Have you had dreams like that before?

Most of mine come from dreams about friends and family, and places I've spent time at in the past. I've definitely had a handful in which I woke up laughing thinking I was at Quaker Lake, or at Frontier. These dreams are always fun to have, but bittersweet in that after the clarity of thinking they're real wears off, you're kind of sad when you realize it was just a dream.

How about dreams where you wake up and TRY to fall asleep into again? I've done this before, but it's never easy and usually just out of my reach.

I've also had some crazy ones where I actually HEAR the alarm going off in my dream, and wonder what the hell is making such a loud noise. Those are never fun and always offer a rude awakening.

You can analyze dreams all you want, and some will never make sense. These dreams can be fun and they can be scary. They're usually the easiest to forget.

Nightmares suck. I won't even go into them. We all know how they are.

The complete opposite of nightmares, though, comes in the form of dreams where I've had conversations with lost loved ones. It sounds crazy, but I've had a few of these where I actually TALK to my grandfather. The cool thing is that he's the age he was when he died, but I'm whatever age I am at the time of the dream, so it's like he gets to see me as I get older. What's even more amazing is that, everytime I have a dream where I talk to him, I'm going through a stressful period. My last one was about two years ago, and he gave me advice. He told me that things would work out, even if it didn't seem like it at the time. And they DID. I like to think of these dreams as actual conversations with loved ones. It's like they can reach us directly in our sleep when they need to, and it's definitely a comforting feeling. These dreams always make me cry.

I think I'm going to start a dream log soon. It would be fun to look back at down the road, and who knows what kind of writing material I could get from it, right? We'll see how it goes.

Either way, sweet dreams...
DS.