He will protect me in my travels.
Thursday, March 17, 2005
Greenberg and I are out
It was announced that Greenberg is stepping down as CEO of AIG. I think that he heard that I was leaving.
NEW YORK--March 14, 2005-- American International Group, Inc. (AIG) today announced that the Board of Directors has implemented its management succession plan with the election of Martin J. Sullivan as President and Chief Executive Officer, succeeding M. R. Greenberg, 79. Mr. Greenberg will serve in the capacity of non-executive Chairman. Mr. Sullivan, 50, who has served in a variety of senior positions during his more than 30-year career at AIG, was most recently Vice Chairman and Co-Chief Operating Officer.
Wednesday, March 16, 2005
Walrus/Elephant
Do they really expect us to think that this towel
has been craftily designed into a Walrus or Elephant?
I mean come on. Seriously guys.
The Cruise/Redux - Part 3
Day 2&3 Highlights only:
Basketball Competition:
Katie and I wanted to find a fun activity so we read and found a basketball shootout and knew that we had to participate. We eventually got everyone to go except Heather who was sick in the room from the previous evening's shenanigans. We went and signed up with Tina, the social director, along with about 5 others. Once word got out about the tourney there were dudes coming out of the woodwork. My personal favorite was Frank. He was a very intense rebounder at the basketball competition who wouldn't take off his iPod (he had eye of the tiger on repeat). He also, for reasons unknown, brought his brand new Air Jordan's on a 3 night cruise to the Bahamas. The greatest part about Frank is how he was willing to help anyone. He always wanted us to put more arc on the ball or shoot it in (advice I actually tried to follow). So we all go and suck, I made 1/20 for example. I did bet Vanessa she wouldn't make one and she did so I owed her a beer which she doesn't drink so it really worked out great. Katie was also a baller and made it to the finals with an unheardof 6/20 in. However she had to face Frank and lost to that douschebag. On a side note, a little guy with a shirt that said "Italian Stallion" walked straight into a pole; very funny.
Captain's Greeting:
Well we got all gussied up for the captain's dinner and decided to stop by his cocktail hour for a free drink before dinner since this is the only time that they are offered the whole cruise. This one really backfired since I jokingly asked the waiter for "one of each" and he literally set down 9 drinks before me. So, being the economist that I am, decided to drink them all. Needless to say I don't remember dinner that night and apparently walked out for a good portion of it. In addition, Nathan and Heather, the Hollywood couple, were interviewed about their big day in Nassau. We clearly didn't get off the boat to go into that rat infested shit hole and had nothing to say to the guy. Heather had slept all day but they looked damn fine on TV when we saw them later that night being broadcast over the whole ship.
All day drinking on deck:
This was part of our "Fun Day At Sea" and boy was it. After the last few days it now seemed that Josh had actually managed to buy a drink from every waiter on deck. They hounded him all day and it ended up that Dean from St Vincent was the big winner. He was a real hustler and you need that while drinking. It turns out he knew Michael our waiter, also from St Vincent. Now Michael and I had a relationship much like that of Christian and I on our last short-ass cruise. Nic-o-las was my name and I hit the rock more times than I can count or care to. Other than that we had great fun on the water slide getting a hint from a 5 year old to arch your back and ride on shoulder blades and heels for maximum speed. Nathan had his first encounter with sushi (no more needs to be said).
Bingo:
What a f'ing waste. Jim couldn't get the board to light up correctly and we only used the free space once. They don't sell buckets of beer and we all lost. We played 4 corners, diamond, top line, diagonal, and all sorts of other retarded games. One game 6 people won and they each made about $16 US. Very intense though.
Casino:
Well it turns out that the statement "easy come, easy go" is a correct one. I managed to lose all initial winnings in a few hours once leaving an initial $10 bet on black for 5 rolls and then losing it all. Everyone else was smarter than Grass and I and decided to stay out of the casino and by out I mean standing over our shoulders giving advice. Lucky number 11 hit about 5 times for me but once hit 4 times in 7 rolls and I only got the first one because I was afraid to bet on it again. As always you come out talking about how close you were or what should have been.
Late night encounter:
A chance encounter in the 24 hour pizza parlor with Charlie Korsmo left us flabbergasted and in awe of this man. Well nothing really happened except I found a medal on top of a trash can that a girl from his posse wanted back and then I made an ice cream bowl about 10 inches tall, which Korsmo commented on, and then Josh plopped his face down into it.
