You know what they say about opinions, right? Well....this is my freakin blog, and if you're going to take the time to read it--well by God you're going to get my opinion!
So....let's take a look at some news from the world of sports that have caught my eye.
1) Duante Culpepper traded from Vikings to Dolphins for # 2 draft pick. A lot of friends of mine here in south Florida have been asking me my thoughts on this one, trying to probe my borderline mystical devine Vikings mind for any sort of clue as to how Duante will perform for the 'Fins. Here's what I say. If the 'Fins get the Culpepper from 2004, the trade is a steal for them. That year, Pep was a solid # 2 candidate as NFL Player of the Year (behind Manning, who threw for like 50 t.d. passes). If they get that guy, they will have upgraded the position like they haven't since Dan Marino replaced DAVID WOODLEY (WHO?). The Pep from 2004 was a special player and a special talent. But........if they get the Pep from 2005, well........then I think the trade favors the Vikings. The 2005 Pep was surly, was having a crappy season (6 t.d. passes and 13 INT's)....and this was all BEFORE he ripped up his knee. Now, onto the knee. Let's keep in mind here....the guy didn't just rip up his knee. He did everything short of having it amputated. The knee has three essential ligaments. You have your ACL (anterior cruciate ligament), your MCL (medial cruciate ligament) and your PCL (posterior cruciate ligament). Folks, you are getting some top quality medical info for absolutely NO CHARGE, so I hope you appreciate it!! Anyway, its pretty bad when you tear ONE of the ligaments. Culpepper ripped ALL THREE. They talk about the average recovery time from an injury like that being one year. Pep ripped up his knee in October of last year. And during the off-season, he was not rehabbing his knee at team headquarters in Minnesota (which is what started him off on the wrong foot with the new coach)--he was doing it at home, including (I love this one)....running in the parking lot of a Wal-Mart by his house. That's not exactly what I would call "progressive sports rehab". So who knows how much rehab time the guy has cost himself by being a dumbass. Maybe instead of being ready by October, now he'll be a month or two behind where he could have been.
Oh, and did I mention the wholesex scandal on the boat? Duante did a couple of unseemly things in my mind. First of all, days after the whole fiasco, he reportedly went to the state attorney's office in Minnesota and offered to "name names" of his teammates if charges against him were dropped, supposedly so he could keep his "good name" with advertisers. This is not the sort of thing that you do if you want your teammates to like you, needless to say. 2nd of all, he plays the race card and says he's been the victim of racism. Well, in the words of Chris Rock---"this ain't about race, its about FAME". If it was (paraphrasing Rock again) Duante the bus driver, no one would care.
3rd, he admits in a pre-trial hearing that the reason he wasn't participating in the sex show was because....(the NFL had to LOVE this one).....he was shooting craps! For like $20 a throw! That's the ticket! I wasn't a pervert, I was a gambler! Man oh man, this story just keeps getting worse for the league. If there's one thing that they hate more than some degenerate sex addict.......its a degenerate gambler. Of course, since Duante had the lovely "Mrs. Pep" sitting next to him, you have to wonder if he was really gambling, or wondering if he fessed up to the sex show whether Mrs. Pep would be thinking about how much alimony she'd be able to skin him for.
He's all yours Dolphins fans....but somehow these things don't strike me as being the sort of things that Montana, Unitas, Favre & Elway did to inspire confidence from their teammates. By the way, did I mention he's fumbled 82 times in 82 games?
2) Well, its that time of year. Spring training, and out in Arizona the Cubs are preparing for yet another year of heartbreaking losses, decisions and injuries. Truly, a black cloud hangs over the franchise, and it isn't because of Steve Bartman reaching over and taking the ball from Moises Alou, or a goat that some guy brought to the stadium. Here's where the Cubs stand late in the spring. Kerry Wood, who's name is now usually prefaced by the words "injury prone" or "injured" is....you guessed it....still injured. This is the guy who had surgery in September with the thought that he would be ready in plenty of time for spring training. Well....it seemed like a good idea at the time. Mark Prior? Mark Prior....who looked like the 2nd coming of Jim Palmer a few years ago, now can'tsneeze or fart without somehow hurting himself. What it is with the Cubs and young pitchers anyway? How in the hell did guys like Cy Young and Walter Johnson throw 500 games and never get hurt? Its enough to drive you crazy. Speaking of Cubs luck....yesterday I watched a group of Cubs pitchers throw a no-hitter through nine innings....and not get credit for it. Why? Because the crappy Cub hitters hadn't produced a damn run for them!!! So they go into the 10th, the Oakland A's get one hit before the Cubs finally win the game in the bottom of the 10th. A one hitter. That's Cubs luck for you. The pitchers throw a no hitter....and their hitters don't get any runs.
