On the road

Have you ever been to Dawsonville, Georgia? It's about 40 miles north of our place, straight out Georgia 400. My Uncle Bubber and Aunt Pauline lived there a few years ago and we used to go see them.

There's some pretty cool stuff to do out that way. Bill Elliott Racing maintains a museum in Dawsonville. Supposedly it has all sorts of "Awesome Bill from Dawsonville" memorabilia and stuff. It's free, I think. There's also a nice outlet mall up that way that's not too bad. It's centrally located for Dahlonega and Lake Lanier and Amicalola Falls and some of the other North Georgia sites to see. It's a nice area.

You know why I'm telling you all this about Dawsonville? So when you come visit us up there you'll have an idea of what there is to do. That's right! The Brady Bunch is MOVING TO DAWSONVILLE!

That's right--we're leaving Sandy Springs behind. Some friends of ours rented a house up that way that has 3BR/2BA downstairs, and a completely separate upstairs wing that also has 3BR/2BA. There is a kitchen separating them and each wing has its own entrance and exit to the outside.. They invited us to move up and split the house with them, and we decided to take advantage of the offer.

They will live in the upstairs wing, and we will live downstairs. It will be like a duplex. We're calling it the "duplay" in an effort to sound all highfalutin'. We'll split the kitchen and all the bills, so we expect our expenditures to go way down. We're going to see if we can actually save some money now.

We're really looking forward to it. There's a park not far away that is part of the Lake Lanier system, so we might get the chance for some aquatic fun if things work out. The kids will be going to Dawson County schools, and we are hoping the change will work for them. The school they are in down here (as well as our neighborhood) has been going downhill the last couple of years. We don't feel it's as safe and neighborly as it used to be, so we are jumping at the chance to move into a better environment.

Hopefully it will be a good move for everyone. Darlene's and my commutes are going to be a lot longer but we feel it is worth it to be in a better place. We started the moving process yesterday with Darlene bringing some boxes home from work. We're hoping to be fully moved and have the kids starting school up there on October 19. Cross your fingers, say a prayer, whatever you do for luck and good fortune, do it for us as we move. I'll keep you up to date with what's going on as the next couple of weeks go by. We'll be going up there Saturday to take a load of stuff. We'll try to get some pictures and I'll post them as soon as I can.

in other news, for you Sandy Springs FFC fans, this past weekend marked the first win of the season, a 57-41 thrashing of Sea Stags, raising the record to 1-2. The 57 points is one of the highest in franchise history. Might be the actual highest, but I'm too lazy to check. "Mojo" Maurice Jones-Drew scored three TD's and Percy Harvin ran a kickoff back for a TD. Between them they scored 36 points and everyone else did what was needed. It was a good week. This week's opponent is 2-1 Hook-Ups. Should be a good one.

Take care for now, and support your local blogger.

Father's Day loot

This was a good Father's Day. I got some great presents from the crew.

Steven gave me a t-shirt--sleeveless for those hot days on the summer weekends.

The twins each gave me a book. I got The Children Of Hurin by J.R.R. Tolkien and Warbreaker, the new one from my favorite author, Brandon Sanderson.

Sage gave me a cool action figure of Stitch from Lilo and Stitch dressed as Emperor Palpatine from Star Wars. Check it out!

Darlene got me a new Webkinz, the sea otter. He is on order but once he arrives I'm going to name him Skipper (in honor of Skipper Of Otters from the Redwall series by Brian Jacques).

Thanks, guys; I really appreciate the awesome presents. I love you!

One of those months

It's been one of those months. There's been a lot going on but nothing to really blog about. I feel like I should be posting more often, but there just hasn't been a lot to say. I went through that introspective phase a few weeks ago and that just sort of shot my wad as far as having anything relevant to say. I hope you haven't felt too neglected.

Darlene's mom is doing well. Her radiation is progressing well and we're happy to report that spirits are high all around. This upcoming week is Spring Break so Darlene and the kids are going to go to Maggie Valley to visit her parents. I'll be doing the bachelor thing. Hopefully I can take the time to get caught up on 24 and Dollhouse and get some writing done. Keep an eye on the writing blog to see if I manage to pull it off. Actually, I'm going to post over there when I get done here about some books I've been reading over the last few weeks. Check it out if you want some good sci-fi/fantasy recommendations!

