ok -now that I'm back from being deathly ill, i felt the need to post. Since, I'm a huge B-RAD G fan (hahahahaha) I thought I'd share this vid with ya...enjoi.
Wednesday, January 31, 2007
Thursday, January 25, 2007
uuugghhhh
It's snowing, i have 8 parking tickets on my desk and I am sick. In the morning is a photoshoot we're in for a new state advertising campaign (our other modeling was an apparent hit) and it's going to be outside in the cold...oh joy. Models really do have it rough. heh.
Monday, January 22, 2007
What the Hey?!?!?!
I've used this phrase a couple of times recently in lieu of other choice words and am getting annoyed with it. I don't even understand what it means. So, I decided to look up the phrase and see what it's origins and meanings were and how it came to be...
“What the Hey” - Originally “What the Hay” - (read all the way through...very interesting)
Traced back to the Celtic farmers before Christ was born, “what the hey” was originally know as “what the Hay”. Hay was an important crop to the Celtic farmers and was regarded as one of their most precious resources. It served many uses from feeding their livestock to even being used as ingredients in their prepared food for themselves, to being used as thatch mixture for their dwellings. Celtic farmers would even go so far as to booby-trap their land and dwellings to protect this precious commodity. Disputes over hay were even said to be one of the causes of the first invasions of Rome, by the Celts around 400BC.
Celtic farmers and warriors would often barter and trade using hay instead of other materials, like weaponry, rocks or jewels. This became common practice in their way of life and depending on how rainy of a season they had, the hay would be various lengths due to growth. The longer the hay shoots, the more valuable the pieces were. The Celtic men would often ask each other about the length of their hay shoots to determine how much would be traded on any given day.
After the initial invasion of Rome, the Celtic and Roman cultures began to intermingle as well as their languages. Due to certain barriers of speech, the initial questioning of the length of someone's hay became shorter so that the Roman population could be involved in conversation. The Romans used many Celtic farmers and former warriors as hired help in their lands and were very accommodating to the Celtic lifestyle. In order to placate much of what was being spoken, the Roman's learned to ask about the length of hay. They would ask, “VVHAUT LEINGT HEI”, which came across to the Celts as simply “what's the hay”.
After several centuries, hay became less of a commodity and whey became the prevalent grain type. Farmers from several cultures would still ask “what the hey” only now, they referred to whey. This became such common practice in the mid 16th & 17th centuries, that people would simply stop and say “hey” to the barley merchants as they passed by to know how much their whey stock was worth.
Eventually the word “hey” became to be used as a personable greeting in simply passing one another by on the street and is still used today.
Wow...crazy, huh? Yes, I made every bit of that up. ;) hahahahaha Not bad for a 15 minute break, eh?
“What the Hey” - Originally “What the Hay” - (read all the way through...very interesting)
Traced back to the Celtic farmers before Christ was born, “what the hey” was originally know as “what the Hay”. Hay was an important crop to the Celtic farmers and was regarded as one of their most precious resources. It served many uses from feeding their livestock to even being used as ingredients in their prepared food for themselves, to being used as thatch mixture for their dwellings. Celtic farmers would even go so far as to booby-trap their land and dwellings to protect this precious commodity. Disputes over hay were even said to be one of the causes of the first invasions of Rome, by the Celts around 400BC.
Celtic farmers and warriors would often barter and trade using hay instead of other materials, like weaponry, rocks or jewels. This became common practice in their way of life and depending on how rainy of a season they had, the hay would be various lengths due to growth. The longer the hay shoots, the more valuable the pieces were. The Celtic men would often ask each other about the length of their hay shoots to determine how much would be traded on any given day.
After the initial invasion of Rome, the Celtic and Roman cultures began to intermingle as well as their languages. Due to certain barriers of speech, the initial questioning of the length of someone's hay became shorter so that the Roman population could be involved in conversation. The Romans used many Celtic farmers and former warriors as hired help in their lands and were very accommodating to the Celtic lifestyle. In order to placate much of what was being spoken, the Roman's learned to ask about the length of hay. They would ask, “VVHAUT LEINGT HEI”, which came across to the Celts as simply “what's the hay”.
After several centuries, hay became less of a commodity and whey became the prevalent grain type. Farmers from several cultures would still ask “what the hey” only now, they referred to whey. This became such common practice in the mid 16th & 17th centuries, that people would simply stop and say “hey” to the barley merchants as they passed by to know how much their whey stock was worth.
Eventually the word “hey” became to be used as a personable greeting in simply passing one another by on the street and is still used today.
Wow...crazy, huh? Yes, I made every bit of that up. ;) hahahahaha Not bad for a 15 minute break, eh?
Friday, January 19, 2007
timoteo...the evil genius.
