Slacker

Hey! I've been a major slacker since...well...a while ago. My fancy phone has been the primary culprit considering I spend significantly less time on the Internet when I'm at home. I really only blog from home, and now there are days when I don't open my laptop at all. Enough of my making excuses, but I really do aspire (fun word!) to write in here more frequently. I enjoy it. It looks like I better download a Blogger app. Yep, I just said that.

So, I'm going to say random bullets about my cruise:
-The population was mainly comprised of senior citizens (love it!) and rednecks (amused by it!).
-It doesn't get much better than watching toothless karaoke.
-I held an alligator!
-Spinning out in a boat is an incredibly exhilarating feeling.
-Cottage cheese is good.
-Tanning on a beach and seeing snow in a 36-hour period isn't normal.
-Consider getting a second opinion when asking someone the time; the bus will leave without you.
-Hold onto your balloon hat when you go to the top of the boat, even when docked.
-Kayaking through mangroves is like something out of a movie.
-Cruises re-program how often you think you need to eat.

All in all, I had a blast on the cruise! I have one observation that I noticed on the last cruise, and then reconfirmed this cruise: Time seems like it's passing slowly for the first day or two -- like, you really think you have all the time in the world -- and then it just speeds up and you feel like it all happened in the blink of an eye. I need to go on a 4352342-day cruise next time.

This week was a pretty stressful one since it was mass email week AND I was already backlogged. I survived it, but it definitely wasn't easy. I performed on Thursday night, so that was fun. I played Conducted Rap, Sounds Like A Song, Foreign-Dubbed Soap Opera, Sit Stand Lean Oscar, Dating Game, and Musical Styles. It was a pretty big crowd for a Thursday night, so that was cool. Yippee!

Oh man! Guess what! One of my friends (MV) gave me a baseball "To Drew" from John Smoltz! I literally couldn't believe it. I am sooooo ready for the season to begin.

Well, I've been taking it easy this weekend. I was so delirious by yesterday evening that I was barely functioning. I seriously reached into the oven without a mitt on my hand. That's not a metaphor; that's the truth. Thankfully I caught myself before I grabbed the tray, but I think that speaks for itself. I'm hoping next week will be slightly more relaxed, but you never know!

It's time to read a little bit and sleep for another 10 or 12 hours. I started to feel like I could be getting sick, but I'm thinking it was just the stress from the workweek.

Happy weekend, all!

P.S. I won a trophy and medal on the cruise -- gotta keep representin' for the Dotson household. There was some kind of brain teaser trivia and I pretty much dominated. I guess that makes me a total nerd, but I have a trophy and medal to prove it.

Hola, hypocrite

So, this is a forewarning that I'm not in a very pleasant mood. It's really been a culmination of things that got me to this point, the biggest of those being hypocrisy.

To make a long story short, Saturday was not a good day. I was in my room getting ready to venture out of the house when I heard some weird noises. Knowing my roommate wasn't home, it caught my attention. I then heard loud noises again and realized they were coming from outside. I looked outside in time to see a U-Haul wedged against the cement column to which our exit gate is affixed. Well, I saw the truck try to break free, consequently uprooting the cement column and knocking the cast-iron gate loose only to be caught by my car. Hooray!

I threw on some clothes and went downstairs and outside to see that the gate had been lifted off my car. I was looking at my car to see if my window was cracked and if there was any other damage. Two of the three guys involved were trying to rub scratches off my car and I pulled out my phone. One guy was friendly and said he was calling the cops, so I started to look up the numbers to our property management company. Then, out of nowhere, the guys made a break for it and took off.

I stood there in disbelief for longer than I should have, hoping that they were simply moving the U-Haul and accompanying car out of the roadway. Buuuut they didn't return. So I called the cops and, although they tried to chase them, they couldn't find them. I then spent another 90 minutes dealing with the cops and filing the report, etc. We knocked on some doors to see if we could get any information, but the cop explained that it would be assigned to a hit-and-run detective who would call me and try to help find the perpetrators.