Catchphrases developed:
konichiwa (in a very Asian voice), delic (pronounced like delicious), I mean come on (south park style), Geeeeeeeeeee-Unit, Newt Rockney, and a funny face by Nate (that guy really stepped up in the humor department)
Basketball Competition:
Katie and I wanted to find a fun activity so we read and found a basketball shootout and knew that we had to participate. We eventually got everyone to go except Heather who was sick in the room from the previous evening's shenanigans. We went and signed up with Tina, the social director, along with about 5 others. Once word got out about the tourney there were dudes coming out of the woodwork. My personal favorite was Frank. He was a very intense rebounder at the basketball competition who wouldn't take off his iPod (he had eye of the tiger on repeat). He also, for reasons unknown, brought his brand new Air Jordan's on a 3 night cruise to the Bahamas. The greatest part about Frank is how he was willing to help anyone. He always wanted us to put more arc on the ball or shoot it in (advice I actually tried to follow). So we all go and suck, I made 1/20 for example. I did bet Vanessa she wouldn't make one and she did so I owed her a beer which she doesn't drink so it really worked out great. Katie was also a baller and made it to the finals with an unheardof 6/20 in. However she had to face Frank and lost to that douschebag. On a side note, a little guy with a shirt that said "Italian Stallion" walked straight into a pole; very funny.
Captain's Greeting:
Well we got all gussied up for the captain's dinner and decided to stop by his cocktail hour for a free drink before dinner since this is the only time that they are offered the whole cruise. This one really backfired since I jokingly asked the waiter for "one of each" and he literally set down 9 drinks before me. So, being the economist that I am, decided to drink them all. Needless to say I don't remember dinner that night and apparently walked out for a good portion of it. In addition, Nathan and Heather, the Hollywood couple, were interviewed about their big day in Nassau. We clearly didn't get off the boat to go into that rat infested shit hole and had nothing to say to the guy. Heather had slept all day but they looked damn fine on TV when we saw them later that night being broadcast over the whole ship.
All day drinking on deck:
This was part of our "Fun Day At Sea" and boy was it. After the last few days it now seemed that Josh had actually managed to buy a drink from every waiter on deck. They hounded him all day and it ended up that Dean from St Vincent was the big winner. He was a real hustler and you need that while drinking. It turns out he knew Michael our waiter, also from St Vincent. Now Michael and I had a relationship much like that of Christian and I on our last short-ass cruise. Nic-o-las was my name and I hit the rock more times than I can count or care to. Other than that we had great fun on the water slide getting a hint from a 5 year old to arch your back and ride on shoulder blades and heels for maximum speed. Nathan had his first encounter with sushi (no more needs to be said).
Bingo:
What a f'ing waste. Jim couldn't get the board to light up correctly and we only used the free space once. They don't sell buckets of beer and we all lost. We played 4 corners, diamond, top line, diagonal, and all sorts of other retarded games. One game 6 people won and they each made about $16 US. Very intense though.
Casino:
Well it turns out that the statement "easy come, easy go" is a correct one. I managed to lose all initial winnings in a few hours once leaving an initial $10 bet on black for 5 rolls and then losing it all. Everyone else was smarter than Grass and I and decided to stay out of the casino and by out I mean standing over our shoulders giving advice. Lucky number 11 hit about 5 times for me but once hit 4 times in 7 rolls and I only got the first one because I was afraid to bet on it again. As always you come out talking about how close you were or what should have been.
Late night encounter:
A chance encounter in the 24 hour pizza parlor with Charlie Korsmo left us flabbergasted and in awe of this man. Well nothing really happened except I found a medal on top of a trash can that a girl from his posse wanted back and then I made an ice cream bowl about 10 inches tall, which Korsmo commented on, and then Josh plopped his face down into it.
Catchphrases developed:
konichiwa (in a very Asian voice), delic (pronounced like delicious), I mean come on (south park style), Geeeeeeeeeee-Unit, Newt Rockney, and a funny face by Nate (that guy really stepped up in the humor department)
Panda Joke
A panda walks into a restaurant, sits down, and orders a sandwich. He eats the sandwich, pulls out a gun, and shoots the waiter dead. As the panda stands up to go, the manager shouts, "Hey! Where are you going? You just shot my waiter, and you didn't even pay for your sandwich!"
