Late 20s, early 30s

It's been decided what we'll do for my 30th birthday: Vegas, naturally.

Technically we're going to Vegas the weekend after my birthday. On my actual birthday Nicole has a surprise planned and it must be good because this time she's actually keeping it a secret.

In other news, we're babysitting our nephew Thursday night. I love that little guy. Now that he walks he's a lot more fun to play with too. I love the mischievous look in his eyes when he knows he's doing something bad!

I think we're also going to Vegas in August for my brother-in-law's 21st birthday. That's part of my brother in law duty, right? To buy him a shot (or two) on his 21st birthday?

Anyway I never said this but Nicole has two awesome brothers, who are now my brothers in law. I really looking forward to hanging out with them more and being a big brother figure. They both make me laugh.

The big 3-0

So I'm looking at ways to celebrate my 30th birthday, which is Feb. 4. Because of the wedding, chances are we'll be pretty broke so I'm thinking creatively.

This is what eHow.com recommends (with my comments in parentheses):

1.) Bungee jumping or skydiving. (Veto. I don't want to make Nicole a widow after only two months of marriage.)

2.)Spa weekend. (Have I mentioned that I'm straight?)

3.) Road trip. (That can be fun, but we already do that all the time.)

4.) 30th birthday banquet. (This could be fun too, but lack of funds probably makes this unrealistic. Plus, friends and family will probably be loathed to attend another formal function, ha.)

Any ideas on how to celebrate the big 3-0?

My picks to replace Regis

With Regis Philbin scheduled to retire later this fall, I'm jumping on the bandwagon and compiling a list of people ABC should consider as replacements. (This despite the fact that the last episode I saw was probably in 1999. You know, school and work.)

I'm going unconventional, which means away from Anderson Cooper, Tom Bergenon, blah blah blah. How about we think outside the box a little, Mr. Mainstream Media? Dare to be creative!

Anyway, here's my list. But really, ABC could pick anyone but Ryan Seacrest and I'd be happy.

Charles Barkley

He's retired, and the NBA lockout means he probably won't work as an TNT analyst this season, so the Chuckster has a lot of time on his hands. Plus he's charismatic with a great self-effacing sense of humor. He's perfect for TV.

Kevin O'Leary

He's probably not familiar to mainstream America, but reality TV junkies may know him. He's a "shark" on the ABC show "Shark Tank", in which small business owners solicit investors from a pool of wealthy capitalists. Like the title suggests, the investors are ruthless and O'Leary is the most ruthless of all. It would be fun to see O'Leary's brash but sincere persona mesh with celebrity types.

Don Cheadle

Probably best known for his roles in "Crash" and "Hotel Rwanda", there's something sophisticated and cool about Cheadle. Like Regis, he adds instant class.

George Clooney

I wasn't going to include him originally because, you know, he's a huge movie star and hosting a daytime TV show is probably beneath him. But the more I thought about it, the more I was able to envision him using a daily talk show as his own personal soap box. You don't think he'd love to go on and on about Darfur while waving a copy of the New York Post? I have Clooney as a 20-1 longshot to replace Regis.

Conan O'Brien

Does anyone expect Conan's show to last beyond 2012? Ratings are horrendous, supposedly, and George Lopez is already gone. He'll have to tone it down for daytime audiences, but it's either that or start another late night show on...um... what's worse than TBS? The USA Network?

Carly Foulkes

Nobody said Regis' replacement needs to be a man. The trick, though, is that a female co-host needs to be non-threatening to the mostly female audience. She needs to be pretty, but subtlety so. So who better than the T-Mobile Girl! A quick Google search reveals her as Carly Foulkes. Too bad she's too young (23) to be considered a serious candidate.

