LETTERS FROM STEVO: "Just some good ol' boys...never meanin' no harm...

...Seen all you ever saw, been in trouble with the law since the day they was born... Ahh yes! The theme song to the Dukes of Hazzard, my favorite show as a child. I had a Dukes big wheel and I remember this girl down the street having a Daisy Duke big wheel...I thought I was in love at 6 years old! I'm conjuring up the Dukes because they drove an old Dodge Charger. What's your point, you ask? My point is this...I needed to buy a new car and once again I saught your help in deciding what I should get. I gave 6 options: Gutless Kia Wimp-mobile, 87 Toyota Tercel, 08 Dodge Charger, 77 Ford Pinto, some kind of grocery go-getter, or a Volkswagon Bus. Needless to say, you people let me down again! Three votes in favor of the Kia, 1 vote in favor of the Pinto, 1 vote in favor of the bus and finally one GOOD vote for the Charger...Again, thanks for nothing. So, as usual, I didn't take your advice (execpt for the one GOOD vote) and bought a Charger. I love muscle cars! I view a car as something more than just a vessel used to transport one from point A to point B, but as a toy or an attitude! I'm trying to teach Peyton these same principles. We play with Hot Wheels and I taught him a saying...whenever I ask him, "Peyton, what do we like?" He responds, "chicks & cars!" Now we're talking!!!

Now, my father-in-law, Craig "He-Who-Gets-His-Bell-Rung-By-Water" Thornton thought I was bluffing last week when I wrote that if he didn't get an entry into our college pick 'em, I would create an entry for him...and he wouldn't like it! Of course, Craig apparently didn't believe me because he made no entry. Well, I'm a man of my word and I don't bluff! Last week, I created Bud's entry under the guise "Enlarged Prostate." This week, I created Craig's entry under the moniker, "Plays With Kittens." So, we have Enlarged Prostate and Plays With Kittens getting their collective butts kicked by me every week in pick 'em!

I finally started my new job today and it went well! I get a blackberry pearl to use for my phone. Now, I just have to figure out how to use this fancy thingamajigger contraption!

"Fightin' the system like two modern day Robin Hoods...Yeeehawww!"

Mother of the Year??? Not Quite...

So often I hear only the bad things my kids are up to. Not listening, fighting, ignoring authority, screaming, not sharing, whining...the list goes on. So, I was surprised to read an email from the Mother of one of Mya's classmates. It reads:

I have a daughter in Mya’s class. She has been having difficulties when I have been dropping her off. She doesn’t want me to leave and gets quite upset. I have to say your daughter is amazing! This morning she was so cute and took her hand and walked her into class and helped her out! I thought you would want to know how impressed I was. She was thoughtful, caring, and very sweet! Thank you for teaching your daughter all those qualities as it made my day much easier! Once again thank you so much, she was absolutely wonderful this morning!


I guess I am doing something right for once! :)

Is it Halloween yet?

It is known by all that Halloween is my favorite holiday. I wonder why?? :) I am so excited about Halloween this year. I am turning 30, so I guess I should dread it. I have the kids costumes purchased and ready to go. They came in the mail this week. I love the internet! The kids LOVE them and had to test them out today. I never knew how well a Bear and a Fairy could get along. They have been coming up with all sorts of games and activities. I might as well get full usage out of these adorable costumes. (Mya's costume was from Hannahstutus.com, I HIGHLY recommend them!) I can't believe we have over a month to go for this beloved holiday. Candy Corn here I come! A day where we can be anything we want!! Who doesn't love Halloween!

LETTERS FROM STEVO: And the Heisman goes to...Stevo???

So I went to Tennessee over the weekend and won the Heisman...Just kidding! As real as this picture looks, I'm not "actually" on the cover of SI, nor did I "actually" win the Heisman. But that is "actually" one of the Heisman trophies. How did I get to hold the Heisman you ask? I was able to accompany Bud and Big Dave to the Tennessee/Florida game on Saturday. Sports Illustrated was sponsoring a tent that had one of the trophies. We were able to take a picture with it if we simply filled out a survey that had to do with Nissan cars or something...you can tell I paid attention to the survey, I think I did see something about 10% interest rate with 12 year loan at $550/month as I signed the document. The atmosphere of the game was great, with great traditions and obnoxious fans from both teams. Upon arriving, we were immediately met by some Florida fans who enthusiastically welcomed us to Knoxville! The Gator fans seemed a lot more excited about the game than a lot of the Vols fans (we were aware of our impending doom!) We watched the band march down the street towards the field...as they played "Rocky Top" and the Tennessee Waltz I think I caught a tear in Bud's eye. Of course the game wasn't so great as the Vols got their butts handed to 'em.

Other than the blow out game we had a good time. We went boating, spoke copious amounts of B.S., Bud's pet feline, Mr. Pusse' chewed up the headphones to my ipod...I'm not 100% sure it was Mr. Pusse', it could've been Big Dave, you should see him when he gets hungry. I accompanied Bud and Char to a small country/bluegrass concert in downtown Dandridge. The opening act was simply a glorified karaoke singer. Bud and Char got up and danced in front of the stage. I saw that coming a mile away...Bud's a total dancing queen, not to mention a bit of a diva! As we left, the gay dude who organized the event was trying to get Char to dance with him. I think he was just using her to get to Bud! I entered Bud into my College Pick 'Em tournament under the username "Enlarged Prostate", then proceeded to kick his butt this weekend. Craig "He Who Takes Softball Way Too Seriously" Thornton had better sign up or I'll do it for him and he may not like his moniker either. I also had the opportunity to finally ride in Bud's Kia...the most gutless, wimpy 4 banger on the planet, not just any Kia, Bud's Kia. I decided that from now on anytime I refer to something as a "piece of sh*t", I'll just use the phrase, "piece of Kia". In all seriousness, it was a lot of fun and Bud and Char are fun and hospitable. Char is a great cook, I really enjoy eating the meals she prepares! I thank you...my belly thanks you!

