The Twilight of my Twenties

I begin typing this 1 hour and 2 minutes away from turning 30 years old. I thought it would be a nice thing for myself to sit here and remember everything that happened during the last 10 years. It is funny, but I don't remember turning 20. I know it happened while I was in school in Milledgeville. It was a Saturday (I don't remember that...I looked it up), so I was either on campus, or home for the weekend. Either way, it was 10 years ago...wow.

The #1 show on TV in 1999 was Who Wants to be a Millionaire...sadly, I am still not. The #1 show right now is NCIS. The highest grossing movie on the 2nd of October 1999 was Remember the Titans...my guess is that it will be Zombieland this weekend. The #1 song was Unpretty by TLC and is I Got a Feeling by the Black Eyed Peas (Mazel Tov!!).

In the last 10 years I have attended four different colleges. I have dropped out of two, transferred from one and graduated from the other (though not with a degree, but rather a certificate). I have had my ten year reunion. I wrote a paper on the dangers inherent to the electoral college, and then watched as everything I wrote about happened in the 2000 election. We have a black president, and Bob Barker is our Vice President.

I worked full-time at three different Outback Steakhouses. I moved from Milledgeville to Atlanta, Atlanta to Chattanooga, and Chattanooga back to Atlanta.

I watched the Braves lose the World Series, the NLCS, the NLDS, and the regular season (every year it was harder to watch them lose). I saw the Falcons make the NFC Championship, and then a few short years later, I saw them at the bottom of the league, only the see them fly high again towards the end of my 20s. I discovered College Football and saw my first game in Athens on my 24th birthday (Dawgs beat Bama, but the alcohol got me that night)...I would travel to Athens for two more games on my birthday weekends. I got laid off for the first time. I was unemployed for four months. I found the best job I have ever had, and have been promoted four times. I stopped reading comic books...I realized that, screw it, I love reading comic books, and I read them again. I started attending concerts...the best one was still probably Journey last year, but Barenaked Ladies is pretty darn close.

I went to New York for the first time during my 20s...I have been back again, and again, and again...I can't wait to go back again!!

I have fallen in love three times in the last ten years...only once was I actually in a relationship with that person...once they were married...once they were getting married...none of them live in the same state.

My grandmother died when I was 20 (three days before I turned 21). My uncle died when i was 26. I discovered that I hate death...more than anything except flying. To counter the sadness of loss, I was blessed with an Isabelle, an Ethan, a Paige, a Jacob, a Joey, and Joshua...all of the children more beautiful than you could possibly imagine.

I moved in with a friend when I turned 25, and we became brothers by the time I moved out at 28 (and he ended up giving me another sister when he got married). I moved in with my actual brother when I was 28, and we became best friends.

My relationships with my parents, my brother and my sister all evolved into something that I can only wish that everyone who reads this gets to experience. Nothing in the world can compare to a healthy relationship with that part of your life, and I am who I am because of it. My father had a neck surgery when I was 20, heart surgery when I was 25, and traveled to Thailand when I was 29. My sister found a boyfriend when I was 25...I have an email that I wrote to a friend of mine when they started dating...I wrote that I thought they were going to end up marrying each other...they will be married in February of 2010 (I can't write about it yet though, because it will be when I am 30).

I don't know what the future holds for me (though I hope that I have my own family in there somewhere), but I can say that I am approaching 30 with excitement, optimism, and the knowledge that the next 10 years will be even better than the last 10 years.

Happy Birthday to Me!

The Price and Promise of Citizenship

So the day is finally here. Today was the inauguration of President Barack Obama. It is a day that I have expected and been waiting for since he first spoke at the Democratic National Convention in 2004. He was everything that I hoped, and his speech was incredible. I don't really know what to say about it (it is for greater men than me to critique it). I will say that there will be a day in the future that I get to bring my children to DC and to a new monument that reads the following passage from the speech:

As we consider the road that unfolds before us, we remember with humble gratitude those brave Americans who, at this very hour, patrol far-off deserts and distant mountains. They have something to tell us today, just as the fallen heroes who lie in Arlington whisper through the ages. We honor them not only because they are guardians of our liberty, but because they embody the spirit of service; a willingness to find meaning in something greater than themselves. And yet, at this moment -- a moment that will define a generation -- it is precisely this spirit that must inhabit us all.
For as much as government can do and must do, it is ultimately the faith and determination of the American people upon which this nation relies. It is the kindness to take in a stranger when the levees break, the selflessness of workers who would rather cut their hours than see a friend lose their job which sees us through our darkest hours. It is the firefighter's courage to storm a stairway filled with smoke, but also a parent's willingness to nurture a child, that finally decides our fate.
Our challenges may be new. The instruments with which we meet them may be new. But those values upon which our success depends -- hard work and honesty, courage and fair play, tolerance and curiosity, loyalty and patriotism -- these things are old. These things are true. They have been the quiet force of progress throughout our history. What is demanded then is a return to these truths. What is required of us now is a new era of responsibility -- a recognition, on the part of every American, that we have duties to ourselves, our nation and the world; duties that we do not grudgingly accept but rather seize gladly, firm in the knowledge that there is nothing so satisfying to the spirit, so defining of our character, than giving our all to a difficult task.
This is the price and the promise of citizenship.