OK, so my timoteo is coming out. I got that nickname in Peru (actually it's not a nickname, but my real name...hahahaha - well my real name to the spanish speaking folks). There used to be a TV show down there that had a guy named timoteo in it that was a bad guy. There was also a cartoon that had a timoteo in it that was a goofy big thing (can't remember...some kind of animal maybe?). Anyway, I know I got the nickname from the cartoon, but I'm going to pretend for purposes of this blog, it was the cool, bad guy on the other show. ;)
Parking tickets. Yes, back on that subject. I got another one yesterday. Yep, sure enough. I still haven't met my quota yet, but it is only the 19th. I kept thinking to myself how to make it the absolute hardest on the city to get payment for these tickets. Marcus Arelius and I were chatting this morning about it and the plan has been decided. I will go on the due date, plead all tickets not guilty (extra paperwork) and then proceed to pay them in coinage. All change. Pennies in fact. $40-$50 worth. And, here's the kicker...I'm going to mix in Canadian coins...MUHOOWAHAHAHAHAAHAH. What's so funny is that we all know canadian money isn't worth as much as American money, so I'll actually be getting a discount on the tickets, thereby saving me more money for my super duper plan of world domination!
ahem.
Sorry, I got a bit carried away. Scratch that last sentence. Ummmm, there are no plans for world domination.
Anyway, I feel it is a good plan. Will let you know in Feb how it turns out. ;)
Parking tickets. Yes, back on that subject. I got another one yesterday. Yep, sure enough. I still haven't met my quota yet, but it is only the 19th. I kept thinking to myself how to make it the absolute hardest on the city to get payment for these tickets. Marcus Arelius and I were chatting this morning about it and the plan has been decided. I will go on the due date, plead all tickets not guilty (extra paperwork) and then proceed to pay them in coinage. All change. Pennies in fact. $40-$50 worth. And, here's the kicker...I'm going to mix in Canadian coins...MUHOOWAHAHAHAHAAHAH. What's so funny is that we all know canadian money isn't worth as much as American money, so I'll actually be getting a discount on the tickets, thereby saving me more money for my super duper plan of world domination!
ahem.
Sorry, I got a bit carried away. Scratch that last sentence. Ummmm, there are no plans for world domination.
Anyway, I feel it is a good plan. Will let you know in Feb how it turns out. ;)
Thursday, January 18, 2007
rollin', rollin', rollin'...
YeeHAW! I've been trying to think of some things to do to my Jeep to make it a little cooler, and recently (this morning) added some coolness to the vehicle. I needed to get new tires, so I went shopping for some areound to all the tire places. The quotes were between $500-$600 for plain tires for my jeep. Not off roadies or anything like that. One day I was at the Wal-Mart and said to myself, "self, what they hay...see how much tires are here." So I did. Well, to my delight, Goodyear Wranglers were only going to be $250 installed. WOW! So, an obvious no-brainer since they were twice that everywhere else! Since, I was planning on spending about $500 anyway, I decided to go ahead and see how much new wheels would cost. About $300. Yep. So I bought new wheels too (black instead of the old silver ones)! And now my jeep is starting to look even cooler than it already did. ;) Here's my pic...enjoy! Let me know what you think.
PS - Yes, I know I need to get the blue off...
Sunday, January 14, 2007
banged up, bruised, but not buried...yet
ouch. I decided to get out my little MX bike yesterday and play around in the yard and in the construction zone of the new house. Ever since demolishing my 12' jump I had in the yard that I'd hit with my racing bike, I've missed just being able to ride in the yard without having to go to a track. Well, yesterday was pretty nice and I hadn't started my little bike all winter and decided to get it out and ride.
I started off just riding up and down the road and around the yard and started having a blast! I then looked around and decided I could build some jumps and just see what I could do. I decided to start with this little rock pile, gravel really, that was piled in a mound and just go through it to see what happened. No, of course I wasn't wearing any pads or a helmet... :( Well, I hit the rocks and jumped! "WOW! OK, this could be cool", I think to myself. So I start jumping off of it seeing how high I can get etc. My son is watching (it's technically his bike) going "cool...good jump", etc. So I try going off the top of the pile...and lo and behold, that's when the rocks decide to fall out from underneath...although it didn't change the fact that I did get a pretty good air. I didn't however, get a pretty good landing.
I fly through the air, do the best I can with what I've got, and crash so hard...scraped up my back, messed up my left shoulder (still can't really move it) and threw my head into the ground. Now I know why I should always wear a helmet...hahahahaha.
After a few dazed seconds that feel like a year, I get up and clean off the bike and look around to make sure I'm not dead, and Luke yells out, "Dad, that was awesome. You almost landed a superman on my bike!!! That was awesome I can't believe you tried that!"
