Bon voyage

Baby C is going on his first cruise this week. We were supposed to sail to Cozumel, but since the swine flu outbreak, the ports have changed and we are now going to Grand Cayman. An upgrade if you ask me.

Monster 104.1 will be on the cruise too. I don't listen to them, but it should make for good people watching. 

I"ll have a bunch of stories and pix when we get back. 

Oh Molly!!!

It's Memorial Day weekend, I'm feeling happy/silly, so I decided to share some of my Molly comics. Molly is our dog. She's a Boston Terrier and she is crazy. She's very hyper, but she is a good girl.

A few years ago I decided I should start a comic strip. I figured I could make some extra cash and maybe one day it could be my full-time job. Only 2 problems. 1) I'm not a good artist. 2) The cartoons are WAAAAAY out there...some need explanations.

Take a look at these and tell me what you think. Bill, let the cat comments begin.

One month today

So I've been at this blog thing for a month now. In this first month of blogging, there have been 22 posts. Who knew I had so much to say? None of it was very deep, but still, 22 posts is pretty good. I'm happy with myself.

History of ACs - Our Engagement - Behind the Scenes

This is the second installment of the History of the ACs. Three years ago today, Allison and I were engaged. Most of you have heard our engagement story, but this is a behind the scenes look of what I went through leading up to and immediately after the engagement.

I knew for a while that I wanted to marry Allison. I just didn't know when the right time to ask was. I knew no matter how I proposed, we would remember it forever, but I wanted it to be in a special place or around a special event. Something that would really knock her socks off.

So while I was trying to figure that out, I decided to focus on the ring. I went to Gems of the Jungle in Downtown Orlando. They custom made a hell of a ring for me. I sold some stock to pay for it and waited for them to finish the ring.

I finally got the call that the ring was ready. I gave Allison some excuse for why I needed to go to work early so I could get out of carpooling with her and then it was time to get the cash and pick up the ring. I had to leave work early, get to the bank before it closed and stash the cash before Allison got home. Sounds easy right?

Got to the bank. No problem. Cashed the check and was ready to go home. Then Allison called with a list of things for me to pick up from Publix. For those of you who don't know me well, I can be a little paranoid at times. I always think someone is going to steal my wallet or take Allison's purse. Maybe it's from growing up in NY, who knows. Anyway, now I am in Publix, with a few thousand dollars in cash in my pockets. It looked like Mission Impossible picking out the groceries. I'm looking at the cans, trying to find the right type of tomato sauce, puree and paste. An old lady comes down the aisle, is she eyeballing my pockets? Did she just see me at the bank? Keep it moving grandma. Nothing to see here.

I checked out of the store safe and now I'm heading towards the car. There are some girls asking for money for their softball team. I could but the whole team, put my picture on their shirts. Nah, better not. Driving home, checking the rear view, making sure I'm not being followed. Got home. No sign of funny business. I went inside, stashed the cash and waited for Allison to come home. The next morning, I waited for Allison to get in the shower, locked the doors behind me and transferred the cash to the laptop bag.

I took Steven with me and we went over to the jeweler. Checked the ring, loved it and brought it back. I gave it to Steven to carry just in case Allison saw us. We worked for the same company, but in different buildings, but there was an odd chance that we could bump into each other. It was safe, so I took the ring back. Didn't see Allison, but Juan from HR saw us and said "What's in the bag? Engagement ring?" I had to play that off really quick. It's a small, close knit company, I would have been pissed if someone spilled the beans. So I came up with a quick lie. Who knows if he bought it or not, but the surprise was still intact.

Got home stashed the ring and got back to the planning of the engagement. My original plan was to buy tickets to Disney for Steven & Stephanie and have them take pix of me proposing to Allison in front of Cinderella's Castle. I though that was a good idea. I called Disney and made a few dinner reservations to make sure I had a table. Then I called Disney to get a reserved spot during Wishes. They said "We don't do that" but they did have alternative options. I went with dinner and a glass slipper inside the Castle.

My birthday is June 3rd, we got engaged on May 20th. I had my mother send me a birthday card with an insert saying something like "enjoy dinner on us at Cinderella's castle" It didn't make much sense since I am a grown man and not a little girl, but I sold it well enough to Allison and she bought it.

Today's the day. May 20th. I secured the ring. Let me tell you how I secured it. I put the ring in a ziplock bag. I put bubble wrap around that. I wrapped a handkerchief around the whole thing and taped it to the inside of my pocket. I did say I secured the ring.