It looks like another looooooong year at Wrigley.
3) My Florida Panthers might be the hottest team in the NHL. They've won like 8 in a row, or 9 out of 10....something like that. The last 4 or 5 wins have been by one goal.
They're like 5 points out of the playoffs with about 12 games to go. Its just amazing.
Their November was so bad.....so awful (one win for the whole month)....so bizarre (losses occurred when they gave up goals with like 4 seconds left in the game, or in O.T.--it was seriously the weirdest thing you've ever seen).....that it was like they were looking for strange new ways to lose every time out. And now....holy crap, its like they've become the Edmonton Oilers of the early 80's.....winning games in the most amazing ways. I don't think its a coincidence that all this began to happen after the team owner stepped up and signed captain Olli Jokkinen to a new contract---which was the first time in 5 years that the team has actually kept a player that had trade value to other teams. I don't know if they can make up enough ground and make the playoffs. But the future suddenly looks much brighter than it has in a long time for hockey in south Florida.....and if they do make the playoffs, they're going to be one of those teams that somebody is not going to look forward to playing.
4) Notre Dame basketball team loses in the 2nd round of the NIT. Amazing. I mean, amazing on a level that the Panthers were at in November. The Fighting Irish basketball team.....finished with record of 16-14. A very ordinary season. Well....maybe not.
All 14 losses? By less than 10 points. They lost 10 of those games by less than 4 points. Just insane. And their final loss? In the NIT? Double overtime against Michigan (YEECH).....one second left, they've played perfect team defense and the Michigan player throws it back to a guy who's like 5 feet behind the top of the key--who promptly throws up a prayer. 3 pointer. Game over. Season over. Amazing.
Its things like this that cause sports fans to have drinking problems....or lead to suicide.
Or in most cases to cause their hair to turn grayer at a quicker rate.
Which is why I shaved my beard off today.
Later,
Jeff
Sunday, March 26, 2006
Thursday, March 23, 2006
3/23/06---Some family news
Yeah, yeah....I've heard the complaints (cough--Danyov--cough) that I've been sadly remiss in my writing lately. And you would be correct sir! So time for some brief catching up on the news regarding the family.
Last weekend we proudly went to the kids school to watch Kellie perform a solo on her flute in front of an audience. This was because she graded out as "superior" when she was tested earlier this year. We told Andy (again) that it sure would be nice to be able to see BOTH the kids give solo performances. Ahem.
Kim and I will be going to Houston next weekend for a convention. And you know what that means! A roadtrip....and a roadtrip means that I will have tales of mutant activity! WOOHOO! I haven't been to Houston since the late 80's and I'm interested to see how much the city has changed.
It looks like the whole Bowdren clan will be gathering in New York state in the early fall for a family reunion. That could mean big problems for the local police authorities, I gotta tell ya. Its been so long since I've seen any of my "NY relatives" that I can't even think about it--it would be really nice to see them and to let Kim and the kids meet all these relatives that they didn't know they have.
We have some recent news on Andy.....but I'm going to hold off on it. Its not either good or bad, just something that we want to get a chance to "digest"---definitely more on that in the coming days (hopefully I'll get my lazy ass to the computer by then).
Later,
Jeff
Last weekend we proudly went to the kids school to watch Kellie perform a solo on her flute in front of an audience. This was because she graded out as "superior" when she was tested earlier this year. We told Andy (again) that it sure would be nice to be able to see BOTH the kids give solo performances. Ahem.