Today (well, technically yesterday, since it's after midnight now) was my nephew Jackson Tyler Brady's 2nd birthday! He's getting bigger all the time and I just want to take the opportunity to wish him a Happy Birthday from Uncle Bubba, Aunt Dar, and all the kids. We love you!

The birthday boy (pic courtesy of The Brady Blog)

My parents have an exciting summer coming up. You may or may not know that they are full-time RVers and have been living the gypsy life for several years now, since they retired. Last summer my dad took a seasonal job with the United States Park Service as a Ranger at Great Smoky Mountains National Park in Tennessee. He had thought he was going back there this summer, but as it turns out he is going to a different park instead. He'll be heading west to Glacier National Park in Montana. We're hoping to be able to take a road trip out there this summer to see them. That would be exciting. It's more than 2,000 miles from here, across most of the country. It would be a great chance for us to see a lot of places and things we've never seen before. Yet another reason for you to keep your eye on the blog this summer--to see if we get out west.

Huh. I said I didn't have anything to say and it turned out to be pretty newsy after all. How about that.

Go Braves!

Sleeping With The Past

I've been feeling introspective lately. I think part of it is that I recently realized I'm six months from turning 40. That would make anyone angsty, I suppose. I joined Facebook too, and am encountering a lot of names and faces from the past, stirring up memories and feelings that have been laying dormant for a long time. That's not always a good thing. I've also been seeing promos for some new TV show that seems to be about a woman who gets sent into her own past to solve her old problems and fix her life. I don't remember what it's called or what channel it's on and I am too lazy to go look it up. Still, seeing the ads really hit me where I live.

I'm an infamous dweller-onner when it comes to my past. I used to get into these melancholy, emotionally self-abusive moods from time to time and spend days rehashing my past and thinking about all the things that I wish were different about it--decisions I wish I'd made differently, people I wish I had spoken to, jobs I wish I'd had--and beating myself up over everything I thought I had done wrong. I would think about how my life could have been different if I hadn't stuttered in high school, or if we hadn't moved in 1985, or if I had gotten that job, or dated (or not dated) that girl, or whatever else I could come up with to use to flagellate my emotions. Truth is, I probably should have spent lots of quality time in a therapist's office sorting out my volumes (I used to tell people, "I don't have issues, I have volumes."). I never did, though, and my volumes have continued to live, festering and Gollum-like, in a dank little cave in the back of my mind, bubbling to the surface now and then to make my life miserable.

I built up some huge emotional walls over the years. My teenage years were...unpleasant. I came out of them emotionally crippled in some very significant ways. By the time I started working on my major in college my self-esteem was all but nonexistent and my self-confidence was shot, which led directly to a rash of bad decisions during the early 1990's that have populated my volumes ever since. My walls have been coming down slowly but surely over the last few years, but I'm still not the confident, fully emotional person I'm capable of being. I doubt I ever will be, to be honest with you--my walls were high, y'all. I don't think they'll ever come down all the way. I've come a lot further than I ever thought I could, though.

One of the biggest sources of dwelt-upon regrets about my life is that I've never cared for the arc my career has followed. I like my job, don't get me wrong, but I really can't stand the field I'm in. I never wanted to be a "computer guy" and it's bugged me for years that I made decisions during and after college that got me stuck in this field. Over the last couple of years, though, I've finally come to realize that the things I always wished were different about my life don't matter. I'd rather have a family to love and support me amidst doubts about my career than a job that truly satisfies but no one at home. If I had done things differently in 1992-93 I might have a more satisfying career, but Sage would never have been born and I would never have met Darlene and her kids. Whatever else may be screwed up in my life, having those people to love me and to love in return has been the best cure for toxic nostalgia that I could have ever imagined.