We're in the park. I make sure not to go on Space Mountain or any other dangerous rides, even though that ring was not going anywhere. We headed over to the restaurant. Now remember those multiple reservations I mentioned earlier, here is where they come into play.
Me: Anthony 2.
Disney: Sorry, don't see it.
Me: check again, I know its there.
Disney: Oh here you are, table for 3, on Wednesday.
Me to Allison: (slightly panicking) Go in that store over there, I'll figure this out.
Me to Disney: Dude, I'm getting engaged tonight. I have a reservation for 2 at the center table. Get someone and figure this out.
Disney: Oh sir. We'll work this out for you. Have a magical day.
Me to myself: Magical day my ass...get me a table
Me to Disney: Thanks.
Disney Manager: OK, we have a table for you, but your glass slipper isn't here. It's across the park and it has the wrong date. Don't worry. We sent someone for it. Come back in 30 minutes Everything will be ready.
Me to self: Holy Sh*t

We killed some time. Went on Philharmagic and came back. The manager told me to leave the table after I ordered and meet her to exchange the ring. Allison wouldn't suspect anything because I often leave the table, or used to when my stomach was really bad. When I took the ring out of my pocket, I swear the manager laughed at me. I tried to explain my hanky, bubble wrap contraption, but she was too far gone. She was laughing and wished me luck.

We ate dinner and I was kinda freaking out the whole time. In the weeks leading up to this night, I had told Allison a fib about a special birthday dessert. The normal Anthony would not have stopped talking about this dessert all day. So I forced myself to talk about this fictional delight. They cleared our dinner plates and about 30 seconds later they brought the ring out in a covered platter, put it in front of Allison and revealed the ring. I was on.

I got on my knee and started talking. I don't really remember what I said. I thought about it a few days before, I was going to jot down some notes, but I thought that would be cheesy. I knew when I was there in the moment, I'd come up with something good. She said yes, so I must have said something right. While I was proposing, I tried to get Allison's hand away from her face. She was covering her mouth in shock and her hand seemed like it was crazy glued to her mouth. In stead of getting mad and forcing it away, I decided to try the other hand.

It all went well, she said yes and the rest is history. I knew I did I great job, but got assurance from a redneck man in a Nascar t-shirt. "Classy man, really classy" Well thank you Mr. Nascar fan. If anyone knows class, it's a redneck in a Nascar t-shirt. I don't mean to bash him, I did appreciate the compliment, but I thought it was pretty funny.

We finished the night by watching Disney Wishes and buying some Disney wedding stuff from the shops. Our parents both knew I was proposing and were probably flipping out, because we didn't call them until the next morning to share the news. Baby C, little buddy, when you decide to propose...call us, send us a txt, or do whatever fancy new type of communication is out 20-30 years from now, but let us know how it went!

Hope you enjoyed the story & Happy Engagement Anniversary to you Allison.

Things that make you go hmmmm...

When Allison and I first moved to FL, there were a few things we saw, that we found a little unusual. Baby C will be born and raised in FL, so these things will seem perfectly normal to him. Below is a list of some of those things.

1) A man selling shrimp on the side of the road. I don't know why, but I just don't think it's the best shrimp around. They have big coolers, and I'm sure it's fine, but I still feel very uneasy about the whole thing and would never buy shrimp from the side of the road. Or from a gas station. (Kirkman Rd, MetroWest) One cool thing about the Shrimp man is his 'Shrimp on a stick.' He doesn't have it all the time, but every so often, he'll stand on the side of the road, with 4 or 5 shrimp on a stick. Gotta show off the goods. ****UPDATE**** Since I started writing this post, there has been a shrimp guy update. He is now accepting Visa/Mastercard!

2) Door to door meat sales. They must do business somewhere, but I am not buying my steaks or chicken off the back of some guy's truck. Ice cream, sure. Meat, sorry Charlie. Before one of the storms last fall, one meat salesman gave us a hard time. "I'm selling this meat at half price, why wouldn't you want to buy it?" he said. "dude, get outta my face"

3) Door to door palm tree sales. Dude, thanks, but no thanks. I'll take the 5 minute drive to Lowes or Home Depot. I'm not buying a palm tree out of your truck. Again, come back with some ice cream or Italian ices and we'll talk.

4) Guys and dogs riding in the back of pickup-trucks. I've seen it in movies and it's always fine for them, but this just seems like a very bad idea. I'm surprised I don't see more dogs jumping out of the truck bed or guys going flying when the brakes are hit. FL just passed a seat belt law. So you can't be in the front seat without a seat belt, but you can ride in the bed with no harness? Doesn't seem right.