Kim and I will be going to Houston next weekend for a convention. And you know what that means! A roadtrip....and a roadtrip means that I will have tales of mutant activity! WOOHOO! I haven't been to Houston since the late 80's and I'm interested to see how much the city has changed.
It looks like the whole Bowdren clan will be gathering in New York state in the early fall for a family reunion. That could mean big problems for the local police authorities, I gotta tell ya. Its been so long since I've seen any of my "NY relatives" that I can't even think about it--it would be really nice to see them and to let Kim and the kids meet all these relatives that they didn't know they have.
We have some recent news on Andy.....but I'm going to hold off on it. Its not either good or bad, just something that we want to get a chance to "digest"---definitely more on that in the coming days (hopefully I'll get my lazy ass to the computer by then).
Later,
Jeff
Sunday, March 19, 2006
3/19/06--various thoughts on various things
I'm reminded that we have reached the one year anniversary of the death of my daughter's fried Madeline Lisy. What a rough day that was.
3/21/05--Sometimes...there is no reason.
Today's South Florida Sun-Sentinel had a very good article about the anniversary.
Father, son cope with voids left by fatal crash one year ago: South Florida Sun-Sentinel
Tomorrow night, Kellie will be going to a special dinner given by Maddie's father in her memory and will join several of her friends in remembering the friend that they lost.
It will be a difficult night for Kellie, but I'm glad that she's going. It will help Maddie's father and younger brother to know that---people have not forgotten. Kellie hasn't.
Later,
Jeff
3/21/05--Sometimes...there is no reason.
Today's South Florida Sun-Sentinel had a very good article about the anniversary.
Father, son cope with voids left by fatal crash one year ago: South Florida Sun-Sentinel
Tomorrow night, Kellie will be going to a special dinner given by Maddie's father in her memory and will join several of her friends in remembering the friend that they lost.
It will be a difficult night for Kellie, but I'm glad that she's going. It will help Maddie's father and younger brother to know that---people have not forgotten. Kellie hasn't.
Later,
Jeff
Monday, March 13, 2006
3/13/06---Movies, movies....and more movies
Well, its been awhile since I've offered my beloved readers (both of you---no, thank you....really, please....sit down everybody....) a look at the movies I've been watching.
I'll go....worst to best......
1) The Cave--so I decided to take a chance on a goofy horror movie. Here's a little tidbit I told my daughter last night. Nothing is as scary as the imagination. So, its a lot scary to have a character in a movie who in the water say:
"Hey, what was that?"
You don't see what it is that he's talking about. On the other hand....if someone says that and then the camera SHOWS you what it is that prompted that question from the character in the movie--the imagination doesn't get to do anything. That equals=no fun.
Which is what made the last 30 minutes of this film disappointing. For the first hour or so, this was a decent little horror film. A group of "cave-divers" go deep into an uncharted series of caves in Romania (huh?) in search of....well.....I'm not exactly sure what they were in search of. But the scenes of the divers going underwater in the caves are beautifully filmed and give the film a nice eerie quality about it. And then, with about 30 minutes left in the film....they broke rule #1 of the horror movie code----
They showed us the monster.
Now, that's fine if we're talking the creature from Alien or something....but in this case, and I'm not lying here...it looks like a giant freakin bat. Absolutely ridiculous. And at that point the movie loses all suspense. **
2) Ong Bak--The Thai Warrior. I checked out this movie based on a recommendation I had heard about how all the stunts in this movie were done by its star, Tony Jaa. He's sort of a Thai version of Jackie Chan--except without the personality. There are some great stunts in this film to be sure, but Jaa's character is so boring, I just couldn't get into him. Which is too bad, because there are some absolutely terrific fight scenes in this film. The movie I would compare this too is the old Jean Claude Van-Damme movie "Bloodsport". Jaa's character, like JCVD's, is competes in a fight club against fighters using different styles and techniques. There's one, against a guy named "Mad Dog", that is an absolutely terrific brawl, using everything in the club that literally is not nailed down.
Great fight scenes, some terrific stunts, all surrounding some boring scenes in between.