That's right, son...that's right. I almost landed a superman...
hahahahahahahahaha - I wish.
I started off just riding up and down the road and around the yard and started having a blast! I then looked around and decided I could build some jumps and just see what I could do. I decided to start with this little rock pile, gravel really, that was piled in a mound and just go through it to see what happened. No, of course I wasn't wearing any pads or a helmet... :( Well, I hit the rocks and jumped! "WOW! OK, this could be cool", I think to myself. So I start jumping off of it seeing how high I can get etc. My son is watching (it's technically his bike) going "cool...good jump", etc. So I try going off the top of the pile...and lo and behold, that's when the rocks decide to fall out from underneath...although it didn't change the fact that I did get a pretty good air. I didn't however, get a pretty good landing.
I fly through the air, do the best I can with what I've got, and crash so hard...scraped up my back, messed up my left shoulder (still can't really move it) and threw my head into the ground. Now I know why I should always wear a helmet...hahahahaha.
After a few dazed seconds that feel like a year, I get up and clean off the bike and look around to make sure I'm not dead, and Luke yells out, "Dad, that was awesome. You almost landed a superman on my bike!!! That was awesome I can't believe you tried that!"
That's right, son...that's right. I almost landed a superman...
hahahahahahahahaha - I wish.
Saturday, January 13, 2007
it's the new style...
4 and 3 and 2 and 1...when I'm on the type, the suckers run...I got more words than the dictionary, watch out son it's about to get hairy...I got a new look for my b-l-o-g, I hope you like it, if not, well sue me...
well then. now since that is all out of my system, I got a bit tired of the old look (even though my fav color is green), and decided to revamp it. So, I hope you don;t mind looking at it. Let me know what you think.
~~\/~~
__
[no i don't know what that is either...]
well then. now since that is all out of my system, I got a bit tired of the old look (even though my fav color is green), and decided to revamp it. So, I hope you don;t mind looking at it. Let me know what you think.
~~\/~~
__
[no i don't know what that is either...]
Friday, January 12, 2007
parking strategy
So, in our new building we are in 'downtown'. All the parking downtown town is free 2 hour only on the streets (right in front of our building and elsewhere), or you can park in the parking garage, a block or two away, or you can opt for the $30 a month parking space behind our building. Now most people would think it's a no-brainer to do the $30 a month for a space, right? Well, not me. I have decided (and have talked everyone in our office into this same philosophy) to beat the system. I mean really, do you think their are police that go up and down the street where we live looking to write a 2 hour violation parking ticket? No, me neither. Here's the deal...
I find out parking tickets are $10 a fine. So, I say to myself, "I'd have to get a minimum of 3 tickets a month parking on the side of the road in front of my office to pay for a space behind my office. I would have to get 4 tickets/fines a month for a couple of months in a row, to justify buying a space. No I'm not walking 2 blocks unless I have to. It is winter." Well, to me this is just brilliant. So I tell everyone else about this grand scheme of convenience vs. non-convenience and everyone agrees. So we have all been doing this the past month and a half with no fines...
Until yesterday. Yesterday I got a ticket. Marcus got a ticket. A couple of other people here got tickets. So, they racked up yesterday in fines...Only thing is...our new girl didn't get a ticket, and she was in front of me and I even left and came back and parked yesterday while her vehicle was there the whole time. So, I'm thinking of filing a discriminatory suite against the parking people. All of us guys got tickets and the girl didn't. Hmmmm....
Needless to say, everyone is whining and moaning about having to pay $10 (which they don't even have to, I mean our business is paying most of them - well, at least mine and Marcus'...heh). I have to remind them that they could be paying $30 instead, blah blah blah.
Where is the humor in all of this? I'll tell you. But you have to keep it a secret... I told our new girl that if she went out and made parking tickets that looked real and put them on people's cars and use a PO BOX, they would mail them in and she could make a lot of money really fast. Well, she took me up on it and I think she has about $450 or so coming to her. Pretty clever I must say...
[the above is a fictional account of what really happened yesterday...yes i got a ticket, but everything else is made up....heh]
I find out parking tickets are $10 a fine. So, I say to myself, "I'd have to get a minimum of 3 tickets a month parking on the side of the road in front of my office to pay for a space behind my office. I would have to get 4 tickets/fines a month for a couple of months in a row, to justify buying a space. No I'm not walking 2 blocks unless I have to. It is winter." Well, to me this is just brilliant. So I tell everyone else about this grand scheme of convenience vs. non-convenience and everyone agrees. So we have all been doing this the past month and a half with no fines...
Until yesterday. Yesterday I got a ticket. Marcus got a ticket. A couple of other people here got tickets. So, they racked up yesterday in fines...Only thing is...our new girl didn't get a ticket, and she was in front of me and I even left and came back and parked yesterday while her vehicle was there the whole time. So, I'm thinking of filing a discriminatory suite against the parking people. All of us guys got tickets and the girl didn't. Hmmmm....