I will say that I am grateful for my company. They provided us with an hour of time today to take part in the ceremony in our break room. There were no less than 50 people there, from all walks of life, and you could tell that every single one of them was inspired.

That is the biggest difference. I have now voted in three presidential elections. All three times I voted on the issues, and not based on parties. I have been alive for 8 inaugurations (though I really only remember 5 of them). This one appears to be the first one that was actually inspirational for the vast majority of the people in the country. He truly seems to have created a sense of Camelot that I imagine was what people felt in 1960 when Kennedy was elected. I have high hopes for him and the change that he promises to bring, and I plan on doing my part.

Congrats to you and your family, and godspeed.

Obituary: My Faith in Humanity – Oct. 2nd, 1979-Jan. 19th, 2009

What was once a bright shining beacon in the life of Tim Gordon, has suffered its final insult, and in so doing has withered and died today. Tim’s Faith in Humanity (FiH) was a stalwart and driving force in his life for a huge portion of his life, but it first started to show signs of failing during the release of the reality TV series Temptation Island. Tim’s FiH was unsure how to deal with such a horrible offering on television, and started to crack and give way to the idea that maybe humanity wasn’t inherently good, but was, in fact, a slave to marketing. But his FiH was renewed with vigor after the show was cancelled after a disappointing 2nd season. Tim’s FiH suffered several other indignities along the way (see Rock of Love, Intervention, anything starring David Caruso), but it was once again strong this past week, and believed to be thriving as we entered 2009 with the act of courage and bravery shown by Capt. Sully of US Airways flight 1549. But the turnaround was short lived, as Tim’s FiH was found dead this morning at his desk at InfoMart, an apparent victim of a shock induced heart-attack. The shock appears to have been caused by the news that the #1 movie this weekend was Paul Blart: Mall Cop. Tim’s FiH is survived by his Jaded Viewpoint of American Film Taste (JVAFT) and his Superiority in Entertainment Complex (SEC). There will be no service held, but please keep Humanity in your thoughts and prayers, they apparently need it.

A reunion of a different variety

So my 10 year high school reunion is scheduled for some Saturday in the month of July. It is quite odd to be 10 years removed from high school. And while I wouldn't mind going into depth about what that means to me, I will instead bore you with the story of my Friday night, as it was a reunion with friends from high school as well, and required less awkwardness.

About 2 weeks ago I decided to post on my friend David's facebook wall about the new 90210 series that is coming out this fall (on the CW...stay tuned!!). David was fanatical about the original iteration of the show, and I still remember going over to his house and watching the episode that Dylan left the show, and the fact that he wore a black armband the following day at school. That post led to a small wall conversation and we decided to get together for dinner this past Friday night. We ended up at the Taco Mac for dinner, and just had a wonderful time catching up. About 25 minutes into dinner, David said that after we finished at the Mac, we were going to go sing karaoke at the former Cherokee Billiards. WHAT?!

So we went to the bar after dinner and sang freaking karaoke!! For those interested, I sang Be My Yoko Ono (by my favorite band Barenaked Ladies) and Don't Stop Believing (by my real favorite band Journey). If I were to American Idol Judge myself, I think that my version of Yoko Ono was really solid, but not all that original. My Don't Stop Believing was OUT OF THIS WORLD!! First of all, it was as far out of my vocal range as anything can possibly be. By the Singer in a Smokey Lounge line, I was croaking like a frog and sweating like a person who would be sweating alot. Someone actually threw me a shirt to wipe my face off. I was living the dream!!

The bar had several fun groups of people. There were the 9 women who were out on a Mom's Night Out (we ended up at their table before the night was through). There was Jim, the 6'4" 320lb gay guy in jean shorts who knew EVERY SONG that was played. There was the token black man, who I am pretty sure ended up going home with one of the moms. All in all the group was fantastic fun and the night was just a blast.

The most interesting part of the night involved a conversation that I ended up having with David about brotherhood and fellowship. That will actually be the topic of my next blog.