**1/2
3) Alien vs. Predator---okay, don't laugh. I was really surprised by this one. I turned to it on my HBO HD mainly just to watch the difference in the HD as compared to the other channels---and found myself getting hooked. Don't get me wrong. This isn't anywhere near Alien 1 or 2 ("Aliens"). But its no where near as bad as I thought it would be--how's that for a backhanded compliment? Again, as with "The Cave", its a great LOOKING film. The sets are very impressive looking, and they do great work on the alien creatures--here's one of the problems. The Predator. Part of what made the first Predator movie (the one with Arnie) so great is that you never actually saw the thing until the movie was almost over--and then, the payoff was really great, because it was such an ugly bastard and the costume was great....it was terrific. Here, they show the Predator WAY, WAY too early, and the costume looks like some knockoff of the original costume (which I'm sure is exactly what it was). Its just not the same. Here, a group of scientists under the direction of gazillionair Lance Henrikson travels to the Antartica to investigate strange heat signals being sent from beneath the ice. There are some "inside" references to the earlier films (Henrikson's character's middle name is "Bishop", which was the name given to the robot in the first film). This is a better creature film than "The Cave", and is way better than I thought it would be. Which is not to say that its the equal of the original of either series.....just not bad. ***
4) The Aristocrats---here's the premise to this rather interesting documentary. There's this joke, which is well known amongst comedians, that is one of the oldest dirty jokes ever told. Its rather basic:
Guy walks into an agents office. Tells the agent he's got this terrific new act. The agent asks him to tell him what the act consists of. The guy describes, in absolutely horrible, vivid and disgustingly graphic detail, the awful thing this act does. The agent is repulsed, but out of morbid curiousity, asks the guy what an act like that could possibly be called.
'The Aristocrats'.
The key to the joke is that the person telling the joke, is almost given carte blanche to make the joke as dirty or as clean as he wants. So what happens here is, the filmmaker goes to various famous comedians and asks for their interpretation of the joke.
The funniest thing is that the dirtiest retellings are done by the comedians that are most associated with being "clean". Bob Saget of television's "Full House" comes to mind.
At times terrifically funny...almost hysterical. But, I wouldn't show it to my parents.
***1/2
5) Walk the Line--a really good movie featuring two wonderful lead performances by Joaquin Phoenix and Reese Witherspoon as Johnny Cash & June Carter, respectively.
I'm no huge fan of country music, but the story of this two star crossed lovers trying desperately to alternately contain and express their mutual love for one another---all the while being married mind you--during the relatively conservative years of the late 50's and early 60's.....is great stuff. Highly recommended. ****1/2
6) Crash--I watched this film the morning before it won this year's Academy Award for best film. It was well deserved. Crash shows two evenings in Los Angeles, and intersects the lives of about 10 people in an attempt to show the way that racism, both subtle and overt, effects the daily lives of everyone. Everyone--black, white, middle eastern, hispanic....find themselves as the victim of a form of racism, and it shows the frustrations the racism foster. Terrific performances from an ensemble cast, including a never better Sandra Bullock, Matt Dillon, Terence Howard and (I can't believe I'm about to type this) rap star Ludicrius. An amazing piece of work, and a must see.
*****
Later,
Jeff
Sunday, March 5, 2006
3/5/06---A nice evening out...with the cast from Goodfellas
So last evening the wife and I went out with four of our friends, Greg "Cable Guy" Goode & his wife Mary and Amanda "May hurt you during therapy" and her husband Will. Our first stop of the evening was to pick up Will & Amanda, since the beloved Kellie Poe-Bowdren was doing the babysitting chores for their son Calvin (and getting waaaaaaay more than I ever got for babysitting might I add). The four of us departed for the Hard Rock Hotel & Casino where we met Greg & Mary and headed over to the Improv Comedy Club to see comedienne Lisa Lampanelli, aka "The Queen of Mean".
Lisa Lampanelli
We got a nice table and sat through the verbal assault known as one of Lisa's concerts.
I have to tell you, she's an absolute howl. That being said, quite honestly, this isn't a concert that I'd bring Mom & Dad too. Unless they like hearing jokes about queers, blacks, spics, chinks and other minorities (her words, not mine--just for the record).
