The Life of the Nickness

I don't feel much like updating, so I'll just list the things I've done today.

–finished season 1 of Boston Legal

–played with Simon(alot)

–went for a long walk around my apartment complex a couple of times(wow it's hot outside!)

–cleaned my apartment(stupid vaccuum, I hate you!)

–looked up information about the UMC

–did devotions outside on my terrace while sipping green tea and enjoying the view

–called work to get a status report for the day

–took a nap

–missed someone terribly

All in all I'd say it's been a pretty nice day off.

Saturday… I worked. It was fun! (note the sarcasm) The best thing(and probably the funniest thing) happened after work when I got to go to Mosaic. Yay! Pastor Barry spoke, which was really awesome. He even used my name a couple of times in his sermon, which was very cool. One very funny thing to note–for worship we started singing “God send your fire” and 5 minutes later the fire alarms went off! Shortstack said she was gonna be sure to thank God for his sense of humor.
I was really tired Sat night though; begged out of getting ice cream with the rest of the group so I could go home and sleep. However I never made it there! I ended up falling asleep in the church parking lot…Eric the way awesome mateinence guy woke me up about 11pm…wanted to make sure I was ok, since he knows the cops patrol and he didnt want me getting in trouble.

Sunday was cool too. I overslept which means I missed Sunday school–that was probably the only bad thing that happened. The rest of the day was awesome! Wait…I take that back. I ended up working with a certain very old, very slow, very stupid person. That sucked. But what made it better? Ashley came by and had lunch with me! (ok, I had lunch, she watched me eat cause she already had lunch with her other pastors) We talked more. I love getting to know her. Shes a very interesting person. After work everyone gathered at the store to go to the work party. Now that was a trip! Piled in the car, being forced to listen to the radio as it blarred the nascar race. Grrr. However, another surprise was in store–turns out Ashley surprised me and decided to come to the party. It was bittersweet though, cause the only reason she could come was cause none of her youth showed up to paint(it was youth group night for her) so she had to cancel it. Sad! But I'm happy she was able to join me. It was…much fun. My boss acted like she was drunk(even though she swears she wasn't) and there was.. Kareoke. Which I sang. With a bunch of people. I've come to realize that even though the dance is really cool, I do not have the voice for “Thiller”. Hehehehe. After the party Ashley came over to my apartment and we watched “2 Weeks Notice” I was planning on introducing her to Eric and Melissa, but they were headed to bed and I think Eric maybe got a quick glimpse of her–yes, shes real! I'm not making her up everyone! Ask my co-workers! They saw her too! LOL. All in all the night went really well–I'm definitely smitten with her.

Today I worked. It was hot. I was(and still kinda am) really sweaty. It's gross. Plus I learned that I really need to step up to the plate and get to store manager level soon–there may be openings in the near future, and if Ruth(shelly's boss) has to tell Wayne(her boss) that I'm not ready again, it could mean very bad things for me. They wouldn't fire me, but they would seriously question whether or not I have what it takes to be a store manager.

I'm posting another Sinfest comic. This one I find very amusing. Very amusing.

This entry may be a bit long, because there are several items of importance I felt needed sharing. I thought about using LJ-cuts, but decided againt it, for no real apparent reason.

So…first things first. Contrary to rumors going around(spoken or unspoken), Ashley and I didn't have sex. Not even close. I didnt get back from my date until 3am because the movie we went to see was 3 hours long(which by the way..Davinci code–so not worth it), and afterwards we talked for quite a while. Lets all remember this happened in Sterling, and with no traffic it takes about 35-40 minutes for me to get home. However, great communication is something I look for in a potential relationship, so it's good to know that aspect is there. As far as first dates go though, this one was practically perfect.

Secondly, you'd think I would have learned my lesson, but it appears once again my excitement about the potential my current social life holds has made me appear too over-eager and a little bit desperate. Nothing nearly as bad as last time(thank God) and luckily I have my boss to tell me point blank when I'm making a fool out of myself. I just need to remember that my excitement about potential relationships can definitely come off as clingly, desperate and over-eager. Which are all very bad things to a woman who wants to casually date for a while until deciding to take things to the next level. So I'm gonna try to relax, not be so persistant/pushy in my desire to see her, and basically just wait until shes ready to see me again. From what I've seen so far, Ashley has all the qualities I'm looking for in a woman, the last thing I want to do is freak her out and scare her off.

Next subject! The horrible and distasteful Sinfest comic I posted a while back. This is actually the first comic I've posted to recieve negative feedback. Is it funny? No. Is it shocking? Yes. Should it make you think? Yes. Regardless of how it's portrayed, Jesus did save the world by dying on a cross. The message is true. The medium may disturb you, but hey–you've remembered it. Life is not always so happy go lucky and pure. While the 'comic' might not have appealed to you, I'm sure there are many people out there who might not even know the gospel story, and this may be the first 'taste' of it. Who knows? Maybe this comic will drive some people to look up the subject or read a bible. Am I defending the artist? No. I'm merely giving you another viewpoint to consider. I will say I find it curious that you all jump at the comic you hate, while say nothing about another comic drawn by the same man with a completely different focus.