Needless to say, everyone is whining and moaning about having to pay $10 (which they don't even have to, I mean our business is paying most of them - well, at least mine and Marcus'...heh). I have to remind them that they could be paying $30 instead, blah blah blah.
Where is the humor in all of this? I'll tell you. But you have to keep it a secret... I told our new girl that if she went out and made parking tickets that looked real and put them on people's cars and use a PO BOX, they would mail them in and she could make a lot of money really fast. Well, she took me up on it and I think she has about $450 or so coming to her. Pretty clever I must say...
[the above is a fictional account of what really happened yesterday...yes i got a ticket, but everything else is made up....heh]
Wednesday, January 10, 2007
switcharoo
well, since I waxed a little yesterday with the football post, I figured I'd switch and make today my 2fer day. I didn't think any of you would mind. So, here goes:
1 - We have a new employee starting today which we are excited about. Hopefully she will do a great job and add a lot to the company. What's funny is that is has been a while since I've actually had to manage just one person, but I think we have enough to do around here to keep her going. Cross your fingers for us. ;)
2 - Read, read, read. I am not even in school and have to read 2 books this week for things I am doing in the evenings. I enjoy reading for fun...not sure yet if this will be fun or not. I know they will be good for me - one is a Dave Ramsey book on money ;) and the other is the Purpose Driven Life. Maybe by combining and applying the two all stress in my life will suddenly disappear. Not! (ohhhh...nice throwback phrase...)
l8r
1 - We have a new employee starting today which we are excited about. Hopefully she will do a great job and add a lot to the company. What's funny is that is has been a while since I've actually had to manage just one person, but I think we have enough to do around here to keep her going. Cross your fingers for us. ;)
2 - Read, read, read. I am not even in school and have to read 2 books this week for things I am doing in the evenings. I enjoy reading for fun...not sure yet if this will be fun or not. I know they will be good for me - one is a Dave Ramsey book on money ;) and the other is the Purpose Driven Life. Maybe by combining and applying the two all stress in my life will suddenly disappear. Not! (ohhhh...nice throwback phrase...)
l8r
Tuesday, January 09, 2007
To The Ohio State Football fans...
Welcome to the SEC. ;) Last night demonstrated, what is known in the south, as an ass-whoopin. I'm not even a Florida fan, but I was rooting for them, because I knew Ohio State was WAY over-rated. They practically played high school football teams (with the exception of Michigan) all year and had this awesome record to be #1. Well, last night demonstrated why the SEC conference is the toughest in college football. Actually, probably half or more teams from the SEC would've beaten Ohio State. And, it would have saved Ohio State a LOT of embarrassment if there was a playoff system...they would have been eliminated early on and a real football game could've been played instead. Don't get me wrong, even thought I'm not a Florida fan (I'm actually a TN fan) I was so happy to see them win. Everyone told me I was crazy thinking they would win, but hey...I'd put any SEC team up against any other conference team any day to watch the carnage.
It amazes me how much commentators on ESPN, ABC, Fox, etc...never give the SEC any credit. They were actually surprised last night at how well Florida played...I mean do any of these guys ever watch football? If you had seen any games Florida played, you'd know they're fast, strong and can play ball (like all SEC teams). Insane....although it was funny watching Emmit Smith do the chop...I chuckled.
Oh well, maybe next year for the championship, there will be two comparable teams to make the game more interesting...which ultimately means there probably won't be an SEC team (since it's like pitting a NFL team against a HS football team, as we saw last night).
heh....
It amazes me how much commentators on ESPN, ABC, Fox, etc...never give the SEC any credit. They were actually surprised last night at how well Florida played...I mean do any of these guys ever watch football? If you had seen any games Florida played, you'd know they're fast, strong and can play ball (like all SEC teams). Insane....although it was funny watching Emmit Smith do the chop...I chuckled.
Oh well, maybe next year for the championship, there will be two comparable teams to make the game more interesting...which ultimately means there probably won't be an SEC team (since it's like pitting a NFL team against a HS football team, as we saw last night).
heh....
Monday, January 08, 2007
ahhhhh, starbucks...
well, today there was yet another awe inspiring quote on a coffee cup from starbucks...i love these things...
The Way I See It #186
The world is smaller than you think, and the people on it are more beautiful than you think.
-- Bertram van Munster
Emmy® Award–winning executive producer/director.
nice
The Way I See It #186
The world is smaller than you think, and the people on it are more beautiful than you think.
-- Bertram van Munster
Emmy® Award–winning executive producer/director.
nice
Friday, January 05, 2007
yes, i'm weird...