"Hey, man, I'm a PANDA!" the panda shouts back. "Look it up!"
The manager opens his dictionary and reads:
Panda: A tree-dwelling marsupial of Asian origin, characterized by distinct black and white coloring. Eats shoots and leaves.
"Hey, man, I'm a PANDA!" the panda shouts back. "Look it up!"
The manager opens his dictionary and reads:
Panda: A tree-dwelling marsupial of Asian origin, characterized by distinct black and white coloring. Eats shoots and leaves.
The Cruise/Redux - Part 2
Day 1:
Getting ready, hanging out. That's what we did trying to recover from our first night of showing the man that we were going to take every advantage of this God given opportunity. The boys are back. So our other new friends decided to leave Key West about 2:30am and so they arrived at the Port of Miami at about 0500 hours and decided to start calling us to see where the hell we were. "People are getting on the boat" the repeatedly screamed. Well some of us just don't care. We arrived at the port at about 2 or so after being lost a number of times and giving in to call and ask for directions. READ: it was one of the hardest things that this MAN has ever done that is admitting that I didn't know where to go after harassing them about it only hours earlier. Well we all got on the boat, everyone except Mr Austin Nichols and his Wild Turkey. Yes, I was the fall man for our squad. We got over 18 gallons of liquor on board but the pint of Turkey didn't make it. Don't fret though they gave me a receipt and gave it back to me at the end of the cruise. They just didn't want to see me hurt myself; I love and respect Carnival cruise lines. Nathan and I were room leaders since we are the only 25 year olds in our group so we gallantly led our teams through about 20-25 ID, credit card, room key, and paper checks. We are welcomed by a brilliant photo op with a monkey and palm tree background (how this relates I don't know) and then realize that the decor of the Fascination is to die for. I mean this place looks like Donald Trump decorated it in 1983. Bronze and neon everywhere. Made it down to the room and looked around and felt that I was somehow lost in a closet. No but for real dogg the place was very, shall we say, cozy. So back deckside we made our first walkabout and let the drinking begin. I mean it is vacation after all. Nothing exciting happened until we found Charlie Korsmo a real super star in everyones eyes. At this point it gets fuzzy. I remember having some serious guy talk on the aft deck smoking some cubans. I remember making about $500 at the roulette table and then drinking a tall glass of nearly straight gin. And i remember afterward grassy and i went back to lost 1/4 of our earnings each. C'est la vie.
Getting ready, hanging out. That's what we did trying to recover from our first night of showing the man that we were going to take every advantage of this God given opportunity. The boys are back. So our other new friends decided to leave Key West about 2:30am and so they arrived at the Port of Miami at about 0500 hours and decided to start calling us to see where the hell we were. "People are getting on the boat" the repeatedly screamed. Well some of us just don't care. We arrived at the port at about 2 or so after being lost a number of times and giving in to call and ask for directions. READ: it was one of the hardest things that this MAN has ever done that is admitting that I didn't know where to go after harassing them about it only hours earlier. Well we all got on the boat, everyone except Mr Austin Nichols and his Wild Turkey. Yes, I was the fall man for our squad. We got over 18 gallons of liquor on board but the pint of Turkey didn't make it. Don't fret though they gave me a receipt and gave it back to me at the end of the cruise. They just didn't want to see me hurt myself; I love and respect Carnival cruise lines. Nathan and I were room leaders since we are the only 25 year olds in our group so we gallantly led our teams through about 20-25 ID, credit card, room key, and paper checks. We are welcomed by a brilliant photo op with a monkey and palm tree background (how this relates I don't know) and then realize that the decor of the Fascination is to die for. I mean this place looks like Donald Trump decorated it in 1983. Bronze and neon everywhere. Made it down to the room and looked around and felt that I was somehow lost in a closet. No but for real dogg the place was very, shall we say, cozy. So back deckside we made our first walkabout and let the drinking begin. I mean it is vacation after all. Nothing exciting happened until we found Charlie Korsmo a real super star in everyones eyes. At this point it gets fuzzy. I remember having some serious guy talk on the aft deck smoking some cubans. I remember making about $500 at the roulette table and then drinking a tall glass of nearly straight gin. And i remember afterward grassy and i went back to lost 1/4 of our earnings each. C'est la vie.
