SSS,the year in review.

January started well;new year,new hope.Endless possibilities and all that jazz.......my old man died 8 days after my birthday,a communist was sworn in as president,it's cold(despite global warming)and I feel old and give out,but,the Steelers win the Super Bowl and my mother is cancer-free.Many beers were drank.
February is often thought of as the lover's month........please now.I will remember it more for out-of-town birthday parties,unreached goals,mean women,misleading weather reports,breathtaking photos and more cold weather.Boo Hiss.Still,beers were drank.
March,ahh Spring is near.My baby played softball for the first time,loved it.I wasn't much on her cheering,hated the practices so much.But I so enjoyed softball,shagging flyballs for my angel?Hell Yeah.Attention was finally paid to the older part of the building at work.Hurricanes were mild though the weather warmed and yes,cold beers went down.
All I remember about April,other than I seemed to be on the phone alot,was my cousin got into and trapped within a yet to be opened hotel some 2 miles from where we were staying in Atlanta.C'mon Dave,anybody can get home from a gentlemen's club,I did.April was good though,cuz life is funny when it happens to other people.That's beer-drinking funny right there.
May is somewhat of a blur,I seem to remember an anniversary in there and maybe some beer drinking.Plus,a communist was still president.And I may have gotten a tattoo,not sure,what with all the beer drinking.
June,a late memorial service/reunion for my Dad,saw many people I loved,made peace.Seems like I went to a funeral.Not much else of note,cept beer drinking,maybe some foul language and off-color jokes but seems like there was something else..............Lemme see,work sucked,money was tight as a tick,I didn't get any better looking.....guess it was nothing.
July was a fabulous month.My baby got to see NYC,and she loved it.I stayed at home alot.Spent some time at an "an overpriced pool".A friend said the kindest words to me I had ever heard,that's what friends do;show up when you don't know you need'em.Visited an old dirt road from my youth,love Scenic.I think a beer or two may have been imbibed this month,don't know for sure.Fireworks may have been shot,sorry Monte Vista.
Despite the heat,August was wonderful.Bama ball was getting ready to start,beer was drank,I gained 7 pounds,I slept well,I rediscovered that I loved Wendy's hamburgers,the girls ar Gridiron started wearing shorter shorts,people my age started saying "chillaxing" and for some odd reason,I spent more time in Attalla.
September brought FOOTBALL;college,pro and high school.There was a feeling that Bama might have a good year.I think I drank a beer or two.I may have gained twelve pounds or so.I learned that the word "whore" is something women can call each other(we men have to say the "w" word).I did without,but I did.I dreamed alot,but I could find no wise man to tell me what they meant.
October was,what can I say?How bout "the lost month".I did however find time to wear overalls,reconnect with old friends and..........no,not drink beer,silly.October starts whiskey season.Bama continues to look good,life is quiet and hopes are high.October wasn't all bad.
November was a pile of anal discharge,can't say it any nicer.You ever heard someone say "I'd hate to be that guy"?Well in November,I was that guy.I did learn that for an old fat guy,I can still fight.I earned a new nickname(thanks Sprout),I made some money gambling(not enough to cover my yearly losses),Bama won the SEC west,I realized I'm getting dumber in my old age & made peace with it,I became a little more humble and yes,I drank a little.
December brought an SEC championship for my Tide,a mature understanding of what I cannot change,an ability to love without returns,respect for those I took for granted,a return of my self reliance,a new appreciation of what one person can do(thanks Nelly) and a sincere love of my fellow man.The month is only half over,I can't wait to see what's in store.

Hope a great year is in store,
SSS

Now I aint no bible-thumper,but........

I love this time of year.I'm a child at Christmas;optomistic,hopeful and blissfully unaware.I love this time of year.Now,let's be straight.I hate shopping.I hate buying cards.I hate rushing from one party to the next.I hate hearing other people talk about how much "the season" means to them.With the exception of the ones sang by Dean,Frank & Bing,I hate carols.If not for my child,the love of my life,I doubt I would even put up a tree(No,not even a sad "Charlie Brown" version.).
I'm not against the commercial aspects of Christmas alltogether,I'm not that deep.I love time with my family and if I was single I'd probably spend Christmas eve on my mother's couch.And I love seeing someone I care for open a gift,knowing that in some small way I have made them happy.I love Christmas lights,the simple minded are amused by bright & shiny things.I have numerous memories of Christmas that are wholly and selfishly about me and my loved ones.But for the most part,the things that many people associate with this time of year do nothing for me.
But I love Christmas.I don't mean to seem pretentious,but I love it for the most basic of reasons.I love thinking that with all my faults,my sins in word,thought and deed,my innability to unselfishly love,my jealousy,my pride,my works done and undone............someone without fault suffered for me,willingly.Loved the unlovable and gave to the unworthy.Paul walked 2,000 miles to die for Christ,I have done nothing.Yet,I am as loved.
Merry Christmas.

