Have you ever thought about what your life would have been like if you had made different choices when you were younger?

Don’t get me wrong, I’m not second guessing anything I did or the choices I made to get me to this point in life. I love where I’m currently at in life and wouldn’t trade it for the world. I have a beautiful fiancé who in less then a year will be my wife and “partner in crime”, a great job which I enjoy doing, and I’m as stable as I’ve ever been.

However, have you ever done the “what if” questions in your head? What if I asked this person out instead of that person? What if I didn’t get fired from that job? What if I applied myself just a bit harder in my studies? The list goes on and on and there are literally a ton that you could ask yourself and each one would have put you in a different position then where you are today. Would they have bettered your present day self or made it worse? I guess no one really knows for sure.

Have you thought about it and the bigger question is would you have changed anything??? I can say a resounding NO to the second part, the first part not so much but that’s just my style.

Until Later…

What the Fuck? Penn State Medical Center and the University Physician’s Group in Camp Hill just lost my business and they can kiss my ass!!!!

They have the balls to charge me $123.00 to see the doctor for a minor medical issue in one of their offices and then send me an additional bill for $72.00 just for walking into the office. As it was explained to me by the billing specialist, Here’s how it’s broken down:

The $123.00 is for the following:

1. The doctor walking into the room and saying good morning and looking me over.

The $72.00 is for the following:

1. Talking to person sitting at the registration desk.
2. The nurse taking my vitals.
3. 2 rubber gloves the Dr used to poke at my leg.
4. Talking to the person at checkout who graciously took my co-pay.

I have no problem with the total bill being $123.00, that I can handle… but that little extra $72.00 is total fucking bullshit which they call a “facilities fee”. I wish I could charge a client a total of $195.00 to sit in a small room before they actually get to see me, but that would end in the same way this is going to end. They can go to hell and shove that money up their ass.

Until Later…

Today 25 years ago at the time of this blog post, our nation as a whole lost 7 heros. It was at this time January 28, 1986 that the Space Shuttle Challenger exploded 73 seconds into flight killing all 6 astronauts and 1 teacher on board.

This post is in memory of them… Michael, Dick, Judith, Ronald, Ellison, Gregory, and Christa. As President Reagan said that evening “We will never forget them, nor the last time we saw them, this morning, as they prepared for the journey and waved goodbye and ‘slipped the surly bonds of earth’ to ‘touch the face of God.’”

You will forever be in our hearts. God’s speed.

Yesterday I blogged about my 2010 year in review so tonight I turn away from the past and look towards the future. I’m not a person to normally make New Year Resolutions, however I think if I set some goals for myself I’ll have something to strive towards as this year progresses.

Goal #1… Finally win the battle of the bulge and have it in a full retreat by the end of the year.

Goal #2... Get out and enjoy the great outdoors more then I already do.

Goal #3… Set aside one weekend a month and make it technology free. Step back and enjoy the finer points of life without the constant distractions of the technical world.

Goal #4… Move my personal business from the shelf and onto one of the burners. Strive to grow it into something which could become my primary source of income in years to come.

Goal #5… Keep mindful of the stresses I’ll encounter in the upcoming year with the planning of our wedding and remember that this is the last time I’ll ever be doing this so stop sweating the small stuff.

Goal #6… Blog more then I have in the past. This is going to be an exciting year and I want to keep it chronicled for the future.

I know some of them may not seem like resolutions at all, or they seem out of place, but hey I’m not going to write something down which I don’t think I’ll be able to do.

Until Later…

Well, here we are at the beginning of a new year. A time for us to finally look towards the future, however this post will deal with the past, specifically my past year. So, here we go… my 2010 year in review.

January started out as any normal January would, quiet and somewhat cold. I continued in my job as a Business Analyst at Capital BlueCross in the Medicare Enrollment department. After a Management Change the beginning of December 2009 it was a little unclear what exactly was going to happen within my department but we were all muddling along as best we could. The end of January brought on a trip of sorts for me… No, not a vacation but a slip and fall at home which messed up my left knee (More on this later).

February brought a month of limping along in life. I celebrated Jen’s Birthday on the 9th by being snowed in with her. We had 2 winter storms in the span of a week dropping several feet of snow on the Lower Susquehanna Valley and between the two of us we were able to dig out and have some fun a the same time. Also, I finally broke down and visited the Doctor for the first (of many) times about my knee.

March was a month of transition for me. I was transferred within our unit at work and went from the Enrollment group to IMaR (Information Management and Reporting). This was a blessing in disguise because come later in the month the unthinkable happened, my employer went through a round of layoffs. Our unit lost two members, one who was a close personal friend but overall we were spared a major cut.