The Cruise/Redux - Part 1
Well i don't really know where to begin. I suppose this is mainly because i don't remember half of the trip but i will try and recount it as best as possible.
The Arrival:
So i leave early Thursday, March the tenth morning last week (5:30a i think that it is some kind of record) to get to the Atlanta airport. I was flying on a buddy pass so graciously afforded be my friend and compatriot Heather Eli or HLChick to me. I get there in plenty of time and have no problem getting on the 8am flight to Lauderdale. I excitedly call my friend Joshhopper to convey the good news and he too is "out of his mind" excited. Nathan calls a mere two hours later telling me had just woken up for the day. We then proceed to drive around Lauderdale for the next 2-5 hours i don't know which until we find a place to eat (Delic! (sp)(more later)). Head on out to the beach Josh and I in work clothes Nate looking great as always. We get there to see a cop board the Girls Gone Wild tour bus and enough tattoos, fake breasts, and expensive cars to leave us all with dropped jaws. The night continues on the a great dinner prepared by Anderson including steak, scallops, stone crab, and a lovely antipasta platter. Nate finished us off with some cheesecake that we never got to because we were so damn wasted trying to finish the keg so we could get another (don't worry it's still in the freezer). We proceeded to pass out during Harold and Kumar and then woke up after 1800 phone calls from Nathan's gal pal asking how to find the place. Three lovely young lasses arrive about 4:30a a time at which i decide to greet them with toothbrush in hand. Josh was worried about waking the neighbors, Nate was perturbed by all the calls, and I just sat back and laughed about the whole scene. They proceed to quickly all hop into bed together (hott (notice the 2 t's; not a mistake)) and we all have about 2 hours of sleep before the sun streams in and the great drivers of south Florida start letting their horns sound without holding back.
The Arrival:
So i leave early Thursday, March the tenth morning last week (5:30a i think that it is some kind of record) to get to the Atlanta airport. I was flying on a buddy pass so graciously afforded be my friend and compatriot Heather Eli or HLChick to me. I get there in plenty of time and have no problem getting on the 8am flight to Lauderdale. I excitedly call my friend Joshhopper to convey the good news and he too is "out of his mind" excited. Nathan calls a mere two hours later telling me had just woken up for the day. We then proceed to drive around Lauderdale for the next 2-5 hours i don't know which until we find a place to eat (Delic! (sp)(more later)). Head on out to the beach Josh and I in work clothes Nate looking great as always. We get there to see a cop board the Girls Gone Wild tour bus and enough tattoos, fake breasts, and expensive cars to leave us all with dropped jaws. The night continues on the a great dinner prepared by Anderson including steak, scallops, stone crab, and a lovely antipasta platter. Nate finished us off with some cheesecake that we never got to because we were so damn wasted trying to finish the keg so we could get another (don't worry it's still in the freezer). We proceeded to pass out during Harold and Kumar and then woke up after 1800 phone calls from Nathan's gal pal asking how to find the place. Three lovely young lasses arrive about 4:30a a time at which i decide to greet them with toothbrush in hand. Josh was worried about waking the neighbors, Nate was perturbed by all the calls, and I just sat back and laughed about the whole scene. They proceed to quickly all hop into bed together (hott (notice the 2 t's; not a mistake)) and we all have about 2 hours of sleep before the sun streams in and the great drivers of south Florida start letting their horns sound without holding back.
Monday, March 14, 2005
Stuck in Miami - AGAIN
So I'm just sitting here at FLL (fort lauderdale international for those of you not familiar with airport codes) and i just dont think that i am going to be able to get back to Atlanta. Well at least for awhile. This has happened before though. I was on the way back from Ecuador where i had just spent 10 lovely days touring the country with my brother and friend Jimmy. That time i was at MIA though. It was kind of better, kind of worse. I had my dad's Crown Room card so i hung out in there all day but i was bored out of my mind (like many of you reading this). Anyway I am currently as bored as I was then but now i have this little toy to play with and they have free wifi in here so that helps a little. I need to get back to atlanta so i can recover from a wonderful weekend spent with my original Atlanta crew. Grass, Birdman and i accompanied by some lovely ladies went on a little three day Carnival cruise. It was fun. Made some friends. More later.
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