The failure of human design,it's innevitable.Everything we touch,we contaminate.The best laid plans fall to pieces due to our selfishness,our greed and our shortsighted will to control.We don't seem to evolve so much as dissolve,constantly reminding ourselves,"I'll do it different next time".We're always going to learn our lesson.We're smarter now.....................

The U.S. Postal Service has been in the red every year since it's inception(look it up),Social Security is going broke,our defecit is now in the trillions,Medicare is failing;badly,you can't get a car tag in less than an hour,LBJ's Great Society hasn't been all that great,the hyper-activity of the federal government in our schools has produced graduates who can't work the till at McDonalds,Fannie Mae & Freddie Mac=horseshit economics,overtaxing the ones who create jobs is still considered a great idea,the trade defecit is staggering......................................

And these people,these same fucking people,say,"let us be in charge of your health,we promise to take good care of you".

Whiskey Tango Foxtrot

I had a long,over-worded blog written for tonight,then I figured;to hell with it.I worry about too many things that don't matter,sooooooooooooooo instead I've decided to give a shoutout to those mother-daughter teams in the tampon commercials.Way to bring your lack of freshness home to millions.Thanks girls,we couldn't have achieved what we have without ya.We,as young males,were lost to this notion of stank.Stay real and stay fresh......................SSS

A Forgotten Friend

Life is hectic,it is fast and somewhat unforgiving.It is easy to lose sight of things that are in the open.To have cries for help drowned out in a never-ending buzz of background noise.To mistake a curse as an answer to your prayers.Such is life;it's cruel,it's harsh,it's blind and it's tireless.It beats us beyond sound thinking.It lays open all our mortal faults for the world to see.Moreover,it makes us suseptible to ourselves.Convinces us that we know what is best and can somehow outsmart the machine.We can't;our choices are to (A.) grow bitter,selfish and hard.Become what we fear (B.) fight a hopeless battle thinking we can change the world.Growing more and more discouraged daily or (C.) live in a fantasy world that doesn't allow reality past the picket fence.

I've been an option C man for quite a while.It hasn't been heaven,but it kept me rolling.Easy rewards and instant gratification.Day to day,no long range outlook and no plan for the worst case scenario.I'm kinda slow that way.However,while I'm not the sharpest knife in the drawer,I sure as hell ain't a spoon.Eventually,the sun shines on even the dimmest.

I heard from a friend recently,a friend I took for granted,who reminded me that I was once an idealist.Not a full-fledged dreamer,mind you,but an idealist.Someone who stood up for what he believed in regardless of the concequences.A man who took his lumps but moved heaven and earth to make sure the lumps were evenly distributed.A fighter.....

I have been stupid,selfish,needy,weak,used,base and easily misled.I apologize to myself and my friends.I think I'm gonna give option B a shot again.I don't know if I'm capable of true idealism anymore,but the negativity eats you up from the inside....man,it kills ya.

So,to all those I gave up on,quit,stopped believing in and called bullshit on..................this is your reprieve.My bad,seems I was a tad premature in my judgement.Not my first miscalculation,won't be the last.There but for the grace of God go I.

~SSS

The Inescapable Fact that I am Semi-Retarded

I was passing along some of my less-than-stellar advice to my daughter today,in an attempt to,apparrantly,keep her swimming in misinformation.Her question concerned errors,the pitfalls of life we should avoid.She has such an active mind,always processing.She has no idle and she won't rest until there is a definitive and scientifically proven answer.'Because I said so' simply won't do.Her question was,"How do grown-ups make mistakes?Ya'll are 'sposed to know everything"."Everyone makes mistakes,my rosy cheeked child."I replied,"What you learn as you get older is to never make the same mistake twice".
I paused for what seemed like an eternity...........I had just told my daughter a whale of a lie.My life is a how-to manual on repeating acts of utter incompetence.I'm the idiot who uses both hands to see if the stove's hot.I revel in poor decisions,I am the patron saint of screwups,I am......semi-retarded.
Been that way all my life,but sadly,it's a gene that grows more aggressive with age.I am,I regret to say,a broken shell of a man.Stupidity has crept up my spine and nested somewhere near my brain stem.Today,I shit you not,I licked my fingers before twisting the strands on a live wire.It was an electric bed,could've just unplugged it.No..........that aint how I roll these days.I'm what they call "wait & watch dumb".
Not that it matters,but I blame women.Damned venomous hellspawn.Think about it,we were all fairly bright until the age of 12 or so.Oh not atom-splitting smart,but competent at least.Then..............THEY developed.I have charted my rise in stupidity and it starts when an unnamed classmate,we'll call her Katie Mae Quickngood,first developed breasts.It spiked in high school and has been on a steady rise since.Only our friends in the gay community are immune,and I'm sure they have issues of their own.
Anyway,to make a short story long,I distracted her with mexican food and told her I was a genius.Apparantly,we're put here to lie to our kids.....................she'll be okay,by the way,cuz she's a she.