It's also helped that I've written a lot over the last year. I think I wrote more words in 2008 than in any other year of my life. Between losing my job last spring and the havoc it wreaked on our finances and Darlene's mom's recent health issues, I've been under a tremendous amount of stress for near on a year now and I haven't always handled with it with aplomb. Along with a loving family, though, writing has been the best therapy I could have asked for. Blogging has helped a great deal. Just knowing that I could express myself at any time by just spilling it all out on the Internet has been a fantastic outlet for me, even if I didn't take advantage of it as much as I should have. My noveling has been a source of inspiration as well. I spent many late nights last summer getting my mind off my increasingly futile job search by writing about Khan and Elaine and Tazzeter and the other denizens of Raelan. Last November the bills were still piling high as I learned my new job. NaNoWriMo helped me keep my head above water as I journeyed through my developing nation of Sov with Declan Combe and his army. Even now, as the light at the end of tunnel is turning out to not be an onrushing train after all, I find myself turning ideas for Silvershield revisions over in my head. It's time to get started on that. It's time for the next step in my recovery.

I've been feeling introspective lately. I'm looking back again, yes, but not with regret, not any more. Life is good. I like where I am. I just have to get used to feeling that way and everything will be OK.

2008 Brady Bunch Year In Review

Here is our 2008 year in review slideshow. Some of the pictures were ganked from Grandma and from my brother Bill's blog. Music is "I'm Working On A Building" by the Seventy Sevens. Enjoy!

Happy Thanksgiving

Among the chaos and confusion of November, I thought it would be nice to sit down and write some nice words about some of the things I am truly thankful for this Thanksgiving.

• I am thankful for my family. My wife Darlene and our four incredible kids (and the crazed dog) have made my life so rich over the last three years. I still can't believe that my life has changed as much as it has. Darlene, I am so happy and proud to be your husband and I am so thankful that you have stuck around through all the craziness and kept me straight. I love you.
  
  
• Steven, Jewel, Jessica, and Sage, I love you all so much and I am so glad I get the chance to be your dad. I know I am too hard on you guys sometimes and I will promise to try and do better. I always wanted a family and with you guys beside me, that's what I have. I love all of you.
  
  
• Gracie, you're an insane doggy clown. You lick me too much sometime, but I'm glad you're part of our family. I love you.
  
  
• I am thankful for my parents and my in-laws. Darlene's folks are with us today, and my parents are crossing the Panama Canal on their cruise. I'm thankful that they're all young enough and energetic enough to travel and experience the world in their own way. I love all of you.
  
  
• I'm thankful that we have found a church to guide us and give our kids a path to walk on. The Shirey kids decided last night that they wanted to give their hearts to Jesus. That was such a huge step for them to take and I think it reflects the maturity that they have gained by being part of such a vibrant church community. Darlene and I continue to enjoy Christmas choir, and I am so glad that we are able to go each week. To my church family, I love you as well.
  
  
• Finally, I'm thankful that we all have our health, that Darlene and I have good jobs, and that we all have each other. It's been a wonderful three years. There have been ups and downs, but at the end of the day our lives are all so much better than they would have been otherwise because we are able to share our lives with each other.

Happy Thanksgiving to everyone in 2008.

In which I try to catch up

I never wrote about fantasy football earlier in the week. Sandy Springs FFC got beat again, losing to Outlaws 33-25. That drops the record to 2-4. To make matters worse, Jon Kitna went on IR this week, making my two top QB's from last year hurt. I now have a QB corps of Kerry Collins and Jeff Garcia. We'll see. I also picked up Shaun Alexander in a move to possibly strengthen my RB crew. No idea how much work he'll get in Washington, but with Mojo on bye this week he'll probably get a start for SFC.

The other fun from today was that Da Bunch had gender-specific outings. The ladies (Darlene, Sabrina, the twins and Sage) went to the church for a mother-daughters banquet. I suspect Darlene will write about it in her own blog, so I'll only say that everyone won door prizes of some sort and they seemed to have a great time all the way around.



In the meantime, Steven and I went to the opening night Gwinnett Gladiators game at the Gwinnett Arena. They beat the Mississippi Sea Wolves 6-2. It was an extremely chippy game, with penalties all over the place. Gwinnett scored four power play goals. Steven was happy to get to see a fight. It wasn't a very long fight, a couple of good shots and it was over. The Gwinnett fighter won. It was nothing like the fight Wanda and I saw that time at the Knights game when that guy leveled Wayne Gretzky's brother (on his birthday, no less) and the teams fought for 20 minutes. That one was straight out of Slap Shot. I don't know if I'll ever see anything to top that. Still, we had a great night. I wore my Knights jersey. Exchanged greetings with a couple of other Knights jerseys and had a short conversation with a guy who said he was a referee in the IHL. That was pretty cool. It was fun. Hockey is cool.