Peace Out!!

Memorial Day Weekend

Wow, I have been a horrible blogger. I apologize to anyone who has ever read my blog. I got busy with doing other stuff. Just to update my NYE blog, I ended up losing 27lbs during my quest to get in shape. I weighed in at 217 to start and got all the way down to 188 and decided to hover around 190, which is where I am today. Truth be told, the success I had in this area was in large part because of the support system I had in place. Everyone at work was trying to lose weight, and my brother as well. Together we lost over 50 lbs.

So what has happened since I last blogged. Well, I moved. I am now living with my little brother in Marietta, and we have a fantastic place. It is bigger than we should have in terms of the amount furniture we own, but it is just right for everything else. I have taken another trip to NY to visit the sister and her boyfriend. I will post pictures later. You should definitely check out this YouTube video I took while at the NY Aquarium. It is absolutely incredible. We had tons of fun on the trip, and we drove the whole way so it was nice to spend time with my parents and make that trip as an adult.

We have also had to put one of our dogs down. Casey was about 16/17 years old, and she just started to deteriorate very quickly. It was very sad, but very necessary. If I can find a picture, I will post one of her as well. No need for her beautiful Benji-looking face to not be on the interwebs forever.

And as it is Memorial Day Weekend, let me wax philosophical for just a few minutes. We are at an interesting point in our history. My generation has their Vietnam, and whereas the last generation got up in arms and protested, ours has taken a very laissez-fare approach to this point. So long as The Hills was still on TV, it hasn't seemed to matter what happened in Iraq. Our college campuses are quiet, and the biggest protests were from parents of the children fighting in this war. I do think that we have finally come to a point though where we are going to see the fruits of the silent dissension of our youth. I have no qualms in saying that I voted for Barack Obama in the GA Primary. I also think that as we approach the end of the Democratic Primary season and he wins the nomination, that we will see him ride a wave of young, normally disenfranchised, voters to a victory in November. Will he do well as our President? I have no idea. But he has instilled in me a sense of hope that he won't do what we have had to endure over the last 16 years (lies, controversy, scandal, death, wars, impeachment, "nuculer," etc...). I truly feel that we will move towards the rectification of a situation that has cost a large number of lives, and on this Memorial Day, I am hopeful. Win or lose, I am thankful to him for that.

I hope everyone is having a safe weekend, and when you get a chance, just sit and reflect on our soldiers who are fighting a war that no one wants. Regardless of the beliefs that you or I have on this war though, they are dying for something, and that truly is something that we should be thankful to them and their loved ones for.

New Year's Resolutions Anyone?

I don't normally do any New Year's resolutions, but this year's beginning coincided with something that my roommates and I were doing anyway, so I guess I will call it one. We have decided to work on our fitness in preparation for softball next season. Also, I am weighing in at around 210, and with my frame of only 5'10", I am starting to feel like a fat ass. So we went to the track this past weekend and did some fitness exercises to gauge where we were. It turns out that I am really out of shape in some areas, and not nearly as out of shape as I thought I would be in others.

We started out with a 12 minute run, and I was able to do about 8.5 tenths of a mile (I could have probably done more, but I have some wicked shin splints). We did a shuttle run series and I did pretty well on that one (about 15.2 seconds for what we believed to be 80 yards). At the house we did some crunches (pulled out around 30 in a minute...but I think that will increase quickly), some push-ups (I sucked here...only 11 before I couldn't do any more), flexibility (7.5" will need to get to stretching), and something called a plank - you essentially balance your self on your toes and forearms and make you back straight as an arrow and hold it for as long as you can (I did this for over 45 seconds, which I was pleased with).

The goal is to improve on each of these and track that improvement to see where we will be in 2 months when softball starts back up. We are also working on lowering our portions sizes in an attempt to shrink the belly (my brother is working on this one with me) and also doing cardio and weight lifting workouts (we did an hour or so at the gym tonight).

I figure, by throwing it out here, the 4 of you that read this thing will be able to keep me honest and on track. Or maybe I will be able to do it myself...either way, I am exhausted and going to bed.

Good night, and Happy New Year!!

Congratulations UGA

Before I go to bed, I just want to congratulate the University of Georgia on their victory, nay, their absolute domination of the Hawaii Warriors in the Sugar Bowl. It has to be one of the most incredible performances I have seen out of the team. Marcus Howard was epic, Knowshan Moreno was his usual self, even Brandon Coutu was unstoppable. Great season by the Bulldogs, and I can only imagine what we would have accomplished had the voters gotten the final week's vote correct. Go Dawgs!! Sic em!! WOOF WOOF WOOF WOOF!!