For today, funny friday, i thought i would do something that's funny - so this is what I came up with...enjoy. ;)
Wednesday, January 03, 2007
it's not even 9 yet
and i've already configured 3 sql databases (not really), scraped ice off of my jeep (not really) and helped a little old lady across the street (not really)...
actually, I am working on 3 sql db's, just let my jeep warm up and defrost, and the lady wasn't too old that I pushed her van up a hill about 100 yards through an intersection in my jeep. Have I said lately how much I love my Jeep? I mean it is 12 years old, but still rules!!
Well, let's see what's in store for the 9a hour...
l8r
actually, I am working on 3 sql db's, just let my jeep warm up and defrost, and the lady wasn't too old that I pushed her van up a hill about 100 yards through an intersection in my jeep. Have I said lately how much I love my Jeep? I mean it is 12 years old, but still rules!!
Well, let's see what's in store for the 9a hour...
l8r
Tuesday, January 02, 2007
my 2fer
OK - so happy new year's!!!! I've been slacking but for good reason. I've been stupid busy...
anyway - here's my 2fer...
1 - The Wii still rules...esp Zelda...hahahahah
2 - my suzuki motocross bike will fit inside of a minivan with all the seats out and a bunch of pushing and tugging....hahahahahahaha (yes - it was cool. yes, it was a rental van. yes, i got hurt mxing in va on sunday - left elbow...still hard to move...hahahaha).
ok - out
anyway - here's my 2fer...
1 - The Wii still rules...esp Zelda...hahahahah
2 - my suzuki motocross bike will fit inside of a minivan with all the seats out and a bunch of pushing and tugging....hahahahahahaha (yes - it was cool. yes, it was a rental van. yes, i got hurt mxing in va on sunday - left elbow...still hard to move...hahahaha).
ok - out
Saturday, December 30, 2006
Yes, i know this is long, but...
What a crock...IKEA...please...
OK – so, I know I'm not the hippest guy around, nor do I care. I have been many places, done many things, but one thing that had eluded me was a reason to go to and buy things from an IKEA store. Well, Friday was my day. Marcus and I went to the Atlanta store in order to get some things for the new offices. Specifically these cool, clear whiteboards to put in the conf. room around the LCD TV, and a barstool set for my office for people to hang out in. So, with this in mind, we set out also knowing there are other things to get while we're there. Art, other furniture, etc. We walk into the store around noon, thinking it would take a couple of hours to get our stuff and get out. Well, we were SO wrong.
First, I think the word IKEA means 'idiot' (not really, but no one has ever said that the Swedish [who came up with the idea] are very smart, nor are the Dutch [the actual owners] for that matter). Keep in mind the socialist origins of the company and the fact that the countries are socialist and you can start to “appreciate” IKEA.
Here are some things I found out:
1 – We as customers are stupid and know nothing while shopping, however when it comes to taking everything home we are supposed to be smart enough to put everything together without good instructions.
2 – Products at IKEA are cheap because they are cheap. No quality, just cheap stuff – which is OK if you want cheap stuff. I was under the impression you could get pretty nice stuff for a low price. Heh. Wrong. You get what you pay for...I don't know why I always think that statement can be proven wrong.
3 – The inventory system sucks. Period.
4 – Their computer systems are not coordinated which is baffling.
5 – Food. Hmmmm.... At least they offer it since they screw you in going through the store and make you extremely hungry in the whole process of getting you lost etc. Which is actually quite brilliant, but can really tick you off. Heh.
So, apparently you are supposed to follow the arrows on the floor and see everything you want, write it down and go downstairs and pick it up and check out and go home. Heh. Too funny.
Well, we start out going through all the rooms to try and find what we need. We find most everything within the first hour and a half. The we eat. I had an open-faced shrimp sandwich and Marcus had meatballs. Large variety of swedish food...hahahaha – there's really not anything else to get. Heh. We then proceed downstairs and find more stuff, which we put in our cart and after about another hour and a half, we get to where we are picking up our stuff. Well we get there and find out that most of our stuff can't be picked up due to the fact that we didn't have the people upstairs configure the furniture for the conf room. Here's a problem. Walking backwards through the store to get back to the beginning – what a joke. Another hour and a half later we are ready to get in line to pick up our stuff and check out.
If you're keeping up, that's 4.5 hours so far. We then wait another 15-30 minutes in line to check out and another hour of crap during/after checkout that totaled up to 7 hours at IdIOT...I mean IKEA.
Here are some highlights of the day.