Now, because of someone else's irresponsibility, I've wasted several hours having to tell and retell the story to various parties, only to feel like nobody is all that concerned. It's just frustrating because people are acting like I'm being unreasonable and/or impatient when I can't even imagine how the tables would be turned if they were in my position. Not only am I frustrated by the inconvenience of it all, but it's kind of disheartening when someone does something like that to you personally. I feel like it isn't a priority to anybody except me, when I'm already the one who wasted most of my free time on the weekend dealing with it, has to listen to the screeching of the broken gate trying to close at all times, and was technically the 'victim' of the pending case. I just kind of wish people would take a moment to step back and try to empathize with how they might feel if the roles were reversed.

Enough of being on that pedestal, but it has been stressful.

Friday night I saw Peter Pan and it was pretty stinkin' cool. My weekend was practically nonstop, so I don't feel well-rested at all. I just feel so drained in every sense. I can't wait to leave town.

Raise your glass

I've become so delinquent on this blog-posting business. Oh well. I'm enjoying myself!

I had a good Thanksgiving. We usually go to my uncle's farm, but that didn't happen this year. I ended up doing a Thanksgiving dinner with my friend (LW) at her husband's parents' place on Thursday night. Even though I missed my family, I had a really great time. It was very low-key and we just pretty much sat around and enjoyed each others' company. The food was delicious, too! I'm thankful for everyone who offered to host me. :-)

After the dinner, I ended up heading to my parents' house as a surprise. I was already out in their direction, so I figured I would show up and spend the night. I spent all day Friday hanging out until I had to head to the theatre to work lights. Then I headed back to my parents' house Friday night and did Thanksgiving: The Sequel with my dad's side of the family on Saturday. Then, I headed to the theatre again to do suggestions for last night's show. Are you getting exhausted reading this? I feel worn out just typing it.

Today I went to my brother's place and watched the Falcons beat the Packers. It was fun!

I'm about to go to sleep. It's really early, but I've had a busy weekend. I've got a big day tomorrow!

It's gonna be a great week, world!

You will be there

Yo! It's Tuesday night.

The Braves won big tonight and it made me proud. They've been scoring a lot of runs lately, so that makes me smile! I was kinda hoping to go to the game tonight since my theatre schedule isn't exactly conducive to seeing games. Buuuut, I wasn't feeling all that great and already had plans to meet my friend (MV) at Starbucks (AGAIN!), so I didn't go. It would have been fun, but perhaps I'll be able to go to some more games in the coming weeks... Before we head to the play-offs. UNNNH!

Well, let me go ahead and say that this Cipro oral antibiotic is not making my body happy. Lung-wise I'm doing fine. Stomach-wise... NO. "Food" sounds like a curse word. That didn't stop me from eating Willy's today, which may or may not have been a bad idea.

I got blood drawn yesterday! It only took two tries, so I was very pleased. I sat there using a space heater for about 20 or 30 minutes before we even attempted. I don't know if that actually helps, but it comforts me from a mental standpoint.

I'm telecommuting tomorrow. I need to go to the gym either before work or during lunch. I went for a hot second this morning, but I felt too sick to my stomach to continue. So, it's time to kick it back into gear. I feel a little lazy lately.

Tomorrow will probably be a late(ish) night at the theatre. Our annual fundraiser is on Thursday, so tomorrow will likely include a lot of last-minute prep. Friday is the only night I don't have to be at the theatre until next Tuesday. Sometimes I understand why my body doesn't like me so much anymore.

Enough yapping. Life is a cool thing.

Yeeeehaw!

Well, yesterday was quite the day! I got up close to 6:30 a.m. to get ready for the Great Strides Walk. I had a lot of fun at the walk and had many people supporting me. There were probably 20 of us, which was by far the biggest group that I've ever had. We all wore our t-shirts and got a lot of compliments, which made me smile - made that t-shirt stress more worthwhile. I also got to meet two people that I've known online over the past year (JT and CM), so that was a lot of fun. AND, I got to see my friend ED for the second time in one week! CRAZY! It was fun catching up with all of the folks from the Foundation, the care clinics, etc. The CF community really is a special one.

