Chris, I'm sure that in the past few weeks since your graduating, damn near everyone you've talked to has tried to give you advice. "Aim for the best opportunity, not the best salary." "Follow your passion." "Always spit on it before you try the Mario Golf sneak attack." Don't listen to these assholes. I've got some advice for you, and it's the only advice you'll hear that matters. You'll never be smarter than you are right now. You know all those mathematical theorems, philosophical arguments and historical facts that are filling your brain right now? It's only a matter of time until it's all gone. I wrote 20 page papers on conflicting arguments among the founding fathers about the merits of federalism versus anti-federalism in college. Today, I had to check Wikipedia because I couldn't remember who said "Give me liberty or give me death." Next up, leaving for work with no pants and drooling on my keyboard once I get there. Why do you think old people can't figure out how to use their TV remotes or use a computer? These are the people who invented the nuclear bomb and fought off the Nazis and yet they are constantly crashing their cars through farmer's markets. Enjoy ...

So we played a practical joke on my co-worker today and it's probably a lot funnier if you work here, but I'll share it anyway. We used to work with a large, socially-awkward, lumberjack looking fellow from the U.P. who we called Eggs. He had a crush on another of my co-workers, we'll call her Pocahontas because she's Indian (dots, not feathers). He expressed it in a junior high schoolboy, Pedobear kind of way. Anyway, as a joke on Pocahontas, we wrote a fake love letter, Photoshopped an engagement picture and sent it to her via a fake e-mail address. The letter is below: My dearest Pocahontas, Please forgive the impersonal nature of sending such an important message via e-mail, for it's quite urgent. I decided that the immediacy of the Internet mixed with my fear that if I hand wrote this, the extremely heartfelt sentiment and feelings would be lost in the illegible abyss of the chicken scratch that is my handwriting necessitated its delivery in this manner. It's so important that you understand and take to heart each word I write, because this truly comes from the depth of my soul. It's been quite some time since we've talked, and yet my heart ...

The best argument for gay marriage and against Prop 8 I've ever heard. No using the Bible to throw it back in Christians' faces, no arguments about legality, just pure, heartfelt emotion. [youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mCBczUzEb1A&color1=0xb1b1b1&color2=0xcfcfcf&hl=en&fs=1]

I've been MIA the last several days. I've been dealing with the passing of my grandmother. She was 79 and suffered from Parkinsons. It wasn't a huge shock that her time had finally come, but tough to deal with nonetheless. I'd like to share with you the eulogy I gave at the funeral. ---- Reflecting back on memories of my grandmother, one thing really stood out: As a child I knew and loved her very much, but I don't think I ever really knew a whole lot about her outside of what I could cull from our brief visits a couple times each year. I don't know if it was just me being a kid, letting her concentrate on me rather than me on her, or if it was just that she was a fairly private person. It wasn't until I was in college and had to do an assignment for a journalism class that I decided to talk to her, to interview her and really find out who she was. We spent hours on the phone, and for the first time we just talked about her. Among other things, she told me about how she used to ride the streetcars to Briggs Stadium ...

So KS and I are working on baby names. She likes Parker, Tyler and other yuppie names. I've done my best to distract her with my own, ever growing list of names for boys. This was an actual conversation from the other night: RS: How about Alexi? KS: No. RS: Pavel? KS: No, all Russian names are off limits. RS: How about Chuck Norris? Chuck Norris Novak. KS: No!!! RS: That's probably for the best, don't want our baby roundhouse kicking his way out of the womb. What about Steve Yzerman or Joe Montana? Steve Yzerman Novak sounds pretty good. KS: No, no sports figures. RS: Well then, what do you suggest? KS: I've always liked Cameron. We could call him Cam. RS: Sweet! Cam Neely was a great hockey player for the Bruins, I'm cool with that. KS: *sigh* In all seriousness, we're trying to find a name we both find suitable, that has meaning, and that won't get our little boy or girl's ass kicked at the bike rack after school. I think we've settled on a name should it be a girl, but the boy's name is a work in progress. It's tough though, you know? I mean, it's like, we're deciding what this person is going to be called for ...

So another year has gone by, and I barely remember what happened to make this different than any other year. Sparing you a full-blown year in review like everyone else is doing, here's the rundown (in order of significance): 1. I started dating an amazing woman, KS, at the very end of August. I'll spare you the lovey-dovey gush gush stuff. Suffice it to say, she's the best. 2. I lost my job last June. In the interim, I've been designing Web sites occasionally, as well as doing other work when I can get it to make ends meet. Yesterday was the drop dead date as far as the job hunt goes, so it looks like I'll be waiting tables sooner rather than later. 3. My aunt had a stroke (to go on top of another stroke she had last year), had complications with her medication that created blood clots in a foot which she later had amputated, seemed to recover and then finished out the year with a debilitating stroke from which she's not going to come back. Say a little prayer for her and my uncle, won't you? 4. I moved into the WSJP ranch with Chach and J. last April. It's ...

Popular Kid In high school, everyone knew your name - even if you didn't know theirs. In fact, your still skating by on your looks and charm. Nothing wrong with that! Who Were You In High School?