In which we saw a great concert

Sage is visiting this weekend and it was a beautiful day today so we decided to go to Riverside Park and play. We got there about 5:30 and saw that they were setting up for a concert. We did some checking and found out that today was the last concert in their free summer concert series. On the spur of the moment we decided to stay and check it out. I went home and got chairs and snacks and we wound up thoroughly enjoying ourselves.

The artist was Michelle Malone. She's been a fixture on the Atlanta music scene since the late 1980's, collaborating over the years with artists like Indigo Girls, Shawn Mullins, and Kristen Hall (who was one of the founders of Sugarland). She has a definite blues vibe, from the Janis Joplin/Melissa Etheridge school with some Bonnie Raitt and Sheryl Crow thrown in now and then. I wasn't familiar with her music, but I've heard of her many times over the years so I was excited to get to see her.

The girls went up by the stage and spent most of the night dancing. Darlene, Sabrina, Gracie and I hung out at the chairs. I spent my time butt-dancing and Gracie went to sleep in Darlene's lap. During the intermission I purchased Malone's newest CD, Sugarfoot. She was at the merchandise table so I was able to get it autographed. The second half of the show featured the original members of her early 1990's band Drag The River and they played several songs from their 1990 album. It was a fantastic show.



I would definitely recommend Malone's music to anyone who likes blues guitar and an honest delivery. I came home and immediately signed up for her e-mail list. I'd pay to see her again. Her website is here and features sound clips. Good stuff. I'm glad we went to the park this afternoon.

In which I talk about the summer and the fall

It was a weird summer. Not having a job was tough, but it did give me time with my family that I wouldn't have had otherwise. We were able to take a nice trip to the mountains to visit Darlene's parents and another one to Tennessee to visit my parents. We wouldn't have been able to take those trips if I had been working. Still, I know I didn't enjoy those trips as much as I should have because I was constantly worrying that we were going to spend too much money, or that someone might call with a job offer while we were gone, or something else.

I spent a lot of time this summer stressing over the fact that I wasn't having a lot of success with my job search. I didn't always handle the stress very well and there were times that I took my frustrations out on my family by being cranky and irritable and (occasionally) downright rude. I just want to take this opportunity to let my wife and kids know that I love you very much, and if I have been less of a family man than I should have this summer, I am sorry. I didn't handle the stress of the job search as well as I hoped I would and you guys caught the bad side of that more than you should have. Again, I am sorry.

I'm looking forward to going back to work, but I will miss being home when the kids get home from school. I'll miss being here when my wife gets home from work. We've had a little time to ourselves the last couple of weeks in that 20 minutes between when she gets home and when the girls get home. It's been nice. It's been nice being able to help with homework and sign forms and all the other things that a parent has to do to for school. I miss out on that with Sage since she lives with her mom, so I make sure to do what I can for the other kids.

This fall is shaping up to be a good one. We're going to get caught up on the financial side of things, and we'll hopefully be going to lots of Chattahoochee football games, since Darlene's buddy from work usually works one of the admissions gates (hi, Robin!). I'm looking forward to September 5, when Hooch travels to Lilburn to play Parkview. My wife's work school vs. my alma mater. We'll be going, I hope, and I'll be wearing my Parkview orange. Everyone else in the family will likely be in the blue and yellow of Hooch. I'll let you know how that goes.

Of course, I'll get back into posting about fantasy football once the season gets underway. The UFFL draft is a week from tomorrow. You may recall that last year I had the third highest-scoring team in UFFL history but flamed out in the playoffs. What will happen this year? Come back and find out! Support your local bloggers!

In which I flabble a bit

Tomorrow is a big day. Jewel has spent the last week at Grandma's in Maggie Valley, her first time ever away from her twin. She's called home at least 50 times a day, so we've been well appraised of events in the mountains. Tomorrow we're going to drive to Clayton, Georgia (about halfway to Maggie) to meet Mom and Pop. They're going to give us Jewel and we're going to give them Jessica. She'll stay with them til next week then they will come down to be with us on Father's Day. Jessie is looking forward to having her alone time with Grandma and Pop. Steven is looking forward to another week with only one sister to deal with. Darlene and I are looking forward to another week with a lonely twin sleeping in our bedroom. No, really, we are!