She literally brings the audience to tears as she talks about things that "other people think about, but don't ever want to say out loud"---which is what someone at the table said during the concert. If you ever get the chance....run, don't walk, to get tickets.
***** Jeff sez, check it out.
After the concert, we all headed downtown to the venerable eating establishment known as "Anthony's Runway 84". This place has been around for like 35 years and is like stepping into a time machine. There's a famous scene in the movie "Goodfellas", where Ray Liotta is taking Lorraine Bracco on a date to a restaurant in New York City.
The camera follows them as they walk through the back of the restaurant, past the cooks, the patrons, the assorted hangers on....until they're seated at their table.
That's what walking into Anthony's is like. Its a combination of Goodfellas & Saturday Night Fever--mainly because they have a stereo system that is absolutely BLASTING 70's music while you eat. Don't get me wrong....its great music, I love it....but I'd prefer it at a club, not a restaurant. What really made the evening memorable though, was watching the people in the restaurant--the customers. 90% appear to be regulars, people who come by ever weekend to eat, to mingle, to be seen. What's even better is that all those 90 percenters are between 55 & 60 and areall desperately trying to recapture the glory of their youth in New York when they would go to the disco's in New York City. And I am totally NOT kidding. I turned to Kim and told her that if any man ever wanted to pick up a middle aged Italian woman who had at least one face lift, a boob job and assorted reconstructions about her person---this would be the place to look for her. There was this certain sense of desperation in the crowd. All the old single men are there trying to be seen and find someone to spend the night with, then move on. The women are trying to be seen and find someone to spend the rest of their life with---and the men here are so obviously NOT looking for a longterm relationship.
Its a fascinating study on an almost socialogical level.....and it made the evening that much richer. We had made reservations for 9:30pm, and when we got there about 10 minutes before, the maitre'd told us that it would be a few minutes. They still had a line going out the door and some couples were getting a little impatient. These two women, who's best days were long ago, cut in front of me and complained to the maitre'd about how long they had been waiting. He told them that he had a booth for them in the smaller bar area of the restaurant.
"Well we don't want that! We want to sit in the main room."
He tells them all he has right now is a booth, and they start having a fit.
"This isn't right! I come here all the time...I want to speak to the owner."
"Go ahead, the owner is in the bar."
It was hilarious--he just...dismissed them. So we get seated, and our fascinating people watching show continues. There is no dance floor in the restaurant. And yet, when a good song would come on....the people would get up and start dancing in the aisles by their tables. One table even had people dancing ON TOP of the tables.
Will looks at me and says:
"Damn, in one night, we get a show, dinner....and then ANOTHER show."
I told his wife that after 10:00pm the restaurant turned into a swinger's club. I think she almost believed me. The food began arriving and I have to tell you....the bread, was out of this world. I mean, some kick ass Italian bread--hard crust, soft middle and warm out of the oven. We had ordered an appetizer of meatballs, and they were delicious.
They also bring out a plate of mussels and calamari, but Kim and I decline....although the rest of the crew said they were good (Will didn't like the mussels though).
The main entree for me was chicken parm--which was good, not the best I've ever had though, and Kim had lasagna--which was the biggest plate of pasta I'd ever seen, it was way too much for one person though.
So, in summation, the food was pretty good---not the greatest Italian food I've ever had in my life or anything......but, you have to understand....that part of the dinner includes the uncredited floor show you get by watching the other patrons. Its an absolute riot.
We left, mainly because Kellie began calling me that there had been a power surge, the lights had gone out and she went into full on FREAK OUT mode......but it was the end to a very fun evening with good friends.
Later,
Jeff
PS....so then, about 4:45am, I wake up....head to the bathroom, and proceed to get sick as a dog.
GOOD NIGHT EVERYBODY!
Lisa Lampanelli
We got a nice table and sat through the verbal assault known as one of Lisa's concerts.
I have to tell you, she's an absolute howl. That being said, quite honestly, this isn't a concert that I'd bring Mom & Dad too. Unless they like hearing jokes about queers, blacks, spics, chinks and other minorities (her words, not mine--just for the record).
