My blog n'at

July
Began the month with recording at the BeerDependence Day celebration at Bocktown. Attended the Penguins Stanley Cup DVD Release Party. Started a contracting job at EDMC that would become the longest month of my life and that’s all I’m going to say. Enjoyed my first ever bowl of Pho. Rocked the Beer on the Bay festival in Erie which the videos are epic and may never be released. End the month being interviewed by KDKA for the Craft Beer Summit.

August
Won a 2009 Mustang! Bees invade our bathroom (landlord still has yet to remove the dead bodies). I got a full-time job in social media/web dev that has turned out to be freaking cool plus I’m on a rockstar team. Threatened Lushie with divorce after she gets rid of the Back to the Future marathon channels.

September
Attended “Best of the Burgh” at the Warhol with sickpuppy, PittGirl, Woy and Rachel. Go big time and hosted Beer School at the Cabaret downtown to a sold out crowd. Teaspoon hits 17lbs.

October
Hosted 2 sessions at Podcamp Pittsburgh 4. Should I Drink That passed 500,000 download mark. Pens start defending the Stanley Cup. Revised Google Maps errors. Celebrate 4 years of marriage with Lushie. Lay the smackdown on poor fact checking by the Post gazette about Erie. Teaspoon goes pumpkin farming.

November
I blogged the whole month. Seriously. Bought a X-box. Teaspoon’s first Thanksgiving. Wonders of fatherhood and a kid who grows like a weed. Craft Beer Dinner with Lew Bryson, Education on the Pittsburgh Potty. Making your own Bacon. BEER AT GIANT EAGLE! Yinz Bowl 2.o

December
Still living it for 5 more hours. Remembering dad on his anniversary. Hosted a Christmas beer sampling at Bocktown. Saw KISS in concert. Teaspoon’s first Christmas. Finished the school year with a 3.65GPA. SNOW!

So what do I have to look forward to in 2010?  Come back tomorrow and find out!

I have to admit that this has been the most life changing year of my life. Some good, some bad and some mind blowing kickass. Here’s a quick recap as I reflect before tonight’s festivities start. I’m splitting this up into 2 sections because lets be honest, no one will scroll through 12 months.

January
Reflected on the first beer I EVER drank and yes, I kept the bottle. Prepare for the end of my 10+ year employment at ForeSystems/Marconi/Ericsson. Bitched about the weather and yinzers inability to drive in snow plus dumb ass snow removal by my neighbors. Both of those still hold true today. Got ready for an unbelievable run to the Super Bowl

February
Steelers won the Super Bowl and became the first ever 6 time champ thus giving every knock off t-shirt maker starry eyes at the potential of “6 pack” shirts. Punxy Phil said 6 more weeks of winter. I was officially laid off, was interviewed for a Post Gazette story on unemployment moments after i was laid off (that never was published), Pens started to turn it around and the biggest shock of them all… Teaspoon arrived 2 months early making me the happiest and most terrified dad. Came in at 4.1lb, dropped to 3.2lb and would leave at 5 in March.

March
It was the month of Teaspoon. Lushie and I spent every minute we could at the Mercy NICU while he got healthy in an incubator. 28 days later he came home. Also witnessed the stupidity of some Hill District parents who think its a hotel in there and the joke that is unemployment system in PA.

April
Went to my first ever Rugby match and got addicted to watching Claire and the girls kick ass. Missed my first opening day of Pirates baseball since 1984 (watched it on TV with Teaspoon and started a new tradition with my boy). Bought a Wii. Enjoyed the greatest comeback in Pens Playoff hockey that I have witnessed as the Pens turned the series around with 1 fight and the Max Talbot shhhhhhh! Saw Beer Wars the Movie with hundreds of other craft beer fans around the world and baked an incredible beer ham for Easter.

May
Should I Drink That turned 3. Pens defeated Washington and Carolina to earn a second trip to the Stanley Cup Finals for a 2nd year. Bought a Blackberry. Joined Sadie’s Soldiers and took some Great Strides. KDKA reads my “tweet of the day” which I WISH they would bring back. The great personalized jersey debate. Meatshield welcomed his first child (i swear it was the year for kids to be born) and we had a cookout with some family. Bowling league ended and we were the undisputed champs.

June
Teaspoon’s first trip to the ER. Coming out of golf retirement after 3.5 year for a day with Yinz Teamer’s Woy, Lokay and Shireman at Cranberry Highlands. The Clarks release Restless Days after 5 years. Pens win the Stanley Cup in 7 games vs Detroit. Pittsburgh floods… again. Unemployed Utensil makes his first appearance as a way to help me get through not working. My first Father’s day and Pirates waste of talent Ian Snell cant take negative people.

up next… July through December.

Here I am trying to be all hip mr mobile and blogging from my crackberry. Gotta admit that I’m diggin the interface so far. I’m chillin on the couch while Teaspoon and Lushie are crashed in bed.

You may have noticed that I haven’t posted much. In fact December is usually slow blog wise for me since I’m spending time with my family and closing out the end of year tasks of work.

2009 is a bit different. With Teaspoon now joining us for this holiday I’m taking a self imposed internet vacation. My job also gives me 11 days off to enjoy so I told Lushie I would unwind. OK actually she said “unplug or I’m dumping all your craft beer… even the ones you’re cellaring!”

I’ll make a couple posts for some family things but besides that it I will be doing house chores and a little bit of writing I’ve put off. May do some cooking and somewhere in there is a quick solo trip to Erie. Seriously, what better time to drive to a place that gets 2ft of snow a day than now.

Christmas was good to me so the xbox will be busy plus Teaspoon made out like a bandit as you can see. Lushie, well you know she was spoiled

Enjoy your holidays and time off!

more later…

Nothing like sitting at the dinner table and finding out your son pee’d on his own face. God, I love being a dad…

The first week of December is always tough for me. Correction, it’s fucking tough. 3 years ago as I type this we were burying my dad and I think that its this anniversary that I’m having the most issues with it. Not because I’m going all mental or anything along those lines but its more of the anger phase. I think of everything that has happened over the last year and that he wasn’t around for it. Most importantly he never got to hold his grandson whom I know would be spoiled beyond belief. I guess I’m more upset that Teaspoon won’t get to know him but the ironic thing, I think he does. I wont go into details and freak all yinz out but I know dad is around. I can fell when he’s in the room and even creepier, I can smell his cologne. So even with my anger comes some peace. Teaspoon has a guardian angel and there is no one else better for the job.

Quite a few key life events happened this week that I’ll share and why I usually drop off the world for a bit.

• December 5, 1998 – Moved from Erie to Pittsburgh and into my first solo apt in beautiful South Oakland. damn smelly hippies.
• December 5, 2006 –  Dad has massive heart attack while snow blowing for 3 hours so the shut-ins could get visitors. Rushed to ER and put on life support.
• December 6, 2006 – Dad officially passes around 7:21am. My world becomes simply a huge can of wtf
• December 7, 1998 – Started my first day at FORE Systems. I expected it to be a 3 month internship, not 10 years of employment
• December 9, 2006 – Dad is buried on a day of freezing cold temps and a majestic snowfall. Ceremony concluded with military gun salute and mom is presented with an American Flag.

It was also during this week in 2005 that I first toyed with the idea of starting this new thing called a podcast. I wouldn’t record anything until Jan 20, 2006 in what became the first recording of Father Spoon. We all know what happened from there…