Me – Regular Guy

Big Mouth Success

brian — Mon, 11 Sep 2017 13:33:24 +0000

The beginning of the York Fair reminds me of my first introduction to the event in 1992. They had bungee jumping that year at the fair.

One day, I went to lunch with a group of fellow Evening Sun reporters. This was our routine. I want to say we were at the Little Red Schoolhouse or the old Blue and White downtown. The discussion turned to the bungee jumping at the fair.

As the only sports reporter in this group, I did not have to cover the fair. Everyone else was assigned to one day of fair coverage. I took this opportunity to declare that if I did have to spend a day at the fair for work, I would totally bungee jump and write about it.

Someone at the table said, “Well, I’m covering the fair this afternoon. I’ll give you a ride so you can do it.”

My big mouth had caused trouble before. This time, however, an extra layer to the story – I had a huge crush on the person who dared me to put my money where my mouth was.

So I got in that now familiar blue Dodge Colt, scared shitless, but also worried that I could never ask this girl out if I backed out on this.

We made it to York, I kept true to my word, and we spent the rest of the day hanging out together at the fair. A week or so later, we started dating for real.

Little did I know that the bungee jumping boast would be the first of many, many, many times where my wife would call me on my BS.

Miss Me?

brian — Wed, 18 Jan 2012 14:00:47 +0000

So I haven’t blogged for a while. Three weeks, pretty much. I have no real excuse. I have thought about writing things, but have been busy at work, focused on another writing project and not really motivated at home.

Never fear – or I’m sorry for the people who come here because they don’t like what I write – I plan on getting back in the swing of things this week. I have a couple of columns to post that have run in the paper. I have a book and a movie to review, plus the usual inanity.

So get ready for some fun here.

The Impetus

brian — Fri, 11 Sep 2009 20:17:16 +0000

Like so many other people, I remember the particulars of 9/11 very clearly. I remember hearing on the radio – I was streaming the BBC at work – about a commuter plane crashing. I remember an old boss talking about how we had to find experts (it was my first PR job) to go on TV, but I didn’t think it was that big deal. Then I remember hearing the real news and everything changing.

I remember :

… the look on the face of a law school professor who knew people working in the towers. Our office had the only TV and became a hub of activity.

… the hasty e-mail from another professor whom I had met only a few days before telling me he had a TV interview set up since he worked in terrorism under President Clinton.

… spending a bunch of time cancelling a press conference on 9/12 because we just knew it wasn’t right to go on.

… spending even more time getting info about the press conference topic to reporters who knew they would need something non-terrorism related at some point in the week.

… frantically trying to get a hold of my wife after hearing a plane went down in rural PA. They didn’t specify where in PA and we live within half an hour of Site R and Camp David so I was losing my mind. She had just taken our 1-year-old out to the playground to avoid all the bad news.

… the eerie feeling on the streets of Baltimore as I headed to catch the Metro to my car. I walked by the federal courthouse while dropping off documents related to the press conference and saw nothing bu heavily armed guards. I felt safe and terrified at the same instant.

Of course, there are many more memories, but one that happened gradually over the next few days was that I needed to get out of my funk. The attacks made all of us look at life a little differently. I didn’t like parts of my job that much. Being a parent was taxing. My commute was a pain. And my Mom had started to have some health problems. So I needed a way to kind of get things off my chest.

That’s how Regular Guy came to be. In October, we were at a cookout at a friend’s house. She still worked at the paper in Hanover as an editor. I said, very simply, “I think I want to write a column.” She agreed it would be a good idea and told me to start sending her something each week. She’d fit me in the Sunday paper.

Almost eight years later, now I have a site where I blog, I had done podcasts, I have written for other web sites, I am two jobs removed from that other job, and I’m still cranking out 500-ish words each week about everything and nothing whether you like it or not.

Odds and Ends

brian — Tue, 25 Sep 2007 15:03:08 +0000

Ugh, life and work have been very busy lately, hence the lack of posting. I even forgot/was too busy to do an “It’s the End of the Week As We Know It” post on Friday. I thought about it and had an idea, but then I got carried away with some serious Playstation action on Friday night. I’ll pick that back up next week.
I was supposed to go to Vegas next week, but my plans fell through. Well, the plans of my traveling companions did. I might go by myself anyway. Speaking of Vegas, this story brings new meaning to”Lord, have mercy” during Mass.
Look for a revamped Regular Guy Radio podcast tomorrow featuring a special interview. I am adding guests to my podcasts so it should be fun. If you have anyone who you think I should interview, leave it in the comments.

It Has to be Said

brian — Wed, 12 Sep 2007 15:12:27 +0000

I was stuck behind a car in traffic today with message on its license plate frame I have wanted to address for a long time, so here goes:

It’s not a Jeep thing, it’s a douchebag thing, and I understand it all too well.

Boycott Suspended

brian — Thu, 16 Aug 2007 00:20:58 +0000

I have made a significant change in my life in recent weeks. I don’t know if it’s for the better, but there’s no turning back now.

I have ended my boycott of Best Buy.

A little less than a year ago, I vowed to never go back there again. I got pretty crappy service their while trying to buy a new television and just figured I could get away with avoiding them altogether.

Then they went and opened one a half-mile from my office. And they put a Chik-Fil-A in the same shopping center. And they are building a Qdoba there.

That’s no fair. I couldn’t in good conscience drive past Best Buy on the way to another place when I needed to buy NCAA08 a few weeks ago. Especially since I wanted Chik-Fil-A for lunch the same day. And I couldn’t avoid going there today when I needed to buy my daughter a CD for her birthday and, again, wanted Chik-Fil-A for lunch. Things will get even worse when they open the Qdoba.

I still won’t go there to buy a big item, but I figure I can bend my principles for video games, CDs and DVDs. That’s where I draw the line. Unless I need to change my mind.

Mark Your Calendars

brian — Tue, 14 Aug 2007 15:55:01 +0000

One year from today, I will have an awesome party to celebrate my 40th birthday. Which means, yes, today is my birthday.

OK, maybe the party won’t be right on my birthday since it will be in the middle of the week, but I am going to do something special next year. That means you have a year to plan for my present. And I will probably have bought a Wii by then so cross that off your list.

I think the past year was a pretty good one. Since my last birthday, I have gone to Vegas for the first time, defended my summer cornhole championship, managed to keep my job, watched a lot of TV and played a bunch of video games. Pretty impressive if you ask me.

I don’t have too many goals for the next 12 months. Sure, I want to write things that people want to read and attract more people to visit the site and listen to my podcasts. I also want to visit Vegas more than once before my big party. I want to win a national championship on NCAA08. I want to lose some weight. I want to find ways to visit with friends who I don’t see often enough. I want to get better at the guitar. I want to continue to appreciate good beer and tasty food.

The regular stuff, you know?