My buddy Ike borrowed one of those little bull dozer things from his boss and the two of us went up to the lake this weekend. We left after work on friday and I took a john boat with a little outboard motor. It is not much of a boat, but you can lift it up and put in the back of the truck, then put all the camping gear in after it. We worked a little and fished a lot, then we drank a lot of beer. I need to find the energy providers for Texas who are willing to hook the power up for me. I think that I have to work on a short term move. It would be a good enough thing to have a small camper trailer in the short term. I just need a place to keep the beer cold and a place that will stay warm when it is cold and cool when it is hot.

I figure that the power company will want me to have a structure of some sort before they will turn the power on. Of course I am going to need power to build the house and I am going to have to spend a lot of time working on it. The idea is to do it in stages. First you would put the foundation in. Then you would put in the shell of the house. I would probably get some pros to help me with that part of it. I know some guys who are able to do it all and I am thinking that I can work out a bit of horse trading with some of them. Once you have a roof and a floor you can work on putting in the walls and the carpets and that stuff.

When I was a kid, our fun was playing with neighborhood kids outside. We would play hide and seek, build tree houses, and just explore everywhere possible. Times have changed drastically since then, which is evident with my children. Instead of asking for a baseball mitt or a pogo stick, my 14 year old daughter asked me to buy her a selfie stick instead. I had no idea what this was, but I knew that it had to do something with either her phone or a video game accessory. She showed me a website that sells the selfie sticks, and I had to admit that it was the perfect item for her.

She loves to take videos and pictures with her phone. She often takes videos of herself to send to her grandparents. They live nearly 2,000 miles away, so they cherish these videos a good bit. She explained that with the selfie stick, she would be able to take better videos and could even start posting them on her social media site so others could see them too. She is a very cautious girl, so I knew that she would be careful about what she posted.

Knowing that her passion seems to be in this, I wanted to buy her the stick she wanted. I am used to the tech things she asks for costing a small fortune, so this was also a nice surprise that it was extremely affordable. It even comes in a variety of colors, but I already knew she would want the pink one. I was able to order it the same day, and she was using it the same week. My mom told me that the videos they get from her now are a lot better since she has better control of her phone while she is taking them.

I have a lot of trees on my property, and it is several more trees than I want to have. I am sick of having to pick up so many sticks, and acorns, and having to deal with the leaves that fall out of the trees in winter. I should have cut down some of these trees, when they were but saplings. However, I did not anticipate such issues, and let them live to maturity. That has came back to bite me, as now I need to find tree service in long island to hire for the job. I am thinking that I would like to have at least half of the trees in my yard cut down, but I doubt that I can afford that.

I need to work with a contractor that does tree work, to figure out a price for an acceptable amount of work. I am going to get the most problematic trees cut down first, and then I will worry about other ones, if I have more money to spend. I really have no idea how much money it is going to cost to get what I want done, but I kind of suspect that it is going to be out of my price range.

There are a few trees that are over 100 feet tall, and they are located close enough to my house, such that they could hit my house, if they were to fall. That troubles me quite a bit, and those are some of my highest priority trees to have cut down. I think that they are pretty old anyway, and likely close to the end of their life span. I actually worry about them falling quite a bit, and I would like to get rid of them to ease my mind.

2. Xanadu Event on 2013-12-31 19:30:00 Produced by Arizona Theatre Company
   

   Center Stage
   Dec 31, 13 - Jan 19, 14
   

   It's hilarity on wheels in this hit, award-winning musical comedy for anyone who has ever wanted to feel inspired.  In this smash Broadway hit, Kira, a beautiful, magical Greek muse, is sent on a quest from the heavens to inspire a young artist to achieve his greatest dream – to build the first roller disco. (Hey...It's 1980!)

   A delightful musical spoof of the classic Olivia Newton-John/Gene Kelly film, this hilarious roller-skating, disco-dancing adventure weaves a tale of endless fun perfect for the whole family.  Featuring popular '80s songs like "Magic," "All Over The World," "Suddenly," "I'm Alive," "Evil Woman," and "Xanadu."

   For tickets or more information, visit www.arizonatheatre.org

   Showtimes:

   Tuesday, December 31, 7:30pm

   Thursday, January 2, 7:30pm

   Friday, January 3, 8pm

   Saturday, January 4, 8pm

   Sunday, January 5, 1pm

   Sunday, January 5, 7pm

   Thursday, January 9, 2pm

   Thursday, January 9, 7:30pm

   Friday, January 10, 8pm

   Saturday, January 11, 2pm

   Saturday, January 11, 8pm

   Sunday, January 12, 1pm

   Sunday, January 12, 7pm

   Wednesday, January 15, 7:30pm

   Thursday, January 16, 7:30pm

   Friday, January 17, 8pm

   Saturday, January 18, 4pm

   Saturday, January 18, 8pm

   Sunday, January 19, 1pm

    