Kiss 'Em Good,Love 'Em Much,
SSS

My Perfect Angel

My daughter is asleep;perfect and innocent rest.Guiltless and without sin,she is unaware and unafraid of the world around her.She cannot conceive of anything but the very best in people.She doesn't see color,wealth,status or creed.She doesn't know the difference between incidental and malicious.She understands the basic concept of greed,but not how it consumes you.She believes in a God ready,at any time,to protect the good and smite the bad.She knows no wrong.
My child would swear that the people she loves are flawless.She would contend that her father is perfect.A child's judgement,without life's experience to draw from.All smoke and mirrors,the view from an idealist looking through tinted glass.An uneducated guess.............and so very wrong.
I know that it's selfish and small,as well as a product of my insecurities,but ...I dread the day that she realizes the full extent of my shortcomings.She's six,it won't be long.Until then,I'll love the fact that she's wrong.I'll rejoice in being the apple of her eye.I've no regrets about misleading her in regards to my uber-intellect.Who am I to tell her that I make errors in judgement(every day)?If she thinks I'm sweet............who am I to argue?
I guess the point is;enjoy today,cuz(like my angel),it's perfect.

Guts,Guns and Beer

My dad passed away this past January.He was a month short of his 62nd birthday.I loved my old man very much,I didn't always agree with him,but God I loved him.He taught me three things;guts,guns and beer.He knew alot more,but that's what he taught me.Some I learned,others.....not so much.

Guts,he was born with'em.He was a man's man.A Vietnam vet by choice,an independent thinker and a lover of free will.There is no doubt that he would be sorely disappointed in the soft man that I have become.Mine is what he called "the p***y generation".Weak,needy and begging for assurance.....he hated us.We whine about winnable wars,eight hour days and women not loving us.Know-it-all do-nothings,the world owed them with zero payed down..........he had a point.

Guns,the man knew his guns.He was a federal firearms dealer and knew every pea shooter ever bored.There were approximately 1900 rounds of ammo at his home when he passed.Two gun safes full of pistols,shotguns and rifles.It's a wonder Clinton didn't have him killed.He used to say,"I've got more guns than I need,but not as many as I want".He also taught me gun safety,gun respect and gun envy.........some one's is always bigger.

Beer........good ol' redneck nectar.I love it.Not any fancy micro brews,imports,slow pour,heavy gravity,new age crap,but amber,bold,best-in-a-bottle but good any way you can get it American lager.I love it,have since I was thirteen.Even before that,really.Thanks to my Dad,I was grown before I

knew a car would crank without a Budweiser between the driver's legs.

I got other things from him;my nose,my eyes,my ability to attract the retarded and afflicted.He gave me more than I wanted.

Anyway,that's it.The original SSS is gone,just felt like the man should be remembered.He was less than perfect,in fact,he had many faults,but I loved him.He was a God-fearing gentleman.He was loyal and dutiful.He lived his way,plus he was my dad.You just get the one.

I don't attend church as much as I should.And,today was the first time in years that I had been inside a Baptist church.It did do me alot of good,and it was probably much needed.I know that it is good for my daughter to see me in church,her going with my mother is not the same.In that regard,I have set a poor example and failed as a parent.That is something I strive to succeed at,not a shortcoming I'll be bragging about.But as we approach Easter,today's sermon did make me ponder what our lives as Christians should be.
I'm a little bit of a history geek(sorry ladies),and have always been facinated by the early church.They met in secret,in dark caves,under threats of death just to commune.To talk to those of a like mind about their beliefs.And,they were enormously happy......HAPPY.
I'm going to bore you with some history...............Christianity took a toehold in the Roman Empire long before Constantine had his vision of the cross.It took place in the the colloseum.After Rome burned and Nero blamed the Christians for it,it became hugely popular to throw them to the lions.Funny thing happened,they smiled and welcomed it.The citizens of Rome wondered,"what does this person know that I don't?How is that condemned man happier than I?".So they asked,and they learned and an outlawed religion became the official religion of the largest empire on earth.
What strikes me today is how many Christians look so unhappy.Talk unhappy.Promise days ahead of more unhappiness.Doesn't God want us to be happy?Wouldn't that be our goal?So I wonder,shouldn't we project happiness.Because if we're not offering anything they don't already have,then what are we really offering?
Just pondering.