Quickie With Stevo...Mission Accomplished

Before I begin I'd just like to acknowledge that my sister-in-law, Jen, is now officially been labelled a "Sidecar Sally" after her little motorcycle adventure this past weekend with Dustin. Congrats sister-in-law!

I had my 3rd interview with ACT this morning at 7am with the General Counsel/VP of HR for the company. The interview went well. A few hours later I was offered the position and I have gleefully accepted! I start on the 29th. Now I just need to find a car. The company checked my references and fortunately I wasn't thrown under the proverbial bus too much! I like using the proverbial word "proverbial"...makes me sound like I know what I'm talking about...and, it always adds legitimacy to the proverbial blog post.

Just try it

I only have one response to Steffan's blog entry....

For those who could not picture it, here is the visual:

And just so you know, when I asked Mya who Chris Farley reminded her of, she quickly said, "Dad, he can dance that way, I know he can".

- Chris Farley with Patrick Swayze - try out4 Chippendale @ Yahoo! Video

LETTERS FROM STEVO...Survey Says! Male Escorting? Chip & Dip Party Consultant?

Now that the recent poll has closed, I have the results and I am a little shocked...3votes in favor of males escorting, 3 votes in favor of chip & dip party consultant, 2votes for professor of useless information and 1 vote for bouncer. Not a single vote for HR? Do you guys really want me to become a males escort? I'm glad I'm not relying on YOU PEOPLE to steer me in the proper career path!!! So thanks for nothing. By the way, Amy voted in favor of me becoming a male escort! That just coincides with what Amy has always thought about me. She is always trying to "objectify" me...I'm not an "equal partner" but merely an "object"...and not a very pleasant one at that. Why must men be treated like objects? I'm weary of the constant objectification of the male species! So anyway, Amy ordered the book above on ebay...it should be here any day now.

The job search has been going surprisingly well. I had a second interview yesterday with a company called ACT Conferencing. They are based in Golden. It is a small company that promotes audio and visual conferencing resources, as well as quality customer service to any business that holds conference calls and online meetings. I would be doing HR. This is also the company I interviewed with last Friday. I felt I interviewed rather well (a skill I've developed a lot over the last 4 years). I was even thanked for an answer I gave to a question...I know, I'm a pretty good bullshi**er! I learned it from Amy and Bud. She asked if I could please stop talking to which I responded in the affirmative to which she responded, "thank you, now moving on..." Just kidding, it really didn't happen that way. I'm qualified for the job...I'm up against one other candidate so it will come down to who the better fit is.

In completely unrelated news...We had watched one of the Star Wars flicks and Mya decided that she would pretend that we were all characters from the movie. She is of course Princess Leia, Peyton is Luke Skywalker and I'm Darth Vader...hey, if the shoe fits...She decided that Amy is Yoda! That is hilarious!!! Amy says it is because she is so wise...sure Amy...just keep telling yourself that!

LETTERS FROM STEVO...It's the economy stupid!

So I returned to work on Tuesday after a nice Labor Day weekend hanging out with Ma Busch and Big Dave, when, that afternoon, our Area VP flew in unannounced and came to my office and closed the door. He noted my Tennessee Vols football helmet and I started cracking jokes about their debacle of a game from the previous night, but he wasn't laughing...I can usually make this guy laugh so I got a little worried at this point. We sat down and he proceeded to tell me that the company is restructuring it's territory and that there was no longer a need for my services because of where I am located. I was shocked but not surprised. Business has been down quite a bit this year and for the last few months I had kept this scenario in the back of my mind. The company I work for has never done lay offs ever! What does that tell you about the state of the economy! So, my last day is Sept. 12. I was offered a severance package that includes keeping a company car for a month, after which, we'll need to buy a car. I haven't owned a car in 4 years! Amy and I immediately went into damage control mode thinking of what things we can cut out of the budget. Fortunately, Amy has a great job so we aren't in any dire straits.

Now that the shock, sad, angry phases have already passed, I'm in acceptance mode and am already looking for work. In fact, I've already got an interview lined up for Friday! One nice thing about HR is that you can work in any industry! Do you honestly think I know how to rent a car? I feel bad for ops people who have been laid off, especially those who have been with the company for many years because car rental is all they know! So now I'm spending my last days updating my resume and looking for jobs. I've asked my boss to write me a letter of defamation...EERRRR...recommendation, to which she has graciously agreed. We'll see what pans out. Who knows, perhaps I get into another career path altogether! That is a lot harder to do...I can probably find something in HR a lot quicker. If it comes down to it, I'll do whatever it takes...even flipping burgers??? My philosophy is such that whether you are a housewife or househusband or a CEO (ok, maybe not a CEO, or a politician for that matter!) there is nobility in all work!