5) The Appliance direct guy & girl. These guys are AWESOME. No, awesome does not cover it, they are Wakkie-NU-NU! They make the most ridiculous commercials and Appliance Direct Lady wears this horrible green and yellow outfit. I guess the commercials work though. You will be hard pressed to find anybody in Central Florida that doesn't know who they are.



6) To-go cups. The first time Allison and I went to lunch in FL, we went to NYPD Pizza in MetroWest. We paid the check and they asked us if we wanted a 'to-go cup." I said "what's a to-go cup?"The waitress said, you can take your drink to go. I said "how much is it?" At this point she was looking at me like I was crazy. She said "um, it's free" I said "Yeah we want to-go cups!!" I told Allison to hurry and get in the car before they charge us for the drinks. I thought we pulled off a fast one. Then the same thing happend a few days later at another restaraunt. I was very confused until someone explained the whole to-go cup to me. I still don't get it, but I'll take free anyday.

I'm sure there is more crazy FL things that I just cant think of right now, I'll be sure to update this list as they come to mind.

Feel those kicks? He's gonna be a soccer player.

This morning while I was brushing my teeth, I heard Allison yell from bed, "I just felt him kick." I said "that's great honey" she probably heard "hhmats grmpfht hommfry" (remember, I was brushing my teeth)

Then Allison said "no, I felt him from the outside." I ran to the bathroom door. "freawwly?" Brush, rinse, spit "Really?" Allison waved me over. So I jumped to her side of the bed and she put my hand on her tummy. I sat there for a few seconds and I felt like I had missed the show. Baby C must have had his energy kick (no pun intended) and is now sleeping like a baby (pun inteded that time, although I think the energy kick pun was better)

Then...WHAMMO! I felt him. Then again. And a third time. It was awesome. My little boy slapped me 5 three times this morning. It made my day. Monday I heard his heartbeat and saw him and today I feel him through Allison's belly. A truly great week!

People always say, "the baby's kicking" or "he just kicked." I don't think what I felt was a kick. Seriously, my hand and Allison's stomach must have move 1/8 to 1/4 of an inch. He doesn't even weigh a pound yet. That is some powerful leg if it was a kick. To me, it seemed like he just realized he is trapped inside the womb and was trying to break through the walls. I pictured him in there running then throwing his shoulder into the wall. Similar to the way Shaggy and Scooby do it. Legs spinning, gathering speed, then WHAMMO! right into the wall. In the cartoons, Shaggy and Scoob go right through the door or wall, meet up with the Globetrotters and then eat a huge sandwich. Well, not today kiddo, but hang in there, 4 more months. Like James (John Travolta) says in Look Who's Talking "You spend the first nine months trying to get out and the rest of your life trying to get back in." Baby C, when you are older, you'll find that pretty funny.

It's in the game

Tonight the Magic forced a game 7. Game 7s are the most exciting thing in sports. Nascar has the 'green, white, checker', golf has sudden death playoffs, but you cannot beat a game 7. I have been to 2 game 7s in my life. Both hockey, both Devils' games, both wins. One vs Toronto in the 2nd round and one vs the Ducks for the Stanley Cup.

I've never had season tickets for any sports, so when I go to a game, I like to get into it. I cheer for every penalty kill, every free throw made, join the slow clap when there are 2 strikes on a batter in a September game. During a game 7, I cheered as loud for the defense clearing the zone during a penalty kill as I did for a goal in the regular season. Even at home, every out I yell that much louder at the TV. When Floyd & Beltran struck out looking to end a game 7, I yelled and threw things. I woke Allison up out of a deep sleep. Can't wait to watch the Magic on Sunday, but don't worry. I will not yell or throw things for fear of awakening "the beast" ;)

The point of all this, I hope I can share my love of sports with Baby C. I grew up watching the Mets with my dad in the summer and the Islanders with him in the winter. Friends will tell you, if they came over, the game was always on. I'd always watch the MLB All-Star game with my dad too. Up until I moved to FL, every season, I wouldn't go out that night. I'd watch the game with my dad. I would love to have something like that with my son. 

There is plenty of time to make our own traditions and I'm looking forward to it. I'm not going to force anything on him. I want him to enjoy watching/playing sports with his dad and not treat it as another one of his chores. One thing that will happen, Baby C will watch Game 6.  (Game 6, 1986 World Series, Mets vs RedSox) Those who did not know what Game 6 was should be ashamed of themselves.