   at The Herberger Theatre Center 222 East Monroe Street Phoenix, United States
3. Baby Wants Candy Event on 2014-01-03 22:30:00 BABY WANTS CANDY kicks off its fifth year at Chicago’s Apollo Theater The completely improvised hit production features performances every Friday night at 10:30 p.m. “IT’S PRETTY DAMN BRILLIANT, IT’S PRETTY DAMN HILARIOUS, AND IT WAS MADE UP ON THE SPOT!” - The Huffington Post “BEST COMEDY!” – TimeOut New York “The Antidote to What Ails Broadway is Baby Wants Candy!”- Out Magazine “THEY ARE AN ENTERTAINMENT PHENOMENON AND I AM IN AWE OF THEIR TALENT!” - The Scotsman “DON’T MISS! BABY WANTS CANDY IS ONE OF THOSE SHOWS ALL AUDIENCES ASPIRE TO SEE MORE THAN ONCE!” - TimeOut Chicago “CONSISTENTLY FUNNY AND CROWD PLEASING” – Chicago Sun-Times “HIGHLY RECOMMENDED!” - The Onion “This absolutely mind-boggling improvised musical is a game changer”- LA ist Chicago, Ill.--BABY WANTS CANDY, the hilarious improvised musical comedy, kicks off its fifth year this month at Chicago’s Apollo Theatre, 2540 North Lincoln Avenue. The smash hit production is currently in an open run. BABY WANTS CANDY has performed over 1,700 completely improvised musicals to thousands of fans from New York to Singapore to Scotland. The production has just returned from a smash hit engagement at the Assembly at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival, and is also currently running in New York City and Los Angeles. A cutting edge theatrical experience, BABY WANTS CANDY features a revolving cast of A-list comedians and performers and a full band. BABY WANTS CANDY begins with the cast asking the audience for a suggestion of a musical that has never been performed before. Accompanied by a full band, the first title that the group hears becomes the title and theme for that evening’s 60 minute show. It’s a roller coaster ride of spontaneously choreographed dance numbers, rhyming verses, and witty jaw-dropping comedy. Each performance is its own opening and closing night, and by design every show is completely unique and a once–in-a-lifetime premiere. BABY WANTS CANDY has received rave reviews in The Huffington Post, The Onion, the Chicago Sun-Times, TimeOut New York and more. BABY WANTS CANDY has received numerous awards and was the Winner of FringeNYC 2009’s Outstanding Unique Theatrical Performance, FringeNYC 2009’s Outstanding Unique Theatrical Performance, the Best Improv Ensemble by Chicago Magazine, the Best Visiting Comedy Ensemble by TimeOut New York, the recipient of the Ensemble of the Year Award at the Chicago Improv Festival and the Eugene O'Neill Festival Opening Ceremonies. BABY WANTS CANDY features an all-star cast in Chicago including Joey Bland, Christy Bonstell, Ross Bryant, Erica Elam, Amanda Davis, Brendan Dowling, John Hartman, Beth Melewski, Nick Semar, Tim Sniffen, Sam Super, and Chris Witaski. The production’s band includes Richie Betts (Drums), Chris Ditton (Bass), Kevin Florian (Guitar), Joe Kelly (Trumpet), Douglas Levin (Drums), and Ben McFadden (Piano.) BABY WANTS CANDY has featured several notable performers including Rachel Dratch and Seth Meyers of Saturday Night Live; Stephnie Weir of MadTV; Nicole Parker of MadTV and Elphaba in WICKED on Broadway; Jack McBrayer of 30 Rock; Al Samuels and Kevin Fleming of Sports Action Team; Beth Melewski , the host Chicago Cash Cab; Garry W. Tallent of Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band; Mark Pender of The Max Weinberg 7 and Bruce Springsteen and the Seeger Sessions Band; and Johnny Pisano of the Jesse Malin Band and The Marky Ramone Band. The regular schedule for BABY WANTS CANDY is Fridays at 10:30 p.m. on the Mainstage at the Apollo Theater, 2540 North Lincoln Avenue in Chicago. Tickets are . Student discounts are available with a valid student ID the day of the show only. For tickets, call the Apollo Theater box office at (773) 935-6100, Ticketmaster at (312) 559-1212 or visit www.ticketmaster.com. For more information, visit www.BabyWantsCandy.com or www.Twitter.com/BabyWantsCandy. ### at Apollo Theater Chicago 2540 N. Lincoln Chicago, United States
4. University of Alaska Anchorage Seawolves vs. Minnesota State University, Mankato Mavericks Mens Hockey Event on 2014-01-10 19:07:00 at George M Sullivan Sports Arena 1600 Gambell Street Anchorage, United States

It has only been a few weeks since I moved into the duo residences, but I feel it is safe to say that I am absolutely loving my time here. I didn't expect to fall in love with a city but I have completely given my heart over to Singapore! It was just a few short weeks ago that I decided to do something completely different with my life. I sold my house. I quit my job. I bought a plane ticket and a condo in Singapore; drastic measures to change my life, but measures that had to be taken if I really wanted to create change. I have never been an individual who tries to do things simply. I knew that doing this was going to be challenging but the more difficult that I make things for myself, the more I will adapt and overcome these challenges. That is the only way to truly ensure that I am doing my best.

I have always been told that I make things difficult for myself but I have always managed to overcome these challenges. It might be an intuitive action; how else do we know our limitations if we are not challenged? How do we not learn new things if we're faced with challenges? Coming to Singapore was a true challenge; with no friends or family in the area, I had to make my own way into this place. Finding work, thankfully, was easy enough. Access to the Internet can provide for nearly anything you might want for, when it comes to financial need. As a writer, I can find work without even trying; it might not always pay the most but I can edit transcripts, e-books or even write articles for search engine optimization utilities. There are many options for a writer on the web.