When I came home, I was completely exhausted. Not really from walking, but from being sleep-deprived for one too many days. I conked out for more than two hours. I literally didn't even hear my phone ring. I slept like a log and got up with time to eat and get ready before hopping on MARTA to go to the concert. I needed some cash so I ran up to Publix and got cash back by buying Red Bulls for us...

Right as we were leaving, we were discussing the probability of rain and thought we'd be fine. Literally as we pulled out of the complex, we heard a weird noise (like knocking on the car) and both wondered if something was wrong with the car. Then, though, we realized that the world's largest raindrops were starting to fall from the sky. I don't think I've ever seen raindrops as big as these. We kept driving to the MARTA station and heard a loud crack of thunder and rain started pouring from the sky. I just started laughing uncontrollably. We were terrified. I don't know when it stopped, but it was like it had never rained south of Atlanta near the concert.

The journey to and from the concert was interesting. It was full of high school girls dressed inappropriately and hanging on guys. Now, normally I am a pretty understanding person, but many of them were surprisingly rude and inconsiderate - running into people without apologizing, yelling over us to talk to each other, etc. We initially wondered if we were ever that annoying, and, although we might have been loud or immature, I don't think any of us had blatant disregard for other people.

Anyway, enough of that nonsense! The concert was a ball! We saw Love and Theft, Lady Antebellum, and Tim McGraw. It was a lot of fun. We had lawn seats and sat up on the hill away from too much of the chaos. The weather ended up being perfect and the whole night was a lot of fun. I can now understand why people say the things they do about Tim McGraw. Cowboys are studdly.

Today is supposed to be a day of rest and relaxation. I woke up earlier that I'd have liked, so I think I'll take a noon-hour nap!

Un un un un undo it

Hi!!!!!!!!! I am CRAZY!

Let me tell you why I'm worn down... Literally since last Wednesday I haven't had ANY TIME TO CHILL! Show last Thursday, work Friday day and night, work Saturday day, show Saturday night, work Sunday day and night, work Monday from 5:30 a.m. until 6:00 p.m., work Tuesday day, benefit show Tuesday night, work Wednesday, retirement party late afternoon, rehearsal Wednesday night, work Thursday day, show Thursday night. I am exhausted from simply typing that.

I pretty much had a breakdown at work due to sleep and hunger deprivation. I am feeling better right now. I am about to work for a bit (yes, it's midnight) with aspirations of not working AT ALL tomorrow. I planned all week to take some comp time on Friday and then today was one of those putting-out-fires-left-and-right kinda days, making it next to impossible to get that break on which I hung my hopes. DRAMATIC!

Tonight's show was fun. It was my first five-person show. I was in Conducted Orchestra, Buzzer, Meet the Experts (Magic - Barbara Buchanan), Foreign-Dubbed Soap Opera (on stage), Remote Control Styles, and Musical Styles (Country Ballad, 90s Boy Band, R&B, Opera, Rap). Tonight was a lot of fun and the crowd was great, too! I think being very sleepy (yet energized) helps with improv because it makes it next to impossible to overthink anything. Barbara was so absurd tonight. I need to come up with a new character.

GUESS WHAT!!!!!! Drew's Crew is my favorite. Online we are sitting at $18,596. However, I recently got a $50 donation that isn't in the total yet, AND one of my friends had a charity trivia night tonight and raised $340! Add that all together and I think we're sitting pretty at $18,986. Can you even believe it? I said CAN YOU BELIEVE IT?! I will raise that $1,014 by the walk time and nobody will stop me. I'm not sure how I plan to do it, but it will be done.

I had an exciting morning! I turned in some money at the CF Foundation. While I was there I finagled my way into a coffee run in exchange for a donation. It was a great deal! Everyone was a winner! Then, when I got to work, I was blown away by a BIG OL' $500 DONATION. Holy heavens! The world is great!

What else? I wish I had a dog. When I see little dogs on the street and dangling their heads out of cars, I want one so badly.

Umm, tomorrow is going to be a great day of relaxation and donation.