I HATE.It's wrong,but I hate.I hate people I don't understand,I hate that my body is falling apart at 38,I hate the current direction of our country,I hate ignorance,I hate my daughter is growing up in a world I can't comprehend,I hate phone calls,I hate healthy food,I hate sunshine on a work day,I hate reality television,I hate being lied to,I hate the smell of warm milk,I hate tears,I hate weakness,I hate that I am so very weak myself,I hate being at anyone's mercy,I hate that I hate,I hate.....................
I honestly can't even love without hate.I love my friends,I hate that I'm not better to them.I love sunny afternoons,I hate that I don't do more with them.I love going out,I hate going home.I love Christmas,I hate shopping.I love to cook,I hate washing dishes.I love my child,I HATE that she's growing up.
I can find the yang to any ying.And,that's the problem.If you dig deep enough,you'll find fault with anything.I see the cancer behind the healthiest skin.Why can't I,we,live in the now?Why can't we enjoy our most base needs without dissecting every small if,and or but?Why in the hell can I not get through lunch without worrying about what's for supper?When tomorrow is today,will I be complaining about what I didn't do yesterday?Probably.
That's my rant for today,it ain't pretty.It is what it is.It's bleak and probably not too entertaining.......................................I hate that.

I love Spring.It offers hope.A new beginning,amnesty for all your stupid,petty transgressions.A "get out of jail free" card for those of us stupid enough to think we are going to finally live up to our potential.We dreamers call it 'the equinox of broken promises and empty beer cans'.In eastern Europe it's known as 'The Yearly Yearning for Closeness to Western Women'.I love me some Spring.



Baseball season will be starting soon,Give 'em Hell BoSox.It's kids playing outside again,normal behavior[remember that].I'll remind you ladies that it's shorts and sandals season,SSS loves legs and feet.Love,like pollen,is in the air.Grass cutting,porch sitting,beer drinking,sun loving,golf playing,steak grilling Spring.They don't make a better time of year.

Today I cut all my old jeans into shorts,I'm rednecked up.I pitched ball with my daughter.I watched March Madness(no. 3 in my pool).I actually complained about gnats,a sure sign that my season is here.I watched the race in the garage,door up and cold beer in hand.They are rare but today was one of those perfect days.{a note to all readers;I did not make it to church,although I intend on doing so next Sunday.Pray the rapture holds another six days.}
Tonight I cooked steaks on the grill,perfect as always.I am content.I hope you all had as good a day as me,and Happy Spring.

I don't know why I'm doing this and I doubt anyone will read it,but I need an outlet to vent and a good friend suggested this to me.I am the prototypical angry white male;prideful,loud,loyal,opinionated,childish and hopeful.I am 38 years old,I am not much to look at,I am a chronic underachiever and I always leave the seat up.......ALWAYS.I am on time,always.I never meet a stranger.I love kids,until they become people{people suck}.I have never been a good loser and I don't intend on learning how to become one.I despise weakness and dependance.I'm a real sweetheart..............

This blog is and will be about nothing.Disconnected rants of a daily life filled with mundane and obscure[as well as painfully apparant] observations.I have no template for this and will follow no pattern.I tend to ramble about nothing in great detail.I relay vivid accounts of dull happenings that interest noone.Later,I will lose track of my thoughts and relive glory days of high school that may or may not involve alcahol and semi-clad women.Later,I will describe,in great detail,a trivial bit of knowledge lost to all but the ancient Macedonians and myself.Still later,I will discuss the inner workings of poorly made Austrian watches{they're not the Swiss ya know}.

I love being in a small crowd.I love the beach.I love cold beer with good friends.I don't care much for a sunset but I dig a sunrise.I value freedom above security and I know that God judges me in accordance to what is in my heart,which he knows more than me.I am not complete,but I am content.

L-I-V-I-N

SSS