Anyway, that's about it for our news. I'll get back into the writing groove tomorrow night unless I completely lose it in the meantime. Thanks for your patience and lack of flames during this brief period of inactivity. Support your local bloggers.

In which I take a break

We did some rearranging in the house today. We have a chest freezer in the kitchen now so we moved the computer desk into a corner in the dining room. It's actually more roomy, the light is better, and the outlets are more accessible, so I'm all for it. When I get doine here I'm going to go through the drawers and clean a bunch of stuff out. My brother is supposed to come over this weekend and bring us an old recliner that he doesn't need any more. We're always on the lookout for seating so we were pretty excited when he told us he had it available.

Not much else is going on, so I won't drone on and on. I've seen signs of more visits to my blog this week. It's pretty cool. Thanks for stopping by. Keep coming back over the summer to see what is going on in the life of the Brady Bunch. Feel free to comment while you're here. It's always nice to get an idea of who is stopping by. That's it for now. I'm out.

Support your local bloggers!

In which I show you our Christmas pictures

This is our Christmas 2007 slideshow video. Music by Vince Guaraldi. Happy New Year to all!

In which we wish you a Merry Christmas

Merry Christmas from Sandy Springs and Da Bunch! We've had a fantastic weekend, with Santa coming to see everyone and lots of family love and fun all through the weekend. Sage was here with us, and we spent Christmas Eve with my brother and his family opening presents. We had a fantastic time. We took lots of pictures, and I plan on putting together a Christmas slideshow to post here soon. For now, I leave you with Season's Greetings, and hopes for a happy 2008.

In which we review the year 2007

Stealing an idea from Rake, here is a little video slideshow I put together showing off some of the Brady Bunch's great moments from 2007. The music is by Genesis, the good times are courtesy of Da Bunch. It's about five minutes long. Hope you're all doing well as the holidays approach!

In which I tell you about the fire

We had a fire in Winding River Village today.  We're all fine; it wasn't in our building.  It was the building next to ours.  I was at work and received a frantic call from my wife to come home.  I rushed home and we spent the next three hours watching the efforts of the Sandy Springs FD.  They did a great job and contained a fairly nasty fire to just one building.  It was a very emotional experience for all of us.  It wasn't our building, but it was still part of our home.  We all tried to pitch in; Steven actually went into the building before the fire spread and helped some others bang on doors and roust all the residents out.  Darlene and the girls helped guide people out of the immediate area and I gave inspiration and hope just though my comforting presence.  No, not really.  I went back and forth between the parking lot and the rally point the condo board set up in the clubhouse and tried to keep everyone in our area of the parking lot informed about what was going on.  No people were hurt as far as I know.  A couple of cats are still missing, but everyone else is present and accounted for.  Steven got to talk to a couple of news crews, so he was feeling like the shizzle before he passed out asleep on the bed.  We haven't seen him on TV yet, but if we do maybe I can get a video posted.  I want my blog to be all multimedia and stuff like Rake's.

Anyway, we tried to end the evening in a normal way with a little trick or treating and a trip to McDonald's (the McRib is back! Whoo!).  Right now we're all exhausted--the kids are long since in bed, the wife is probably asleep on the couch, and I'm soon to bed after I get done with this post.  For those with concern, we're fine.  Shaken, stirred, and emotionally worn, but fine.  We're all safe and we still have a home.  That's what matters.

Here are some pics (taken with my camera phone) of the fire, the SSFD in action, and Steven the media hound.

edited a few minutes later: We just saw a report on Channel 2. No sign of Steven's interview, but there was a quick shot of the twins in one of the crowd pans. Pretty cool, if it wasn't such a tragic situation. 12 families out of their homes. Trick or treat, indeed. Not the kind of trick I like.

In which I tell you about last weekend

Man, what a month March has been! I didn't get the chance to post last week. It's been a busy month at work. Our department is a couple of people short right now after one person got promoted and another one walked off the job in the middle of a workday, and everyone left behind is stressing over extra work to make up the slack. I've been too tired to do much of anything. I wanted to tell you about a couple of things that happened last weekend, though, so here I am!

