On things more pressing than this blog

So this blog thing hasn't gone quite how I planned. Where have I been, you might ask, since that awesome introduction? Well, I've been off learning some valuable lessons. The first of which is to never start a blog when you've got a major project looming. I'm in the final stages of earning my Ph.D. The course work is done, the Master's Thesis, qualifying exam, and Doctoral Dissertation are all done; and since I've decided not to pursue the Guinness Book for longest time in a Ph.D. program, I've been working on my applications for internship. I've got them all out, so now I just have the nerve-racking time of waiting for interviews and hopefully acceptance.

Other things that have been more pressing than this blog: fatherhood, finding another job, and moving my in-laws into our basement. Okay, so fatherhood is a never ending job, but a very time consuming one none the less. I could regale you with stories of wiping tears and dirty asses, but I plan to write about the joys of parenting later. On the job front, I've been thinking of finding something mindless and out of my field for a while. I've worked as a Barista twice before and I absolutely love making cappuccino and other espresso drinks. There's something meditative about steaming milk and the chef in me loves the artistry of a good cup of cappuccino with nice tight foam. But alas, I'm realizing that Starbucks probably won't pay as much as a job in my field and the babies need new shoes, so I think I'll go back to evaluating schizophrenics for disability (always fun).

I know the in-laws moving in probably caught your attention, so I'll expound on that a bit (privacy prevents me from going into great detail). My wife is from Daytona Beach, Florida and we moved her parents out of their house over the summer. It was a bit emotional for my wife of course, as this was the home she grew up in. However, the tropical weather down there isn't really the best thing for the roofs of old houses and my father-in-law isn't in the shape to be climbing up there to fix it anymore, so there you go. We found some less-shady-than-usual contractors and had them go to work on an in-law suite. To make a very long story short, when we pulled the U-Haul into our driveway in August, the work wasn't done as they'd promised. Fortunately, we have a guest bedroom for my in-laws to stay in until the basement was livable. Now almost four months later, it's finished enough that they've moved in. There are still some minor things to be done, but being contractors they're obligated to be assholes and drag the process out as long as possible. We are now in that senseless game where we refuse to pay any more until they come to work; and they refuse to come to work until we pay. Schmucks!

All things considered, it's working out great. My mother-in-law and I get along very well and our kitchen has never been cleaner. My wife has also been relieved of the burden of laundry. My father-in-law has some serious health issues and we've found some really good doctors for him. Having my kitchen cleaned on a regular basis has allowed me to get back into my second love of cooking. If you're one of my facebook friends, you've no doubt seen the kick-ass pictures of food I've been posting lately. Now before you accuse me of using my mother-in-law as slave labor, let me assure you we have an arrangement. I love cooking, but hate doing dishes; she has told me she doesn't care for cooking, but actually likes doing the dishes. Like many women of her generation, she does them by hand even though there's a dishwasher right there. I'll let you know when I figure that one out.

So there you have it friends. This is what's been going on in my life and why I haven't posted anything since that very clever introduction I posted months ago. I spent some time feeling bad about it, but as a good friend reassured me: "Dude, it's your blog. Do what the fuck you want with it!" Thanks dude (you know who you are). Thanks.

Something of an introduction

Okay, so here goes. I feel a bit presumptuous to assume that anyone would give a shit what I have to say about anything. But after a long while of having thoughts dance in my head, screaming for attention I decided to start this blog. I have a wide range of interests from psychology (my chosen profession), to history, politics, philosophy, religion, pop culture, music, movies, marriage and fatherhood - I plan to write about it all. The one thing you won't find here will be posts about sports. I am not a sports fan. Never have been. I occasionally watch the NFL and I really got into the World Cup, but nine times out of ten I could care less. My friends and family have tried numerous times to get me to like watching sports all to no avail. Add to that the pain of being a black man who can't play basketball or throw a football and it's a pretty touchy subject. Nuff said!

This is my first attempt at a blog, so I expect to make lots of mistakes. I have a few ideas off the bat that I plan to write in the coming weeks. After that, I'm as curious to see what comes next as you may be. Also, this blog is for adults only. I plan to write the way I talk, and being a New Yorker profanity is just a part of my vocabulary. Since I've had kids, I've done a pretty good job of censoring myself most of the time. However, I've noticed that when I get into adult company I tend to curse a lot more than I did pre-kiddies. It's like I've got a dam of profanity that's been building up and when the kids aren't around I finally get to release the pressure. If you're offended by salty language this may not be the place for you.

Lastly, I try to be civil in my daily life and I plan to be civil in all of my posts here. Please be respectful in your comments and I'll try to do the same. If I do occasionally call someone a whore, bastard, or motherfucker I'll try to be sure the label truly applies. For example: Sara Palin is a media whore. See how easy that was? Otherwise Enjoy!