April brought me another birthday and physical therapy for my still ailing knee. It also ushered in the beginning of fishing season, I tried to get out as much as possible, but time wasn’t good for me. As per my norm, the first day of Trout Season brought an early morning at the lake with Jennifer but no fish at the end of the day.

May was somewhat busy. We welcomed another family member into our brood, not by birth but by marriage. My Cousin got married on Mother’s Day (May 9th) and she officially became a Berry… Mandy Berry that is. The following week I got my father out on a boat fishing for Striped Bass at Raystown Lake. We didn’t catch any stripers, however I boated a rather nice Lake Trout which ended up at Jen’s Parents house. I also got the news I didn’t want to get, but knew in the back of my mind was going to happen. I needed surgery on my left knee.

June was actual uneventful. I had my knee Surgery on the 21st and was laid up for a good while.

July brought the 1st annual Lorenz/Wentz camping trip to the cabin in Tioga County over the 4th of July weekend. We all had a blast, well as much as I could less than two weeks post surgery. We had great weather (only hot and humid on the last day) and great fun with great company. Of course we had our laughs, the highlight being Cindy chased by fireworks gone wonky.

August and September were also quiet with my knee getting worse then better. A quick trip to the doctor found that he “fixed” it too well, causing arthritis in the joint. I limped along until the end of September when I got, as the doctor called it, “a lube job for my knee”. I also started planning Jennifer’s Christmas present, and it was one for the ages.

The rest of the year was quiet and uneventful… that is, until Christmas morning. That was the day I asked my wonderful Girlfriend to Marry me. She said yes and now we’re going to be planning a wedding.

All in all, I had a rather uneventful year. Quiet as I like it but punctuated with the good, the bad, and the ugly. I hope this coming year continues the trend… but only time will ultimately tell.

Until Later…

As you guys probably know, I asked my wonderful girlfriend Jennifer to be my wife on Christmas morning. As expected, she said yes (well, actually a nod of her head caught on video which she did confirm later as a yes) so now we’re in the very early stages of planning a wedding.

A little behind the big event, I’ve been planning this day for quite a while and kept it a secret until the beginning of October when I let her brother and sister-in-law in on my plans. Needless to say they were thrilled at my idea and Cindy had a bit of fun poking and prodding at me up until the big day. I let her parents in on the plans the beginning of December when I asked her father his permission and blessing. Yes, I know it’s old fashioned, but I wouldn’t have it any other way. He did say yes, but with one condition… that there were no returns, refunds or exchanges. I told my parents on Christmas Eve of my plans and they were both overjoyed.

The big moment came around 6:45am Christmas morning. The last thing Jen opened was a card saying that there was one more gift for her to “find” and it was located somewhere on her parents Christmas tree (We were at her parents for the morning). While she was looking all over the tree for something we took the opportunity to clear the way for me to make my move. I came wandering over to give her some assistance when I gently turned her around and then gracefully took a knee, asked her to marry me, and opened the Amethyst and Diamond ring for her to see. She was stunned, tears started to flow freely, and she nodded yes (later confirmed verbally).

With the big question out of the way, now the planning has begun. So far we’ve set a date of April 28, 2012 and we’ve kicked around some other ideas. I’m sure the next sixteen months will go rather fast and be full of planning… which I’ll occasionally blog about.

Until later…

Well, its time for my yearly rant about the holiday season…

It comes earlier and earlier each and every year thanks in part (or all) of our big retail outlets wanting more money to line their pockets with. Ok, I can sorta understand why they want the money, with the recession going on but why must I walk into a store before Halloween and see Santa’s workshop all set up and ready to go???? Really now, lets think this through here… you are a full 60 days and 2 Holidays early.

To add into the mix, now the towns in the Central PA area are going all jolly for the holiday just a bit too early. Case in point, Downtown Carlisle and Mechanicsburg. Carlisle has their snowflakes and holly with lights on the light poles and Mechanicsburg has their Christmas trees  lit and hung on their light poles. I like the touch, but not before Thanksgiving. Lets get real here, one Holiday at a time here. At least the Christmas music on the Radio hasn’t started yet… or has it? Frankly, I’d be surprised if it hasn’t but I’m not going to go and search it out just yet.

Now, you all are probably saying I’m just a big Grinch with his heart two sizes too small or Scrooge saying “Bah! Humbug!” but let me assure you I’m full of the Christmas spirit, just when its due… after Thanksgiving.

I say we all just take it one holiday at a time and remember the reason for the season.

Until Later…