We went to the Gladiators game on Saturday evening. It was St. Patrick's Day so I wore my special St. Patrick's hat that I got from Darlene's Uncle Ray. Unfortunately we didn't charge the camera before we went to the game so I don't have a photographic record of my seasonal haberdashery. I do still have it in the closet, though, so just holler sometime and you can see it.

We had a big Brady crowd at the game--13 of us went. The six of us in the Brady Bunch, my brother Bill, his wife Liz (who is 8 1/2 months pregnant, so I guess we had 14 people there if you count the internal Brady), their daughter Mia, my parents, Darlene's cousin Anthony "The Man" White (who came from Waynesville, NC just for the game), and Steven's friend Courtney. It was quite a group. The girls all had a lot of fun singing and dancing and screaming (Sage was the one who didn't even like hockey and didn't want to go to the game at all, and she wound up saying it was "her first fun hockey game!"), the boys chilled, and the grown-ups watched the game and chatted. Gwinnett won 5-1 to solidify first place in their division. The coolest thing of all was the fact that the ice was green. Pretty cool! In my opinion, the puck was easier to follow on the darker ice. It wasn't a shrill Irish green, more of a sort of pale pea-soup olive. It certainly made for an interesting experience at the game.

The next night after we dropped Sage off at her mom's house, the other five of the Bunch plus Courtney went to Chili's. The meal was great, but our waiter left a little to be desired. He was doing well until a female friend of his and her mom came in and sat at the table across from us. From then on, he was overattentive to that table and neglected the other tables in his area. The people next to us got a little cheesed off, but we pretty much kept it together until Courtney asked for a to-go cup for his milkshake. 15 minutes later the guy had been to his friend's table at least five times, squatted down to flirt with her and to look down her shirt for extended periods, but had not brought us our cup. Keep in mind that we had already paid, so unfortunately his tip was locked in. We just needed a cup so we could leave.

After a while it became a war of attrition between Darlene and the waiter. She was determined not to ask again for the cup. Courtney was taking copious, noisy swigs from his shake every time the guy walked by, hoping to draw his attention. No joy. Finally, Darlene grabbed the shake and headed for the door. One of the kids asked me, "Is she going to steal that cup?" I got up and followed, saying, "Looks like it." She didn't, though. She went to the hostess and proceeded to tell her exactly what had been going on at our table and the one across the aisle for the last 15 minutes. Then she told the story to the manager while the hostess got our cup. Needless to say, the manager was not pleased.

It was neat to see my wife cut up a little and "get ghetto" (as she calls it). She didn't raise her voice a whit, but she let them know that she was unhappy. It was a side of her I haven't seen before. Remind me to stay on her good side. I love you, baby! Your blog is better than mine and you're so sexy!

The Brady Bunch

This is us going to the Publix

Three Thousand Words

Just some pictures taken with the new camera, that I thought would be fun to post. Enjoy!

The Brady Bunch kids at Everybody's Pizza



Your faithful blogger and his better half



The new monitor and kitchen desk/setup!

"...a dweem wiffin a dweem..."

I'm getting married ten weeks from tomorrow. In fact, as I begin writing this, 71 days from this exact moment I will be ten minutes away from an event that will change my life forever. It's going to be a busy 71 days, too. Between the two of us we have to figure out how to get her kids enrolled in school here, move them down here, get new clothes for the wedding, make sure everyone is happy and healthy, plan the ceremony, decide what to do afterward, talk to each other at least twice a day, and say "I love you" to each other at least 1,400 times. About the only thing we're not doing between now and April 15 is framing Guilder for anything. We're swamped. We're loving it, too. It's definitely a good swamp to be in.

I'm going to have three new kids in my (our!) home, not to mention a wife, and that's way cool. I've been by myself for much too long. I'm ready to be a family man. It's a little scary sometimes--I've lived by myself for most of the last 14 years. I'm going to have to get used to sharing closets and bathrooms and a bed and the TV and all the other things that having a family entails. I also get afraid sometimes, that I'm not going to know what to do as a dad or as a husband in certain situations. That worries me. I don't want to mess up. I'm sure I'm not the first husband/dad-to-be who has worried about that, though. I'll learn about my family, and they'll learn about me. Yeah, it's scary, but it's going to be good.

As I finish writing this, 71 days from this very moment we'll be at the altar, crying our eyes out. If you guys are reading this, I love you, and I can't wait until we can be together all the time.