Well, I have officially been in Greenville for one year. It certainly doesn't feel like it's been that long, but when I look back, I do remember having seen all of the seasons... I moved down on 2/24/08 and have stayed ever since. If you haven't seen it before, ya'll should review my first blogs from SC. They have a lot of interesting new experiences from my first few days down here. I was excited, nervous, sad and lonely all at once. This has me thinking: How has living in SC affected me?
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Well, the most recent thing that I've noticed is that I've inherited some Southern mannerisms, for better or worse. For the better, I have officially begun using "yes, ma'am" or "no, ma'am" as responses to questions (or sir if appropriate). At first, I thought that those answers were cute, especially since my friends were saying those things to everyone, including the telemarketers who would call them at work. But NOW, I catch myself answering people that way all day. At least it's better than the road manners that I have learned down here. I still drive safely, always using a turn signal, coming to a complete stop when required, never crossing solid lines, etc, but I have also become a more aggressive driver. (On a sidenote, I hope my insurance agent is not a blog reader). Now, I blend in with the traffic, driving confidently and making quick decisions...the kind of decisions that would have made me cringe back in Peoria. Overall, I think the culture of Greenville has been a nice change for me, and with the exception of this weekend, the climate has made it all worth it. Every day when I drive to my crazy (but steady) job, I look at the Blue Ridge Mountains and remember why I like the scenery so much!
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Now for more good news. This story begins when my awesome wife got her motorcycle license and bought a Kawasaki KZ440. This inspired me to do the same and and I got my license in May 2007. Unfortunately, the bike started to have some issues, and I learned much about motorcycle repair. (One of my first LiG posts was of how I rebuilt the engine for the bike...) Anyway, fast forward to our move. We decided to sell the bike while it was in good mechanical shape and we didn't want to pay to have it transported to SC. We then decided that we would get another, newer motorcycle after we had saved some money up and paid off a few more bills. The time has finally arrived! We will be picking up a newish 2007 Yamaha FZ6 in Yamaha blue in less than two weeks!
For years, I have looked at the FZ6, due to its flexibility and value. It has a 600cc R6 engine, naked chassis (meaning it's not fully faired) and all of its little creature features, like a fuel guage and digital speedo. After months of looking, I found a beautiful blue specimen near Atlanta with less than 3000 miles on it. You can only imagine all of the sleepless nights to follow in the next couple weeks! Those who know me know that I have been rattling on about this for a long time. The ride back will be exciting and beautiful, since the owner has recommended a route over lake Hartwell on the way back to Greenville. I'll be spending a lot of time on this thing, so you can expect my blog to take on the additional feature of motorcycle riding.
***
Once spring hits, I always get bitten by the drum corps bug. Those who have marched know that memories of tour and rehearsal flood back at any moment, and to help satisfy the urge to hear loud drums and brass hits we turn to our DCI media, such as cds and DVDs. My most recent acquisitions were the 2008 cds, and although I do not care for the instrumentation switch to B-flat in recent years, it was a very enjoyable season for all corps and I highly recommend the 2008 recordings, especially Phantom Regiment! I am Spartacus!
A few weeks ago, the Statesmen chorus had a Saturday rehearsal at Southern Wesleyan University in Central, SC.
We had the opportunity to rehearse in their new fine arts center, just like the one at ISU that I was forced to watch the construction of, but never had the opportunity to step foot inside. No, I'm not bitter.
I picked up some serious advice, though, in one of the hallways. Take note of this!
For lunch, we walked over to the local dining hall. This took me back about 10 years to fine campus dining.
At first, we were the only ones there. It was, after all, only 12:00, and we can't expect college kids to be out of bed yet! They quickly filled the hall for great college junkfood at a low price.
Here was my plate...this is why we all gained weight in college. It was very good food, though.
Fast forward a few weeks. Erin and I went to a fundraiser at Messiah Lutheran, which was to raise money for a New Orleans youth trip. We had a jazz combo...
Funny hats and beads ("Wooooooooooo!" just kidding. This is a church, you know.)
And we had jambalaya for the first time in our lives. It was pretty good, but probably the last time we'll eat it.
This is more like it! This was our lunch on Thursday, provided by our wonderful boss. Erin and I enjoyed one of those pizzas over the weekend, since we had so much left over from the office. Mmmmmm Bellacino's!
As part of our weekend festivities, Erin and I went to Circuit City to see what was left there. We found an empty store, with some useless leftovers and lots of people. It smelled and was dirty. Not fun. We will not be coming back to Circuit City. They need to do something about that.
Well, that's all I have for now. I will give you an update when I pick up the new motorbike and share the spring blooming experience with you, too! The flowers on the trees are now starting to bloom and pretty soon, the whole city will smell wonderful! On a sad note, I keep hearing terrible stories from my friends back home who have lost their jobs and I am keeping those folks in my thoughts and prayers. We are so blessed to have what we have and definitely won't take it for granted. If I ever lost my job, I'm sure Erin would work and let me stay home fulltime. I just know it. Try and behave and please keep in touch!!!!
