Wow! 100 Posts! Can It Be?

I can't believe I've posted 100 times since Christmas Day. How time goes by!

Thanks to everyone who has stopped by. I am truly grateful, and to show my appreciation, I will do my best to provide you with wholly original content with no links that only require me to toss off a phrase or a line or two. It doesn't challenge me, and I'm pretty sure that it's boring for you to read. Those who know me well know that I was a pretty busy freelance writer back in the day, and it's time to flex those muscles again.

Because if you don't, whatever your walk of life, the consequences can be pretty dire.

So I will.

Every day.

Starting now.

In fact, after I spend about a week updating you on movies and pop culture happenings, I will be adding to a blog I've barely started entitled Scenes From Mike's Life, in which I talk more about my life experiences. I'll post a link when it's up and running.

But for now, I want to announce that, as of this past Sunday, I have finally entered the digital age. I made baby steps earlier this summer when I bought a Palm Pilot at a garage sale for ten bucks. I was ecstatic because:

1) I finally had something to put on the table at restaurants amongst all the other cellphones, iPhones, and BlackBerrys. The Palm was retro, useful and cool.

2) I was able to use the Palm's scheduling software to begin to organize my life.

Cut to this past Sunday. My sister, dad, and aunt Louise came over to help me build and organize shelves. Or rather, they built and organized while I watched, due to space and physical limitations.

Earlier that morning, my sister had Facebooked something to the effect of "bye bye BlackBerry, hello iPhone 4!" I commented half-jokingly that I'd be willing to take over the BlackBerry. She didn't respond, but when she called on the way over, she said she "had a treat".

I thought, "I'm inheriting the BlackBerry!"

But my mind was absoloutely blown when after about an hour of building shelves, she reached into her purse and brought out a new iPod Touch.

Holy Christmas in October Batman!

Then Aunt Louise, who is one of the most courageous and understanding people I've ever known, reached into her purse and brought out an iPod nano, which she said she'd been keeping for me because she'd won an extra.

Double Christmas in October!

Quick story involving Aunt Louise: In 1983, at my 12th birthday party, we were in the cake-and presents portion of the evening. Aunt Louise passed me her gift, and I excitedly opened it to find a sweater. I smiled.

I then opened the gift from my Aunt Betty and Uncle Marcel, which was a Cooper basketball with hoop.

I went absolutely bonkers, loving the new-rubber smell of the ball and the bright orange hoop. I thanked Aunt Betty and Uncle Marcel profusely, and ran out (oops, wheeled) to play after Dad had set everything up.

It was only right before I went to bed that night that Mom reminded me that I had forgotten to thank Aunt Louise for the sweater.

I felt like crap. Aunt Louise graciously accepted my thanks at the next gathering, but I know it hurt at the time. I now realize two things about sweaters:

1) You can never have too many sweaters
2) When you recieve sweaters as a gift at a young age, it instills a hopefully lifelong sense of bills-first, fun-later practicality that I've tried never to forget.

So thank you Aunt Louise, for the sweater and the nano.

Thank you Jacquie, for all the help, the shelves, and the treat.

Thank you Dad, for being Shelf Project Foreman, for the Oilers jersey, and for keeping on keeping on.

And thank you Mom, for still occaisionally providing the gentle reminders as I stumble toward middle age.

I love you all!

MTMG