For Starters...

I got my feet wet in the blogging world with my Red Sox 2004 -- Why Not Us? -- We Believe Blog. That blog ended with the Sox winning the World Series for the first time in 86 years. Not too shabby!

I considered continuing that blog but something about it just didn't seem right. A big part of me felt compelled to file that blog away -- along with the newspaper clippings, game tickets, pictures, and memories -- as something to look back on as an entity of its own. Plus, I figured people would get sick of the topic after awhile. Not me, of course. But others.

So here I am. A new year, a new blog.

This one is not nearly as focused as my previous Sox blog. But, I am a neat freak, perhaps to a fault. I will always remember my high school art teacher, Mr. Coughlin, telling me that I'm "anal-retentive." I remember thinking, "I can't believe he just said that ... (pause, pause) ... he's so right." So, of course, there has to be some structure to this blog.

While rambling about whatever happens to enter my mind each day, I also plan to include some or all (depending on my level of motivation) of the following in each post:

* What Song/Musician I'm Listening To
* What Blog You Should Be Reading
* Goal of the Moment
* Featured Quote
* Joke of the Post
* Holy Crap Moment
* Must-See Picture
* Featured Video/Audio

So I guess I should start with that:

* Song: Seeing Things for the First Time by the Black Crowes -- title seems appropriate but if you listen to the lyrics, it's not appropriate at all. But still, a very good song.
* Blog You Should Be Reading: Zack Braff's Garden State blog Written by the actor who plays J.D. on Scrubs. Makes me laugh out loud every time I read it. The guy's a riot.
* Goal of the Moment: Get to bed before 1 AM.
* Featured Quote: Simon Cowell on Constantine Maroulis singing the Partridge Family's 'I Think I Love You' -- "It's like ordering a guard dog for your house and getting a poodle in a leather jacket."
* Joke of the Post: Q: What is black and white and screams "YES! YES! YES!" A: A nun winning at BINGO.
* Holy Crap Moment: I work with message boards in which people talk about whatever the top news stories of the moment are. Yesterady, the earthquake off Indonesia and the possibility of another tsunami was the hot topic. You'd think people would be talking about their concerns for the people in the region. No. An alarming number of people wanted to complain that this would mean we would be giving more money to countries other than our own. I'm telling you, this job is stripping me of all my faith in humanity.
* Must-See Picture: One of my favorite pictures of my nephew -- Gabriel's Feeling Lucky
* Featured Video/Audio: One of the best ever. Always avoid live interviews while severely hungover. Watch the Video

And so it begins...