I keep getting into a good workout routine and then dropping it like a bad habit. Tomorrow I think I will do some evaluating of a way to make my life a bit more balanced in general. I need my friend back from Israel so we can have a LIFE session. Perhaps I will have to do it as an individual.

Night, y'all.

May I apologize...

Well, I can't believe that I haven't posted since April 28. I mean, I can because it technically just became May 1, but I didn't mean to leave you all desperately hanging for so long. So, let me rehash the last few days...

THURSDAY!

I ended up waking up really early; I was having a difficult time sleeping for some odd reason. I woke up a little before 5:00 a.m., and finally gave up and got up at around 5:30 a.m. I went to the gym, as promised, and ran three miles, which was pretty awesome. It's nice to run three miles by the time 6:00 a.m. rolls around. I got ready to head to Emory for the study, and pulled in there at 8:30 a.m. on the nose.

The study was pretty interesting. It ended up taking waaaay longer than expected because my arms weren't cooperating. It's so odd because bloodwork has never been a problem for me. However, in these study appointments, I've had a difficult time. It's like my veins know when it actually matters that they cooperate, and then choose to do the opposite. It took so many tries for them to get the blood they needed. I don't mind needles all that much, though.

I did get into something called a BodPod which measured my body fat percentage. It's supposed to be a pretty accurate measurement because it's not pinching a certain area or anything. I had to put on a bathing suit and swim cap and sit in this little egg-like thing. I'm annoyed because I am trying to post a picture in here and it won't let me. Oh well, click here if you want, but come back to my blog. I'm 25.7% body fat, so take that. Man, I need to put on some more muscle for real. That's a goal of mine. I used to be so much more muscular and felt better.

I finished the study stuff much later than expected, and went to work where we celebrated a colleague's upcoming wedding. It was a nice break to the day, even though I'd just gotten to work. We had wine and cheese and it was a cute little get-together. Then, I finished up some work, got some packages ready for FedEx, and darted out to drop them off before I needed to be at the theatre.

I got to the theatre with about three minutes to spare. Man, it was such a fun show! I can't exactly put my finger on the cause, but the audience was just great and the energy in the theatre was spectacular. I played theeeeeeese things: Buzzer, Foreign-Dubbed Soap Opera (translator), Sit Stand Lean Oscar, Script in Hand (on book), and Musical Styles. I am still excited about the show! I had a friend from work come with her mom, as well as a friend from another job, so those were fun surprises. As always, my number one fan (Mom!) was cracking up in the audience. Loooove her. It was a great end to my birthday week.

FRIDAY!

Well, I'm happy to have witnessed the end to the nine-game losing streak the Braves had going for them. I am officially 2-0 this season, which is a good start. Tonight Heyward hit a home run, so I'm pretty sure he likes when I'm in the crowd. I had so much fun at the game with one of my friends and some of his friends. We were making puns out of the batters' names and it was just a hoot. It was so dorky and awesome!

What else did I do today? I got up and exercised, so yeehaw. I'm trying for three in a row tomorrow.

I also met an old coworker for lunch at Taco Mac. I literally hadn't seen him in two years since I left that job, so it was a ton of fun to catch up. We could have sat there and talked all day. I hope we'll do it again soon because it was a nice use of the lunch hour!

I am too tired to say anything else. I know this post was kinda boring, but I am so exhausted!

I. Am. Robot.

Welcome to the busiest week I've had in forever.

Staying up late on Tuesday was a poor choice, but sometimes it's hard to get home from improv and feel tired. Needless to say, I've been super-exhausted for most of the week.

Wednesday was an okay day. I am finally in the midst of accepting that what used to be a 40-minute commute has turned into a 60-minute commute over the last two weeks. I can't even explain how frustrating that is because it's time that I didn't feel like I had to spare in the first place, but...oh well. Complaining about it isn't going to change the fact that Atlanta's traffic is ridiculous. It feels good to whine, though.

The highlight of my day Wednesday was that I went to Chick-fil-A before improv. I got an 8-pack of chicken nuggets and a chocolate milkshake. Guess what! They accidentally gave me 10 nuggets, one of which was gigantic, so I count it as 11. It's a little sad to say that this was the best thing that happened to me, but it's true. That milkshake was the bomb, too.