She literally brings the audience to tears as she talks about things that "other people think about, but don't ever want to say out loud"---which is what someone at the table said during the concert. If you ever get the chance....run, don't walk, to get tickets.
***** Jeff sez, check it out.
After the concert, we all headed downtown to the venerable eating establishment known as "Anthony's Runway 84". This place has been around for like 35 years and is like stepping into a time machine. There's a famous scene in the movie "Goodfellas", where Ray Liotta is taking Lorraine Bracco on a date to a restaurant in New York City.
The camera follows them as they walk through the back of the restaurant, past the cooks, the patrons, the assorted hangers on....until they're seated at their table.
That's what walking into Anthony's is like. Its a combination of Goodfellas & Saturday Night Fever--mainly because they have a stereo system that is absolutely BLASTING 70's music while you eat. Don't get me wrong....its great music, I love it....but I'd prefer it at a club, not a restaurant. What really made the evening memorable though, was watching the people in the restaurant--the customers. 90% appear to be regulars, people who come by ever weekend to eat, to mingle, to be seen. What's even better is that all those 90 percenters are between 55 & 60 and areall desperately trying to recapture the glory of their youth in New York when they would go to the disco's in New York City. And I am totally NOT kidding. I turned to Kim and told her that if any man ever wanted to pick up a middle aged Italian woman who had at least one face lift, a boob job and assorted reconstructions about her person---this would be the place to look for her. There was this certain sense of desperation in the crowd. All the old single men are there trying to be seen and find someone to spend the night with, then move on. The women are trying to be seen and find someone to spend the rest of their life with---and the men here are so obviously NOT looking for a longterm relationship.
Its a fascinating study on an almost socialogical level.....and it made the evening that much richer. We had made reservations for 9:30pm, and when we got there about 10 minutes before, the maitre'd told us that it would be a few minutes. They still had a line going out the door and some couples were getting a little impatient. These two women, who's best days were long ago, cut in front of me and complained to the maitre'd about how long they had been waiting. He told them that he had a booth for them in the smaller bar area of the restaurant.
"Well we don't want that! We want to sit in the main room."
He tells them all he has right now is a booth, and they start having a fit.
"This isn't right! I come here all the time...I want to speak to the owner."
"Go ahead, the owner is in the bar."
It was hilarious--he just...dismissed them. So we get seated, and our fascinating people watching show continues. There is no dance floor in the restaurant. And yet, when a good song would come on....the people would get up and start dancing in the aisles by their tables. One table even had people dancing ON TOP of the tables.
Will looks at me and says:
"Damn, in one night, we get a show, dinner....and then ANOTHER show."
I told his wife that after 10:00pm the restaurant turned into a swinger's club. I think she almost believed me. The food began arriving and I have to tell you....the bread, was out of this world. I mean, some kick ass Italian bread--hard crust, soft middle and warm out of the oven. We had ordered an appetizer of meatballs, and they were delicious.
They also bring out a plate of mussels and calamari, but Kim and I decline....although the rest of the crew said they were good (Will didn't like the mussels though).
The main entree for me was chicken parm--which was good, not the best I've ever had though, and Kim had lasagna--which was the biggest plate of pasta I'd ever seen, it was way too much for one person though.
So, in summation, the food was pretty good---not the greatest Italian food I've ever had in my life or anything......but, you have to understand....that part of the dinner includes the uncredited floor show you get by watching the other patrons. Its an absolute riot.
We left, mainly because Kellie began calling me that there had been a power surge, the lights had gone out and she went into full on FREAK OUT mode......but it was the end to a very fun evening with good friends.
Later,
Jeff
PS....so then, about 4:45am, I wake up....head to the bathroom, and proceed to get sick as a dog.
GOOD NIGHT EVERYBODY!
Saturday, March 4, 2006
3/4/06---Stupid people say stupid things...and a face from my past shows up
So the other day (Thursday), was a pretty interesting day. I took Wednesday off for a dentist appointment, but instead of seeing my dentist I went to my primary doctor--mainly because I had felt like crap for a few days. It just felt like yet another cold or flu was swooping down to put me on my back. Thankfully, my doctor prescribed some of that Z-pack or whatever its called and I felt much better the next day.