While going through the store we stop in the fabric section. Yes fabric. We were looking for blinds for windows, etc. and started looking at fabric to hang on the wall. Well, to be funny we start speaking with lisps and marcus gets a call from his wife (who was at home sick) and he tells her what were doing (no we were not 'shopping') and then while on the phone I wrap some fabric around my waist and ask what he thinks...and he starts dying laughing. The lady at the cutting counter looks at me and says, I can cut that when you're ready. HAHAHAHAHA – So we gave her some fabric to cut. ;) Too funny. I don't think the real gay people there thought we were funny, oh well. Oh, speaking of gay people there...I wish I had a pic. There was a black gangsta gay couple there we saw after checking out. They were sharing an ice cream cone and everything...talk about throwing you for a loop. I even looked to see if they had their 'colors' on them (pink or purple) but I didn't see them. I digress.
We also had to find a fagot bundle (http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/fagot), an Audrey Hepburn print and a pink chair. All of which we found...but we only purchased the fagot bundle.
Speaking of purchasing...we get in the checkout line and wait, and wait...and wait...finally we approach the counter and proceed to ring up items. During the process, I notice the Daim caramel bars are on sale 3/$1.00. I hand three to the cashier and ask him to go ahead and ring them up b/c I am hungry and wanted to eat them. He appreciated this (he was a bit hefty himself) and started to do so. They didn't ring up on sale. He was apologetic and proceeded to fix the problem. Then his cash register locked up after ramming random pieces of paper in it. Then he has to call the manager to come over and fix the register. Where's the humor in this? Let me tell you. We had been there 6 hours going through this stupid store (which is so like shopping in a 3rd world communist country) he had already taken 15 minutes to try to fix his register, we were buying about $1000 worth of stuff, and this was after the inventory fiasco which I haven't even written about yet. And I'm not going to bore you with it either (just know that what the computers say upstairs and what they say downstairs and what they actually have in inventory are all 3 different. Repeat - are not the same – Neither are the locations...i have printouts to prove this – anyway...back to checkout).
I tell the guy...”Seriously dude, this is not worth 77 cents to me. I have already spent almost 7 freakin' hours in this place and will gladly pay an extra dollar if necessary to be out of here. So please don't worry about the 77 cents.” He looks at me like I'm crazy. As if to say, “you are shopping at Ikea and are not worried about 77 cents?”
When his manager walks up, he tells him what I said and the manager gives me the same awestruck gaze. I almost felt like a rock star. Hahahahaha
After we check out, we go to pick up our special selections that we bought upstairs (yes you pay for things in different places - no i don't know why) just to walk over and return some of them because of their inventory mess-up – that's really a long story. And the more I think about it the more it really ticks me off because it was all about my bar table that now I don't have. I have no idea how a business that big can be so inefficient.
This is a long post and I had pictures on my phone, but didn't get them off yet.
Oh yeah and before I forget....another funny thing happened. Back on the whole gay thing (since we were two guys shopping at Ikea – although not gay...hahahaha) I was talking to one of the swedes about the stuff we were getting and spoke to him in swedish (one of the few phrases I know in swedish – another long story. FYI i speak a lot of languages... hehe). Well, after prefacing to him, I didn't mean this weird, I just wanted to practice it since I haven't spoken Swedish or Norwegian in about 10 years – I said my phrase. He looked at me, smiled and then gave us a discount on what we bought. I then thanked him, and marcus and i went on our way. Marcus was a bit befuddled and I was laughing. He asked what i was laughing at and what I said in Swedish.
I said, “Well, fortunately or unfortunately the only phrase I can remember in swedish is 'I love you'. I guess he liked it and gave us the discount.”
HAHAHAHAHA – true story
OK – so, I know I'm not the hippest guy around, nor do I care. I have been many places, done many things, but one thing that had eluded me was a reason to go to and buy things from an IKEA store. Well, Friday was my day. Marcus and I went to the Atlanta store in order to get some things for the new offices. Specifically these cool, clear whiteboards to put in the conf. room around the LCD TV, and a barstool set for my office for people to hang out in. So, with this in mind, we set out also knowing there are other things to get while we're there. Art, other furniture, etc. We walk into the store around noon, thinking it would take a couple of hours to get our stuff and get out. Well, we were SO wrong.
First, I think the word IKEA means 'idiot' (not really, but no one has ever said that the Swedish [who came up with the idea] are very smart, nor are the Dutch [the actual owners] for that matter). Keep in mind the socialist origins of the company and the fact that the countries are socialist and you can start to “appreciate” IKEA.
Here are some things I found out:
1 – We as customers are stupid and know nothing while shopping, however when it comes to taking everything home we are supposed to be smart enough to put everything together without good instructions.
2 – Products at IKEA are cheap because they are cheap. No quality, just cheap stuff – which is OK if you want cheap stuff. I was under the impression you could get pretty nice stuff for a low price. Heh. Wrong. You get what you pay for...I don't know why I always think that statement can be proven wrong.
3 – The inventory system sucks. Period.