Moving on! X-Men 3. I won't spend too much time on this, due to the fact that I could potentially slip some spoilers into this post, but I will say I thought it was an awesome movie. You should go see it. And after you see it, make sure you sit through all the credits. For your patience you're rewarded with an extra scene.

Thats about it for now. I'm off to rest and relax before work tomorrow.

I'm tired, so I'll keep this short.

The date #1 was awesome. I can't wait til I can see her again.

'nuff said.

Wow. It's been what? Two, maybe even three weeks since I posted an actual real update? *Sigh* I feel bad about it folks, I really do. But I figured you all were getting tired of the same old 'i went to work and now I'm home' sort of info. Thought I'd wait til I had something fresh and new and awesomely interesting to report. Whats sad is that it's taken this long for something note-worthy to happen. I'll start with the usual, for you all who wonder about my day to day goings on.

Work has been ok. Really busy lately, but thats expected as our store works its way to becoming #1 in the district. Last week I spent 10 hours at another store, learning how to do inventory. It was easy, just very tiresome.

May 23rd has come and gone and I still don't have Season 1 of Boston Legal. But thats for a very good and important reason. I'm sure I'll get it eventually. On that note, major props to . She knows why.

Eric moves in with me in less than a month! He's already taken to moving his stuff here on the weekends. I think it's gonna be a good arrangement. I'll get some extra money, he'll get a place to live closer to Melissa, and we'll both get to know each other better(since Melissa is very emphatic about him not going anywhere)

Something you all may find interesting–I'm actually going out on a date tonight. Her name is Ashley(incase you couldn't tell from the LJ-tags) Which in and of itself isn't all that 'wow' however, I should note that she is a methodist pastor(dun dun dun!) Thats right folks. I said Pastor. And shes a very attractive pastor. I would even go so far as to say a hott Pastor. I didn't even know there was such a thing! We're gonna go see The Da Vinci Code later this evening. I've never dated a pastor before. We've been talking online for about a month and we've had some pretty good conversations. I've only seen her a couple of times when shes come into my store to say hi, but apparently I've been 'checking her out' since I started working there last November. It'll be interesting to see where this goes. Because they're a public figure, dating a pastor is (from what I've been told) a completely different experience alltogether with a completely different set of rules. So I've got my fingers(and toes) crossed, and I'll let you all know how it goes. Meanwhile comments are always appriciated. For now though, I'll leave you with a brief aim conversation I had with my brother, the ever so wonderful and yet ever so crazy Nona the Ninja.

Me: so what are your thoughts on me dating a pastor?
Nona the Ninja: um isn't that against the rules
Me: shes not an AG pastor
Nona the Ninja: like dudes and dudes shouldn't go for it right?
Nona the Ninja: ohh its a SHE… lol

Thats all for now folks! Will Nick's date with Ashley be a bust? Will the movie suck? Will Nick ever talk about anything else besides work and his social life? Tune in next time! Same bat-time, same bat channel!

Season 1 of Boston Legal is released May 23, 2006.

Season 8 of Frasier is released June 13, 2006

In other news: Simon is back from the vet…a little less manly, if you know what I mean. He's sleeping now, and we'll see tomorrow if he's lost that certain 'spring' he once had in his step.

For my birthday tonight I went out to dinner with two very single, very attractive female friends. Dinner was great fun, however it turns out they were just the decoy–when the three of us got back to my apartment, the rest of my friends had gathered and thrown me a surprise birthday party. It even had a theme: the any party but a birthday party party. Lots of decorations that are not coming down any time soon.

You know, it's times like this when I'm depressed, getting sick, broke, and feeling unloved that I wonder why I haven't moved yet. And then my friends do something like this. And I remember why I stay.

And so, Pamela, Kristen, Connie, Laura, Jonathan, Matt, Abby, Carson, and Marcus(even though I don't know you that well) Thank you for making my birthday a special one!

I'm now officially 24 years old.

Wow.

So apparently, if I lie to the apartment community and NOT tell them I'm getting an 'illegal roommate' Daniel says I can no longer be a leader of mens core.

So…as soon as I get my roomie, I'm no longer going to be leading men's core(not like I'm leading it now, but thats another story)

I abhor ultimatums.

Oh well. It was fun while it lasted, but I think I'd rather have a place to live than live out on the street and co-lead mens core.

And if you think that makes me a bad person or less of a christian just let me know how much money you're willing to donate every month to me, and we'll see how it goes.

4 days and counting until my 24th birthday.

I've lived one more year

Can anyone tell me what I've done with my life?

I was sick last night and ended up falling asleep by the toilet at 9:30pm.