Improv was fun on Wednesday because, for the first time since I became apprentified, we got to practice on our own with only the other apprentices. It takes some of the pressure off and makes it a bit more 'free.' Anyway, we worked on some fun stuff, my favorite of which is Script in Hand. I can't wait to perform that game sometime. I thought it gave us a little bit of bonding time, too.

Thursday was no different from the other days this week...LONG! I got up and worked out for 32 minutes before work - a combination of running, Stairmastering, and sprinting. I stopped by Starbucks on my way to work because I felt like I deserved something to start off my day. I saw a sign for this dark cherry chocolate latte or something and decided I would try something new. However, when I tried to order it, they said it wouldn't be available until Tuesday, so it looks like I'll have to make another trip. I ended up with a vanilla latte, which was a nice perk to the last weekday in the office of the longest week known to man. That isn't very readable, but whatever.

Work was a blur, but we did go to lunch for a colleague's going-away. Today is her last day, but several of us are home on Fridays, so we planned it for yesterday. We went to a bakery in the Highlands and it was pretty good. I got a vanilla cheesecake lolli as an afternoon treat. I've got to admit...it wasn't all that great, but it was still worth having.

I ended up getting a ton done at work before I headed downtown to work my second of three volunteer shifts of the month. Woooooo! I was on camera/suggestions and was supposed to be training someone, but apparently he forgot to come, so that ended up being a blessing in disguise considering I was in no mood to speak to people. Anyway, I got kinda Monsterfied before the show and then tried to get suggestions from the cocktail party of accountants, which didn't fare too well. Then I worked the camera for the show. It was fun to be an audience member, even though I had limited responsibilities. I just can't imagine having performed after this week's craziness. Anyway, the show was a lot of fun and it was the first five-person cast I've seen since we've been apprentices, so that looked fun, but exhausting. Everyone was on stage the whole time, or so it seemed. I enjoyed watching!

Today I am home, which I've needed now more than ever. I don't know how I could have gone into work today. Everything just seems so exhausting, and the lack of sleep has got me feeling a little blah physically. I'm glad because I'm meeting my old boss for lunch today, and we haven't seen each other since right before the holidays. I always love catching up with him because he's so insightful.

Finally, one last thing for me to complain about - I was excited because, after having run myself into the ground all week, I was ready for a weekend of doing NOTHING. I decided to make one plan, which was to catch up with my neighborhood friend over dinner on Saturday. Then, though, I forgot I'd said I could do this theatre-related gig on Sunday. It hadn't been confirmed yet, but then we got an email telling us the specifics, so I was kind of disappointed. Then, I found out about a family get-together on Sunday afternoon and, as much as I don't mind going to those, my weekend sort of vanished in a matter of moments. I've still got tonight and most of tomorrow, but Sundays are always the most critical in getting off to a good start for the week. Ahh, what a whiner.

Oh, and I have confirmed the first portion of my research study pre-screen for Tuesday. Let my body go to science.

Burnout

Hi. My name is Drew and I am experiencing burnout.

This week has flown by, yet lasted forever at the same time. Does that even make sense? I don't know, but I'm sure there's some lunatic out there who is reading this and understands. I have jumped from one thing to another all week and can't wait to sit at home and take it easy this weekend. Now we'll just see if I do that because I have a feeling I might go back on my word. werd. drew.

The highlight of my day was that I had Ben and Jerry's at work. I got chocolate chip cookie dough with Reese's Pieces and chocolate syrup. Deeeeelicious! I had a Moe's burrito for lunch and nachos/spinach dip for dinner. I am eating so much lately and exercising almost none. I can't wait to have a non-hurting rib so I can workout more.

I'm trying to think back to whether or not anything exceptionally amusing happened this week. Apparently the answer is no. I have really been chasing my own tail all week.

I can't believe it's already August...almost. I don't even know where the summer went. Geez, I am so absent-minded right now because I'm just exhausted to the max.

On that note, I am going to go check on my laundry and reflect on the fact that there was absolutely no reason to write this.