4 – Their computer systems are not coordinated which is baffling.
5 – Food. Hmmmm.... At least they offer it since they screw you in going through the store and make you extremely hungry in the whole process of getting you lost etc. Which is actually quite brilliant, but can really tick you off. Heh.
So, apparently you are supposed to follow the arrows on the floor and see everything you want, write it down and go downstairs and pick it up and check out and go home. Heh. Too funny.
Well, we start out going through all the rooms to try and find what we need. We find most everything within the first hour and a half. The we eat. I had an open-faced shrimp sandwich and Marcus had meatballs. Large variety of swedish food...hahahaha – there's really not anything else to get. Heh. We then proceed downstairs and find more stuff, which we put in our cart and after about another hour and a half, we get to where we are picking up our stuff. Well we get there and find out that most of our stuff can't be picked up due to the fact that we didn't have the people upstairs configure the furniture for the conf room. Here's a problem. Walking backwards through the store to get back to the beginning – what a joke. Another hour and a half later we are ready to get in line to pick up our stuff and check out.
If you're keeping up, that's 4.5 hours so far. We then wait another 15-30 minutes in line to check out and another hour of crap during/after checkout that totaled up to 7 hours at IdIOT...I mean IKEA.
Here are some highlights of the day.
While going through the store we stop in the fabric section. Yes fabric. We were looking for blinds for windows, etc. and started looking at fabric to hang on the wall. Well, to be funny we start speaking with lisps and marcus gets a call from his wife (who was at home sick) and he tells her what were doing (no we were not 'shopping') and then while on the phone I wrap some fabric around my waist and ask what he thinks...and he starts dying laughing. The lady at the cutting counter looks at me and says, I can cut that when you're ready. HAHAHAHAHA – So we gave her some fabric to cut. ;) Too funny. I don't think the real gay people there thought we were funny, oh well. Oh, speaking of gay people there...I wish I had a pic. There was a black gangsta gay couple there we saw after checking out. They were sharing an ice cream cone and everything...talk about throwing you for a loop. I even looked to see if they had their 'colors' on them (pink or purple) but I didn't see them. I digress.
We also had to find a fagot bundle (http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/fagot), an Audrey Hepburn print and a pink chair. All of which we found...but we only purchased the fagot bundle.
Speaking of purchasing...we get in the checkout line and wait, and wait...and wait...finally we approach the counter and proceed to ring up items. During the process, I notice the Daim caramel bars are on sale 3/$1.00. I hand three to the cashier and ask him to go ahead and ring them up b/c I am hungry and wanted to eat them. He appreciated this (he was a bit hefty himself) and started to do so. They didn't ring up on sale. He was apologetic and proceeded to fix the problem. Then his cash register locked up after ramming random pieces of paper in it. Then he has to call the manager to come over and fix the register. Where's the humor in this? Let me tell you. We had been there 6 hours going through this stupid store (which is so like shopping in a 3rd world communist country) he had already taken 15 minutes to try to fix his register, we were buying about $1000 worth of stuff, and this was after the inventory fiasco which I haven't even written about yet. And I'm not going to bore you with it either (just know that what the computers say upstairs and what they say downstairs and what they actually have in inventory are all 3 different. Repeat - are not the same – Neither are the locations...i have printouts to prove this – anyway...back to checkout).
I tell the guy...”Seriously dude, this is not worth 77 cents to me. I have already spent almost 7 freakin' hours in this place and will gladly pay an extra dollar if necessary to be out of here. So please don't worry about the 77 cents.” He looks at me like I'm crazy. As if to say, “you are shopping at Ikea and are not worried about 77 cents?”
When his manager walks up, he tells him what I said and the manager gives me the same awestruck gaze. I almost felt like a rock star. Hahahahaha
After we check out, we go to pick up our special selections that we bought upstairs (yes you pay for things in different places - no i don't know why) just to walk over and return some of them because of their inventory mess-up – that's really a long story. And the more I think about it the more it really ticks me off because it was all about my bar table that now I don't have. I have no idea how a business that big can be so inefficient.
This is a long post and I had pictures on my phone, but didn't get them off yet.
Oh yeah and before I forget....another funny thing happened. Back on the whole gay thing (since we were two guys shopping at Ikea – although not gay...hahahaha) I was talking to one of the swedes about the stuff we were getting and spoke to him in swedish (one of the few phrases I know in swedish – another long story. FYI i speak a lot of languages... hehe). Well, after prefacing to him, I didn't mean this weird, I just wanted to practice it since I haven't spoken Swedish or Norwegian in about 10 years – I said my phrase. He looked at me, smiled and then gave us a discount on what we bought. I then thanked him, and marcus and i went on our way. Marcus was a bit befuddled and I was laughing. He asked what i was laughing at and what I said in Swedish.