Not warning, no nothing. I wasn't even drinking either.

To top it all off, I have a close friend who I haven't heard from all weekend, and I have no idea if shes even ok.

Countdown til my wonderful 24th birthday: 5 days…

I love this email.

Come back Ali! Come back Ali’s sister!

You two meant everything to me!

So this is the season for ‘first’ communion for catholic children. I’m not really sure of the details, but I feel bad for them already. So many people come into my store, wanting to buy stuff for them. Which at first glance, seems really awesome. Until the majority of people end up buying cross necklaces, roseries, catholic kids bibles, and picture frames. Yeah, I’d love to be a catholic kid and get 4 Bibles, 8 necklaces, and 20 pictures frames from people I don’t really know but my parents told them about it so they felt obligated to buy me something.

The sad thing? Most of the people who come into my store to get something…aren’t catholic. Aren’t Christian. Aren’t…anything. They seem so out of place. Whats worse–when I try to suggest something the child might enjoy(like a dvd or a game or another book) these non-educated people suddenly become experts, and tell me that as a first communion gift, the items I just suggested are the devil. I’m sorry, but didn’t you just tell me you had no idea what to get him? Yes, fine. Get the child a cross. He’s catholic, right? I’m sure he doesn’t have about a zillion of those already. Oh and while you’re at it, heres a boring catholic children’s bible. I’d suggest an awesome bible they can actually read, understand, and enjoy but sadly you’re an ignorant fool and you’re cheaper than any jew thats ever come into this store.

And on the subject of jews…my shofars still haven’t been transfered from the fredricksburg store. I don’t even think they’ve mailed them yet. Grrr.

At the end of the day you’re another day older
And that’s all you can say for the life of the poor
It’s a struggle, it’s a war
And there’s nothing that anyone’s giving
One more day standing about, what is it for?
One day less to be living.

At the end of the day you’re another day colder
And the shirt on your back doesn’t keep out the chill
And the righteous hurry past
They don’t hear the little ones crying
And the winter is coming on fast, ready to kill
One day nearer to dying!

At the end of the day there’s another day dawning
And the sun in the morning is waiting to rise
Like the waves crash on the sand
Like a storm that’ll break any second
There’s a hunger in the land
There’s a reckoning still to be reckoned and
There’s gonna be hell to pay
At the end of the day!

I hate when you think you're friends with someone, and it turns out that you're really only their friend when it's convenient for them. And you usually don't find out until *fill in the blank yourself*

We all know what I'm talking about here. It sucks.

So why do people do it?

I just realized.
In the story of my life, there are so many times when I don’t feel like the main character.

And in the story of my friends’ and family’s lives, there are so many times I don’t even feel like a supporting cast member.

I’m more…the fat quirky weirdly funny guy that shows up for a few episodes now and again. I get a good laugh, but too much of me and the audience is writing the producers wanting me off the air.

Which might not be true. But it’s how I feel.

I need a change. I think…Simon and I are going to start looking for a job in a different state, far away from Manassas and Northern VA. Just disappear, and not come back.

I wonder how long it would take everyone to forget about me?

[no comments, as this is not what this entry is about]

This post has taken me 5 days to write, and its not even done yet. I started on Thursday, and it's now Monday. Wow. Well, I'll post it anyway for your reading pleasure, and add more to it later.
I've been wanting to update for a while now(well, since my last post, obviously) but for some reason when I sit at the computer, I can't think of anything interesting to say. Ok, thats not true. I'm thinking of lots of things to tell you all. So many infact, that my real problem is trying to decide what to tell you.

You ever have one of those mornings when you awake up, roll out of bed, and life just *hits* you? Where you wake up and realize *this* is your life? Not in a good or bad way, you just wake up and realize “I'm not a kid anymore. This isn't high school. I'm an adult. I have responsibilities. Wow. Where did my childhood go?” I had one of those mornings a couple of nights ago. I was startled awake at 4am by Simon, and for some reason it just hit me. Yes, that was my random comment for the day.

What I really wanted to talk about in this post was my recent fascination with the new Rihanna song, “Unfaithful” Click the link for the lyrics if you don't already know the song.

The first time you hear this beautiful song, I think it's a little bit tempting to feel sorry for Rihanna, who can't seem to stop herself from having an affair with another man, even though she knows her husband/boyfriend knows that she is cheating. Yet for some reason (perhaps the fact that I was cheated on) I was really drawn to look at the story from another side–the side of her husband/boyfriend. He knows shes cheating on him, and it's hurting him, and yet he stays with her. A line in the song states: Hes more than a man and this is more than love, the reason that the sky is blue And it would have to be, wouldn't it? This man must really love her, if after finding out that not only has she had an affair, but continues to have an affair, he stays with her and continues to love her.

I can't help but draw the parrallel between this song and the book of Hosea and how God loves us despite our 'love affair' with the World.