***
Well, the most recent thing that I've noticed is that I've inherited some Southern mannerisms, for better or worse. For the better, I have officially begun using "yes, ma'am" or "no, ma'am" as responses to questions (or sir if appropriate). At first, I thought that those answers were cute, especially since my friends were saying those things to everyone, including the telemarketers who would call them at work. But NOW, I catch myself answering people that way all day. At least it's better than the road manners that I have learned down here. I still drive safely, always using a turn signal, coming to a complete stop when required, never crossing solid lines, etc, but I have also become a more aggressive driver. (On a sidenote, I hope my insurance agent is not a blog reader). Now, I blend in with the traffic, driving confidently and making quick decisions...the kind of decisions that would have made me cringe back in Peoria. Overall, I think the culture of Greenville has been a nice change for me, and with the exception of this weekend, the climate has made it all worth it. Every day when I drive to my crazy (but steady) job, I look at the Blue Ridge Mountains and remember why I like the scenery so much!
***
Now for more good news. This story begins when my awesome wife got her motorcycle license and bought a Kawasaki KZ440. This inspired me to do the same and and I got my license in May 2007. Unfortunately, the bike started to have some issues, and I learned much about motorcycle repair. (One of my first LiG posts was of how I rebuilt the engine for the bike...) Anyway, fast forward to our move. We decided to sell the bike while it was in good mechanical shape and we didn't want to pay to have it transported to SC. We then decided that we would get another, newer motorcycle after we had saved some money up and paid off a few more bills. The time has finally arrived! We will be picking up a newish 2007 Yamaha FZ6 in Yamaha blue in less than two weeks!
For years, I have looked at the FZ6, due to its flexibility and value. It has a 600cc R6 engine, naked chassis (meaning it's not fully faired) and all of its little creature features, like a fuel guage and digital speedo. After months of looking, I found a beautiful blue specimen near Atlanta with less than 3000 miles on it. You can only imagine all of the sleepless nights to follow in the next couple weeks! Those who know me know that I have been rattling on about this for a long time. The ride back will be exciting and beautiful, since the owner has recommended a route over lake Hartwell on the way back to Greenville. I'll be spending a lot of time on this thing, so you can expect my blog to take on the additional feature of motorcycle riding.
***
Once spring hits, I always get bitten by the drum corps bug. Those who have marched know that memories of tour and rehearsal flood back at any moment, and to help satisfy the urge to hear loud drums and brass hits we turn to our DCI media, such as cds and DVDs. My most recent acquisitions were the 2008 cds, and although I do not care for the instrumentation switch to B-flat in recent years, it was a very enjoyable season for all corps and I highly recommend the 2008 recordings, especially Phantom Regiment! I am Spartacus!
A few weeks ago, the Statesmen chorus had a Saturday rehearsal at Southern Wesleyan University in Central, SC.
We had the opportunity to rehearse in their new fine arts center, just like the one at ISU that I was forced to watch the construction of, but never had the opportunity to step foot inside. No, I'm not bitter.
I picked up some serious advice, though, in one of the hallways. Take note of this!
For lunch, we walked over to the local dining hall. This took me back about 10 years to fine campus dining.
At first, we were the only ones there. It was, after all, only 12:00, and we can't expect college kids to be out of bed yet! They quickly filled the hall for great college junkfood at a low price.
Here was my plate...this is why we all gained weight in college. It was very good food, though.
Fast forward a few weeks. Erin and I went to a fundraiser at Messiah Lutheran, which was to raise money for a New Orleans youth trip. We had a jazz combo...
Funny hats and beads ("Wooooooooooo!" just kidding. This is a church, you know.)
And we had jambalaya for the first time in our lives. It was pretty good, but probably the last time we'll eat it.
This is more like it! This was our lunch on Thursday, provided by our wonderful boss. Erin and I enjoyed one of those pizzas over the weekend, since we had so much left over from the office. Mmmmmm Bellacino's!
As part of our weekend festivities, Erin and I went to Circuit City to see what was left there. We found an empty store, with some useless leftovers and lots of people. It smelled and was dirty. Not fun. We will not be coming back to Circuit City. They need to do something about that.
Well, that's all I have for now. I will give you an update when I pick up the new motorbike and share the spring blooming experience with you, too! The flowers on the trees are now starting to bloom and pretty soon, the whole city will smell wonderful! On a sad note, I keep hearing terrible stories from my friends back home who have lost their jobs and I am keeping those folks in my thoughts and prayers. We are so blessed to have what we have and definitely won't take it for granted. If I ever lost my job, I'm sure Erin would work and let me stay home fulltime. I just know it. Try and behave and please keep in touch!!!!