I said, “Well, fortunately or unfortunately the only phrase I can remember in swedish is 'I love you'. I guess he liked it and gave us the discount.”
HAHAHAHAHA – true story
Thursday, December 28, 2006
has every comapny done this?
OK - is it just me or does it seem like every company has done this??? Even the company reporting the story...crazy.
Wednesday, December 27, 2006
goodnight, Mr. President...
Yesterday we lost a man who was a unique part of American history. Gerald Ford died. He was 93 years old and was the only man to have been President without being elected. Everything I ever heard about him was that he was a man of integrity and an ethical politician.
Whether you feel he should have pardoned Nixon or not, I think that decision was a good one for the country to have the matter resolved and dealt with and to move on. Even though he wasn't elected President, he will be missed.
In other news...
I went out and bought Call of Duty 3 yesterday for the Wii. OMG! That game is frickin' hard to get used to...but seriously, it is the coolest game. You totally feel like you're in it. I had to take a break from it after about an hour or so playing. It is a bit stressful. With the wii, you actually come up on an enemy in a house, they grab your rifle and you have to fight and shake them off then hit them etc. i'm so used to the keyboard style of play and this is all interactive...and the aiming and shooting, using the trigger...it's almost like a pistol (without the recoil). So cool.
Yes we are addicted to the thing. heh
Whether you feel he should have pardoned Nixon or not, I think that decision was a good one for the country to have the matter resolved and dealt with and to move on. Even though he wasn't elected President, he will be missed.
In other news...
I went out and bought Call of Duty 3 yesterday for the Wii. OMG! That game is frickin' hard to get used to...but seriously, it is the coolest game. You totally feel like you're in it. I had to take a break from it after about an hour or so playing. It is a bit stressful. With the wii, you actually come up on an enemy in a house, they grab your rifle and you have to fight and shake them off then hit them etc. i'm so used to the keyboard style of play and this is all interactive...and the aiming and shooting, using the trigger...it's almost like a pistol (without the recoil). So cool.
Yes we are addicted to the thing. heh
Tuesday, December 26, 2006
and this little piggy went wii, wii, wii, all the way home
WOW! Christmas is over and how fun it was. I think this was a great Christmas for the kids! Of course the big things for each of them was a HUGE dollhouse (taller than the lib) and a Nintendo Wii. I'm telling you, that thing is awesome! We've boxed, golfed, played tennis, played baseball, bowled, skateboarded, raced cars, even got some donkey kong and super mario bros. in there as well...this is by far the coolest game system ever! in my humble opinion, the PS3 may have better graphics, but it totally sucks compared to gameplay and price!! ;) Of course I got all of my stuff discounted, so I didn't even pay as much as the regular store price, much less those ridiculous prices on ebay, etc. I'm even thinking about getting a couple more games already too, just to see how they play...hahahahaha.
Well, with that being said, Here's some of our pics from Christmas...
enjoy.
Friday, December 22, 2006
funny & cool
OK, so today beinf funny friday, I've got something good for you. I watched The Ringer the other night with Johnny Knoxville and it was a really good movie. You need to see it. Now, in the movie there is a band at the dance called xTheKidsofWidneyHighx, and they were actually really good. i wanted to make sure they were real, and they are...so I bought some of their stuff off iTunes and have decided to let you in on one of my favorites. LifeWithouttheCow. Now you will notice it's staticky and everything, so if you like it you will have to go buy it - the real one sounds really good. Enjoy.
And for tomorrow...I am going to make the announcement to you today. It's official...a new venture that we are embarking on. We have generated a lot of buzz in just the past few weeks, and certain coMpanies That we'Ve talked to have decided to help us bring something very cool to this very town. I'll give you a little preview...a very little preview. ;) I wish I could talk about it more, but until I can, let me know if you like to play video games. ;)
I will probably not be blogging again until next week, so until then...Merry Christmas!! Actually in Tuesday I just may give you a fullon review on the Wii. If I can get away from playing it...hahahahaha
And for tomorrow...I am going to make the announcement to you today. It's official...a new venture that we are embarking on. We have generated a lot of buzz in just the past few weeks, and certain coMpanies That we'Ve talked to have decided to help us bring something very cool to this very town. I'll give you a little preview...a very little preview. ;) I wish I could talk about it more, but until I can, let me know if you like to play video games. ;)
I will probably not be blogging again until next week, so until then...Merry Christmas!! Actually in Tuesday I just may give you a fullon review on the Wii. If I can get away from playing it...hahahahaha
Thursday, December 21, 2006
the office
ok - i promised this yesterday, but i went ahead and switched my blogger stuff over and that literally took all day! So, without further ado, enjoy pics of my new digs...roughly 2000 (a little over that) sqft. ;)
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