"I'm Dreaming of a White Christmas"

Now that I live in Florida, it is so rare to experience the seasons.  Typically, you're going to get somewhere around 70 degree weather, and you should expect approximately 15-20 minutes of rain every day.   One of the only things I wanted this Christmas was a little bit of snow.  Well, kids, be careful what you wish for!  At about mid-day on December 25, the snow began to fall in Arkansas, and continued throughout the night to accumulate at about 6 inches by the next morning.  Here are the beautiful sights I woke up to on the Wednesday morning after Christmas:

 

Christmas 2012 in Arkansas

It has been an amazing trip home for the Holidays... all of the family was in, including my brand new niece, Brooklyn, and my first love, Brandi (her older sister).  

Brooklyn is a beautiful one-month-old that spends her days eating and sleeping - totally living the good life!  I've been given the nickname "The Baby Whisperer" because I put her to sleep every time she touches me!  

Brooklyn, 1 month

Brandi (4), is super creative and smart, very funny and reminds me so much of myself.  She will sing at the drop of a dime... even if its just to narrate her actions!  "I'm going help make cookies and they are my favorite..." or "it's time to take a bath so we can watch a movie..." She is seriously a girl after my own heart!

Brandi, 4 years

I didn't specifically ask for anything for Christmas this year, because I am pretty content with what I have.  Yet, without requesting anything from anyone, I received tons of things I actually wanted!! 

Go Hard or Go Home - Halloween at Full Sail

I recently crossed these photos of myself and a few co-workers celebrating Halloween at Full Sail University. This is one of the many times of the year that the organization as a whole goes full out... and one of the many reasons I love working for this company!

Blame it all on my roots...

The Cowgirls & I 

Is that a cup, Jeremy?

Nikki as Wonder Woman

Dennis the Jabbawockee

Leslie, the cat

Leslie & Jessica (Flo from Progressive)

Nakedness

This quote really spoke to me, so I had to share...

Central Florida's Hidden Gem: OGC

The Orlando Gay Chorus is presenting their 2012 holiday concert, "Reasons for the Season" at The Plaza LIVE, 425 North Bumby Avenue, Orlando. Performances will be held Saturday, December 15 at 7:30pm and Sunday, December 16 at 4:30pm. "Reasons for the Season" will feature both traditional holiday music and other songs celebrating the diversity of the season. 

See me for tickets or you can also purchase them directly on the website (www.orlandogaychorus.org) - just make sure to use my referral code: 1391. Even if you can't attend personally, it would be a great holiday gift for a loved one. It's going to be a beautiful show. Oh, and your's truly has a solo, so it would be a chance to hear me "sang a lil bit"...

Glad to see, Hard to leave

One of the biggest excitements about going home for Christmas... my beautiful nieces, Brandi (4) and Brooklyn (4 days)!  This photo was from late November, so she will really be filling out when I see her at 1 month old!  Love, love, love these girls.

Brandi has made it harder to leave and return to Orlando every year.  Her ever-evolving self awareness is something I absolutely hate to be missing.  She is so smart and so quick... cute as a button and funny as all get-out.  An absolute joy to experience.  (I sound like an elementary teacher filling out a report card.)   I imagine this will really be a rough trip home with the newbie to the fold.  Sometimes I just feel like I am missing so much.  But my family is really supportive of my goals and dreams... or simply me, really.  They've always believed in me and pushed me to do more, which has literally meant more to me than they can ever know.

Love you guys.

Home is where you make it...

As a transplant from Arkansas, it's not always economically feasible to be with my family on every major event… from births and deaths, to birthdays and anniversaries, or even most holidays.  Holidays are typically the times when I get a bit homesick.  Luckily, I've been able to plug into an amazing group of people that have become a surrogate of sorts, which helps alleviate a lot of the homesickness.  Thanksgiving was a terrific example - amazing food, great friends and conversation, overflowing drinks, laughter echoing off of every wall in every room of the house.  

My friend Jason DID WORK in the kitchen!

I think it true that family is not just those that share your bloodline, but the group of people you choose to surround yourself with.  This holiday sure felt just like home.

Enjoy this classic. Happy Halloween, kids!

When I get away, there is usually ocean involved...

Morning view from the apartment balcony

Recently, I was able to take advantage of a long weekend and took a mini-vacation to Palm Beach, FL.  I stayed with two of the best guys I know, Robert Rexroad and Ryan Tolley.  I am honored to be able to call these guys colleagues, but blessed to call them friends.  They were my hosts and guides around this beautiful city for the weekend.  Along with Bobby's charming lady, Elizabeth, we had a blast for the weekend, full of great conversation, relaxation, reflection and just good ol' fun.

This is a photo of the first ever mimosa purchased in Nana's Diner, 

a new West Palm Beach establishment.  

I'm always finding ways to etch my name in a record book!  :) 

We spent a little time on this yacht... wait... we spent some time LOOKING AT this yacht while waiting on the drawbridge to do it's thing for a small sailboat passing through.  I WILL be hanging out on one of those one of these days, mark my words!  Until then, a boy can dream...

This is honestly one of my favorite sites...

a beach chair in a beautiful spot, watching the ocean wash in and out, feeling the breeze, enjoying the sun, refreshing drink in hand, and a little music in the background.

I could most definitely get used to this!

Hanging out of the window at stop lights can make for pretty sweet photos...

I always get excited when the palm trees are leading the way right to the ocean.

I almost came home on Sunday, but decided I deserved one more day on the beach... 

Best decision of the weekend!

I'm a blessed man.

New Machine, New Motivation, Ready to go!

Recently, we had a little scare... and by we, I mean "me" and host of characters that reside in my head that help me make all decisions.  The hard drive crashed on my beloved MacBook Pro!  Talk about a total freak out!  It was almost a total of 2 weeks before I was able to get to my local Apple store to assess the situation, replace my internal hard drive (which I completed personally - a great personal accomplishment, however simple it may be, because of the fear that I would create more problems by tinkering around inside), and get back to Apple to have my operating system reinstalled.

It was during our time apart, when I was totally out of commission, that I realized just how much I missed my computer.  But why?  Missing out on all of my internet television?  Yeah, okay, I'll give you that one.  But second, this very powerful tool has so many tools within it to facilitate making my dreams a reality... and I've been so distracted by my "day job" that I have allowed many of those additional endeavors to fall by the wayside.  As hard as I tried to avoid this, my work has taken up much more of my life than expected and I have not been feeding those things that make me feel alive!  Now that I am back in operation, that will not happen again!

Luckily, I have an external hard drive that I backed many of my files onto, but its been a while since that last back-up.  This led to a loss of many more of my files than anticipated. (Word to the wise: BACK-UP OFTEN!  This is a lesson I will NEVER forget.)  However, I don't see this as a setback, but this is rather a chance to recreate, refine, and reorganize.  I have all of my graduate school files - thank God! - but a lot of my entertainment collateral has been lost.  This has motivated me to grind harder than ever before... Let's get it on!

First mini goal: incorporation.