this weekend jacky and i went to bandera to stay with her grandparents. it was a nice weekend away from the city. although i stayed busy helping out on the ranch. cutting wood, clearing land, cooking, all kinds of good fun stuff. we did make some time to head into town and i bought a few leather scented candles. wow do they smell incredible.
anyway here is a snap shot that jacky took as i was putting up the tractor for the evening.
so last nite i was at the bar, little woodrows. probably there for way too long, and probably drank way too much, but hey it had been a while and i was with friends. with that being said i am so glad that i stayed as long as i did. i shared in some very deep conversations with people that i respect and cherish their friendships. i learned a lot about myself, was on the verge of tears all nite long, and came away with a deeper friendship. one that i know will last as long as we are both above the ground. but more of nites like that, probably will put us down way before its time. thank you for opening up and letting me inside.
so at some point in the evening my boy 925ag engaged in conversation with this chick that was in the booth behind us. she starts showing her tattoos and what not and i am half listening and looking at the ink and right there on her left bicep, was my name. millions of people have names tattooed on their arms, and what makes me think that it was *my name*.
proof is in the pudding.
at this point in the evening, my memory was a little fuzzy, but needless to say, i was coherent enough to capture the proof with my phone. the story from what i remember was that her nickname was boom balex. she had boom on her other arm. it was pretty cool seeing my name tatted on some grl. ha… austin. gotta love it.
went to atlanta last weekend for the nascar races. hung out with my new buddy junior. he let me take a picture while standing next his car. you know everyone says that after attending a nascar event you fall in love with the sport and become and instant fan….to them i have to call bullshit. over the weekend i saw a little over 2000 left turns. i am still not a fan.
re·spect (r-spkt)
n.
A feeling of appreciative, often deferential regard; esteem.
The state of being regarded with honor or esteem.
Willingness to show consideration or appreciation.
to me respect is one of, if not the most significant attribute a person can have. if you can not respect yourself, then how can you respect others. it is defiantly something that is earned, and once someone has done something to disrespect me, it is very hard to get that respect back. i think that may have a lot to do with my demeanor and the fact that not a whole lot bothers me. i try and respect everyone and expect the same in return. unfortunately that changed this weekend for some people whom i thought were my friends. i lost respect for some of them.
i think the crutch ‘well i was drunk’ has been played and i am tired of it. we are all grown ass adults, and should be able to handle the alcohol we consume, and know how to act. if you use the drunk crutch more than you should, maybe you should curb your drinking. the shit that was more acceptable when in college, does not fly with me today. and i am not saying that i am any better than anyone else, because i know i have done my fair share of stupid shit after i had been drinking, but i have never done anything to hurt the feelings of the people close to me.
i spent the majority of sunday thinking about how i was disrespected this weekend. and i tried to understand how the people that i have spent the majority of the past year with could say and do the things they did. i wanted to come up with a good reason for it, but i realized i am tired of trying to make excuses for people. no more excuses. what i realized was the lack of respect. respect me and i will do whatever it takes to maintain a good, healthy, relationship. disrespect me, well you will lose a great friend. and what did/will i lose from this? maybe some great friends, but if they did this to me once, what would stop them from doing it again?
details of what happened this weekend, are irrelevant at this point, and something i never want to bring up again. so if i seem distant, then maybe you are the part of the problem and need to be part of the solution. i may forgive, but i will never forget.
you hurt my feelings. i have since pulled the knife out of my back. the wound will heal, but the scar will always be there.
two pics from the tailgate last weekend.
moments before the strom.
jacky and i.
i have two things to offer on this great day. and if you think its about you, well then it probably is. educate yourself before running your mouth.
“There is no reply to the ignorant like keeping silence”
-Proverb
and
“Your ignorance cramps my conversation”
-Bob Hope
a few friends from the tailgate this weekend.
…and jacky is trying to hide…
wow. what a crazy weekend. someday i might write about it, but for now i think my bed is calling my name. i realize i have been negectling my website, but i have other things going on away from the connected world. i have some of the greatest friends in the whole world. i could not have asked for a better group of people to associate with. with that being said a good friend of mine… whose birthday is this week had this posted on his myspace. cant say it any better. people better realize, recognize and re-evaluate their situation.
over the past 11 years many things in my life have changed. i have worked at 19 different places including five different gaps in two states and five different cities, three newspapers including the waco trib, boston globe and atlanta journal constitution, two gas stations, a liquor store, chilis, a hair salon, golfsmith, selling chinese babies, my current job and a few others thrown in there for good measure. i have lived in seven different places, three in waco, two in austin, and one in boston and atlanta. i have had four different vehicles including a ‘91 chevy truck, a ‘93 k5 blazer, an ‘00 tahoe and an ‘06 charger. several of my friends have been married and divorced, and of course i have dated a few girls here and there. through all of this change, which is normal by any means, well maybe not all the jobs i have worked, there has been only one thing constant over the past 11 years. my cell phone number.
i can remember when i first got my cell phone. it was one of those real nice big ones that had zero features and boiled down to a huge piece of shit. i was on the lovely at&t network way back when. i have since gone through several and i mean several different phones. my current phone the treo 650 is my fav thus far. even though i don’t use it to all its capabilities.
i was of course switched over to cingular when at&t was bought out and i have had some hefty phone bills before. when i was living in atlanta before companies did away with roaming, i amassed a bill of $1100…over the span of one month. i of course did not know i was roaming the entire time i was there.
now that long distance charges are a thing of the past i guess its not really a big deal when people hold onto to their numbers even as they move from city to city. so even though i live in 512 it will be hard for me to let go of my 254. like they always say, death, taxes, and my cell phone number. some things will never change.
are we living in a modern day wild west frontier and the six shooters that the cowboys once had strapped on their side have now become cell phones? not a day goes by without me having to witness the incredibly ridiculous amount of people with their phones affixed to their hip like they are waiting to be challenged to a dial off. just today i passed a guy on a motorcycle, had his little helmet on and tried to offer his best tough guy demeanor, and there at the red light, he pulls out his motorola razr that was attached at the hip and checks his voicemail. whatever street cred he thought he had…tossed right out the window.
now of course i wasnt around in the days billy the kid and wyatt earp, but i would assume there was some pistol envy back then, just like there is phone envy today. living in the techie community that i do, its easy to see the newest, most outlandish phones. i mean dont get me wrong, i have a bad ass phone, that i paid too much for, but it is where it should be, in my pocket and not on my hip.
and its just not toolbag guys with the phones on the hip. it seems as though the fashion craze, and i use that term loosely, has infected all walks of life. the geeks and dweebs, right on down to the socic’s and greasers. and dont just limit it to the male population, i have seen my fair share of annie oakley wanna-bes walking around with phones at their side.
so join me in mocking these people who are waiting to be challenged in the street to see who is the fastest dial. and if you are one who wears their phone on their hip, put it in your pocket, or purse and please turn the ringer off. and while you are at it, lose the damn bluetooth headsets. the real jesse james and wild bill hickok never had anything in his ear to communicate with others. they probably would have shot someone who appeared to be talking to them self. maybe it wouldnt be such a bad idea to bring some of the wild west back to the modern day.