I'm glad I did....because things got interesting.
So I'm sitting at my desk right as work is getting ready to start and my friend Ceci walks by, and I say good morning. She looks a bit out of sorts and I ask her what's wrong.
"Eh, you know...something someone just said to me sort of bothered me."
"What'd they say?"
"Oh you know...just something that's stupid. It shouldn't upset me....but it did."
"Who was it?"
"I don't wanna say."
"Well at least tell me what they said."
She leaned forward and sort of half whispered that someone in the office had asked her if she was expecting.
DOH!
Now, to me....that's one of those questions that you don't ask a woman....unless you are 100% sure what the answer is--and the answer had better be yes. Otherwise, you look like an idiot, and you make the woman feel horrible. Its a stupid, stupid question to ask if you don't know the answer.
So she walks away feeling lousy about herself, and I feel bad because I don't know what to say to her.
A little while later I had to take a file to the other side of the courthouse, to a felony division. I dropped the file off and I get into the elevator. I'm standing there, minding my own business when a couple get on and stand next to me. The guy is ranting and raving about how he's been "add-charged", which means that the state attorney has decided to increase his charges---you could probably guess that its never a good thing to have happen, especially if your charged with a felony. So, there I am, and the elevator door closes....and I hear:
"Excuse me, is your name Jeff Bowdren?"
"Yes it is."
"Jeff, its me....Michele Brower."
"Michele Bro.....oh....Michele with one "L"!"
That had been what I called her. Back in the early part of 1999 when we were dating.
She was the last woman I dated before I met Kim. My last foray into bachelorhood before I met my wife. She was absolutely wild. She had losta lot of weight, and truthfully looked very good. The elevator opened, she said goodbye, and walked ahead of me with her boyfriend//husband//friend///who knows what? I walked behind her and thought about how different I probably looked to her. How the last few years I've put on weight--more than I'd probably care to admit. I found myself wondering if she was thinking to herself:
"Wow! He's really put on the weight!"
Or if maybe she was thinking.....
"Wow! He's really put on the weight! Of course, he doesn't have a felony add-charge like the loser I'm walking with, but........"
Michele was the woman that convinced me to marry Kim. I had been going out with Kim for a few years, and had been dragging my feet on making our relationship "permanent". Kim hadn't said anything, but I'm sure she was starting to wonder if I was ever going to fish or cut bait in the marital department. And one day online (those damn computers--they're relationship killers!), Michele IMed me and asked me to meet her somewhere. She even made a point of not being very subtle about her purpose for asking me.....and I declined.
I thought about declining that invitation for a day or two. I thought about what it would have meant if I had gone and seen her. How I had been, in the words of the musical group Squeeze....."Tempted by the Fruit of Another". There truly is nothing quite as tempting as.....temptation.
But thankfully, I declined her invitation. And a couple of days later, I realized that there was a reason I declined. And that was when I asked Kim to marry me.....while we were walking the dogs.....in the parking lot behind the office building.
I'm just an old fashioned romantic, aren't I?
So most of the rest of the day had gone by, and I had thought about what had been said to Ceci. I was trying to figure out a way to make her feel better....to make her ignore what the stupid person had said. Interestingly enough, the person who said it (she told me eventually) is well known in our office for her "spirituality", for quoting scripture......
Which I found especially interesting when I learned that one of her 3 children that she has (never married--ahem) was the result of a liason she had with a married man.
But hey, I digress.
Anyway, so Ceci comes back into the office and walks past my desk. It was just the two of us there and she still looked out of sorts.
"How ya doing?"
"Okay....I'm still thinking about what she said though. That really bothers me."
"Okay...can I just say something here? And, I hope you take this in the spirit in which I intend it and all.....but......I hope you realize that if I wasn't married to Kim.....and if you weren't married to Jorge......that you would need a restraining order to keep me away from you. You do know that, don't you?"
She looked at me for a moment. Then she laughed, and gave me a hug.
"I needed to hear that. Thank you so much."
Ya know....if telling someone that you would consider being their own personal stalker doesn't show you care....what really does?