My padre

For 29 years, I took my dad for granted. Isn't that what you do with parents? You learn to turn to them for support and guidance when life throws you obstacles, and when they're not, it's a mixture of shock, disappointment and depression.
My dad is living in Mexico now, retired after so many years of working a manual labor job to support his family. Growing up wasn't all roses, but I can't complain. My parents gave me love and opportunity, and that's probably the best thing a child can receive.
As a little kid, I looked up to my dad a lot. I remember helping him wash his old Dodge truck, while he played oldies on the radio. He gave me my first sip of beer, a Coors light -- I hated it. He laughed and told me to always remember that bitter taste (I did; now I only drink Budweiser).
I remember my dad installing the basketball hoop on the back of the garage and taking a whole week to assemble a home gym. My dad took me to buy my first dog, a German shepherd named Blackstone, which I found in a PennySaver ad.
My dad taught me how to drive on a isolated stretch of roadway on Bloomfield Avenue. After I got my license, he let me drive his truck all by myself. (I drove to Burlington Coat Factory -- where I worked at the time -- and drove really slow so my co-workers could see me.)
There are a lot of sad memories too, including DUIs, alcoholism, divorce, etc. But I'm able to overlook it because I know whatever personal demons my dad may have been battling, it never affected his love for me or any of his boys.
I hope my dad is happy in Mexico. I hope one day down the road, after Nicole and I are married and settled, we can afford a big house where my dad can come and live with us as one big, happy family.
I don't want to take my dad for granted anymore.

***

I also want to wish my older brother, Oscar, a happy Father's Day. (And my sister-in-law, Mona, a belated happy Mother's Day.)
I'm determined to be their son's favorite uncle, and I'm not ashamed to bribe him!

All that he can be

I'm not the type to tell a person what to do with their life, so when
my younger brother Michael announced he was enlisting in the Army, the
only thing I could say was... Good luck.

I don't mean that in a sarcastic way. I genuinely hopes he kicks ass
in the military. Whether they ship him to Afghanistan or Timbuktoo, I
want him to untap his potential and be an awesome soldier. Michael is
incredibly smart, although I think his stubborness sometimes gets in
the way of his intelligence.

My biggest worry, of course, is his safety. I pray that he remains
safe, both physically and mentally. I want him to come home in one
piece. I also pray he can ward off the loneliness that is sure to set
in and doesn't forget he has a family here that loves him and
anxiously awaits his return.

I still think of Michael as the hyper little kid I grew up with, the
kid I shared a room with during the majority of our adolescence. But
he's grown now, and I hope when he comes back from serving our country
he and I can become closer.

I don't ask God for much, but I'm asking him to please keep my brother
safe.

Peace and terrorism

I may be in the minority, but I'm not celebrating the death of Osama
bin Laden. The world is a better place without him for sure, but I
don't think a person's death is cause for celebration.

Instead, I'm sad that we live in a world of terrorism, hate and
intolerance. I'm sad that people pass judgment based on the color of
your skin, or your religious beliefs.

While I'm not a particularly religious person, I do believe life is a
gift from god and it's up to each of to choose how we live it. And too
many of us waste our lives with drugs, alcohol, prejudice and ignorance.

On Sept. 11, I remember watching news of the attacks and also seeing
people in the Middle East rejoicing and dancing in the street. I
remember thinking they were savages with no regard for human life.

Watching the TV news Sunday brought back those memories, only this
time it was Americans dancing joyfully over the death of another human
being. I just think it's wrong.

I hope Bin Laden's death ushers in an era of peace, cooperation,
understanding and friendship among fellow human beings, but I know
that's wishful thinking.

It's May 1 right?

So I've made it a goal to blog every single day during the month of May, and obviously I'm off to a bad start because it's May 2. But I'm blaming bin Laden because his death distracted me.

To start, let me catch you up on my life. My wedding is Dec. 10 and it's coming really fast. This wedding literally consumes most of my thoughts 24 hours a day, seven days a week. It's all I think about in my down time: I think about it while I'm showering, when I'm working, when I'm driving, even when I'm sleeping. I'm like a boxer preparing for his fight. 

With the exception of a refrigerator, we haven't made any major purchases as we attempt to pay off the wedding and its associated costs. And there are a lot of costs. Let's see, there's the wedding dress, tuxedos, reception hall, centerpieces, photographer, limousine, weddings bands, bridal shower, church deposit, church "trinkets" (sorry, I don't know what these are actually called), church singer, pianist, flowers, honeymoon, and I'm probably forgetting a few things.

Don't get me wrong, I'm not complaining, but you can see why this wedding is constantly on my mind. (You can also see why the original choice was to elope in Vegas.) The good thing is that once we're married, we won't have thousands of dollars to pay off.

But even if it doesn't sound like it, I'm extremely excited to be married. I'm on a diet and am officially in "Get in Shape for Wedding" mode. 

Wow, December 10. It's really not that far away.