Later,
Jeff
I'm glad I did....because things got interesting.
So I'm sitting at my desk right as work is getting ready to start and my friend Ceci walks by, and I say good morning. She looks a bit out of sorts and I ask her what's wrong.
"Eh, you know...something someone just said to me sort of bothered me."
"What'd they say?"
"Oh you know...just something that's stupid. It shouldn't upset me....but it did."
"Who was it?"
"I don't wanna say."
"Well at least tell me what they said."
She leaned forward and sort of half whispered that someone in the office had asked her if she was expecting.
DOH!
Now, to me....that's one of those questions that you don't ask a woman....unless you are 100% sure what the answer is--and the answer had better be yes. Otherwise, you look like an idiot, and you make the woman feel horrible. Its a stupid, stupid question to ask if you don't know the answer.
So she walks away feeling lousy about herself, and I feel bad because I don't know what to say to her.
A little while later I had to take a file to the other side of the courthouse, to a felony division. I dropped the file off and I get into the elevator. I'm standing there, minding my own business when a couple get on and stand next to me. The guy is ranting and raving about how he's been "add-charged", which means that the state attorney has decided to increase his charges---you could probably guess that its never a good thing to have happen, especially if your charged with a felony. So, there I am, and the elevator door closes....and I hear:
"Excuse me, is your name Jeff Bowdren?"
"Yes it is."
"Jeff, its me....Michele Brower."
"Michele Bro.....oh....Michele with one "L"!"
That had been what I called her. Back in the early part of 1999 when we were dating.
She was the last woman I dated before I met Kim. My last foray into bachelorhood before I met my wife. She was absolutely wild. She had losta lot of weight, and truthfully looked very good. The elevator opened, she said goodbye, and walked ahead of me with her boyfriend//husband//friend///who knows what? I walked behind her and thought about how different I probably looked to her. How the last few years I've put on weight--more than I'd probably care to admit. I found myself wondering if she was thinking to herself:
"Wow! He's really put on the weight!"
Or if maybe she was thinking.....
"Wow! He's really put on the weight! Of course, he doesn't have a felony add-charge like the loser I'm walking with, but........"
Michele was the woman that convinced me to marry Kim. I had been going out with Kim for a few years, and had been dragging my feet on making our relationship "permanent". Kim hadn't said anything, but I'm sure she was starting to wonder if I was ever going to fish or cut bait in the marital department. And one day online (those damn computers--they're relationship killers!), Michele IMed me and asked me to meet her somewhere. She even made a point of not being very subtle about her purpose for asking me.....and I declined.
I thought about declining that invitation for a day or two. I thought about what it would have meant if I had gone and seen her. How I had been, in the words of the musical group Squeeze....."Tempted by the Fruit of Another". There truly is nothing quite as tempting as.....temptation.
But thankfully, I declined her invitation. And a couple of days later, I realized that there was a reason I declined. And that was when I asked Kim to marry me.....while we were walking the dogs.....in the parking lot behind the office building.
I'm just an old fashioned romantic, aren't I?
So most of the rest of the day had gone by, and I had thought about what had been said to Ceci. I was trying to figure out a way to make her feel better....to make her ignore what the stupid person had said. Interestingly enough, the person who said it (she told me eventually) is well known in our office for her "spirituality", for quoting scripture......
Which I found especially interesting when I learned that one of her 3 children that she has (never married--ahem) was the result of a liason she had with a married man.
But hey, I digress.
Anyway, so Ceci comes back into the office and walks past my desk. It was just the two of us there and she still looked out of sorts.
"How ya doing?"
"Okay....I'm still thinking about what she said though. That really bothers me."
"Okay...can I just say something here? And, I hope you take this in the spirit in which I intend it and all.....but......I hope you realize that if I wasn't married to Kim.....and if you weren't married to Jorge......that you would need a restraining order to keep me away from you. You do know that, don't you?"
She looked at me for a moment. Then she laughed, and gave me a hug.
"I needed to hear that. Thank you so much."
Ya know....if telling someone that you would consider being their own personal stalker doesn't show you care....what really does?
Later,
Jeff
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