I'm back!

I have not been good about writing, for well, a rather expansive amount of time. Today I am breaking that trend. Excuses are not in short demand, but who cares? The point of all of this is that the new year has been under my new motto of, self improvement. I will say that I have always been good at helping others so all I am trying to do is, hopefully, be that good at keeping myself together. In this vein I have taken to eating well, sleeping more efficiently, and figuring out what I should do with my life.

I have been extremely lucky to spend my days with the tiny dictator and, I think I have valued that time. As they say however, all good things come to an end. So I decided to see if someone would let me in to their law school. Amazingly, someone did. So this fall I will be attending Roger Williams University School of Law. The kid is really excited constantly reminding me that she will be going to pre-school and then maybe, if she feels like it, go to law school also.

I can't thank the lady enough for her support and encouragement. Some would think planning a wedding while working full time and raising a child would be enough. Luckily she is not some people and she has been a peach. Another shout out to my family and friend ps who have helped me figure all this out. I would love to say that I will be blogging consistently again, but I won't. So I'll see ya when I see ya, hopefully sooner than later.

Have a banner day and remember, smile, it could always be worse,
Andrew J. O'Brien

How old am I?

Today I was reminded of something, I am secretly 65 years old. I have been that age probably since I was the actual age of 12. I have no explanation to why I am this way, I just am much better at being 65 than I am at being my actual age. My age bracket are normally working 60 hours a week at a job that is terrible. Most are addicted to social media and the nightlife culture. I enjoy and participate in none of these things, he'll I even think the idea of a blog is silly, but that's my cross to bare. I like newspapers, walking, the strategy of sports, taking my time, and bickering. I have always preferred  doing things my own way, that way just turns out to be the path of your average retiree.

What has reminded me of this is another thing that has happened to me over the years, and again today. While at the store with the kid in the check out line a grand mother stated how cute the kid is and how she looks like me. This led to her saying that the kid was cute because she has a cute dad, hehehe. This has always happened to me, in high school moms always liked me more than their daughters. Now, the payoff to all of this simple, I am the luckiest man in the world, and I really am old inside and outside. The reason is, I have someone who is just as old, inside, as I am. The lady is definitely a kindred retiree and thank goodness because the prospects for a 26 going on 65 year old aren't very good.

This has all given me yet another reminder that sometimes things happen because they are seemingly supposed to. The kid gives me just enough leeway to let my old man out on a daily basis, and I like that.

Be glad you are who you are even if that mean you are ridiculous. The reason, someone will appreciate that, at some point. Oh yeah, and read the newspaper, it's highly underrated.

Have a great day and smile, it could always be worse,
AJ

Because That Makes Sense

I never realized that the reason interesting people always had interesting lives for one specific reason, diversity. Now, to be clear I only hope to be interesting and am in no way implying that I am there quite yet, but everyday I feel like I get a little bit closer. The reason for my journey towards the outwardly interesting is simple, lots of crazy crap happens in my life. 

Crazy part 1. The kid today was wearing her snow suit because she wanted a playground and it is the stinging variety of cold outside. The whole point of all of this lead up is... Snowsuit + slide + light snow cover = kid rocket. Yes, the kid went down the slide and proceeded to exit at quite high speeds, I am proud to say the I caught her and avoided any injury, however it was awesome. 

Crazy part 2. I do not understand a lot of people and the things they do. Over the weekend I worked a little weekend job as a security professional, hahahaha! During my inaugural stint I was in charge making sure that only families used the bathroom specifically designated for family usage. I just want to ask a simple question here, if someone tells you, politely, that you can't use something why would you try and convince them that they are wrong? Seriously, I am standing right in front of you explaining that you are not a family and thus cannot use the bathroom just for families, yet for some reason you feel the need to tell me I'm wrong. I am not wrong and most likely I am far more sober than you please just listen.

I am loving the evolution of becoming interesting, at least I hope. It may be a wee bit presumptive of me to hope I am interesting but what the hay. Any ways if anyone knows of any good evening work for a stay at home dad feel free to email me. Great job by Meg Curran yesterday, gotta love crowd support!

Have a great day and smile, it could a,ways be worse!

AJ

One Small Step, Her Giant Leap

Today I have the honor of my first guest post! It comes to us from one of my favorite people Meg Curran. She is currently located in Los Angeles and I am oh so so proud to have her add to my site and I encourage any others to email me if you want to join in on the fun. I really am just jazzed up right now and can't thank her enough!

Enjoy...

2013: The Quarter Life Club & the Year of the List

Has your Facebook recently turned into a place where people share articles about every shallow topic under the sun?  Logging on this morning my newsfeed brought me a few pleasures: 24 Real Ways to Be a Woman, 10 Things No One Tells You About Being Engaged (in which my friend’s beautiful engagement photo has gone viral via Pinterest and now Huffington Post), and Is This the Most Important Selfie of 2013? And to the posters of said lists I say: bring back the TFLN and TFM wall posts!  But in all seriousness, my best guess is that this is a product of being 25, a little lost, and having a lot of “friends” in the same boat.  Some of the viral lists are painstakingly hilarious, don’t get me wrong, I’m not a Buzzfeed hater; I’m just specifically interested in where women are gaining their advice in 2013.

These lengthy, often gif-accompanied lists seem to have propelled 20-somethings into a place of self-help through following each blindly.  Now that is an interesting #socialmediastrategy if you ask me.  Let’s all give advice to each other even though my personal life/work life/financial situation (choose one or more) is in shambles.  I am not trying to insinuate that all 20-somethings should have it together and I will happily be the first to admit that I do not.   But perhaps we should take a page from someone else’s book for once instead of our instantly gratified and satisfied lives.

A good friend of mine turned 25 just a few months after me and I welcomed her into the quarter-life crisis club with a weekend away in wine country sipping – no, chugging – copious amounts of wine.  In lieu of gifts, she reached out to her family members for advice and things they wished they knew at 25.  I thought this was a phenomenal idea and one that really rivals all of the numbered list articles that you could possibly read during a slow afternoon in the office.  Don’t pretend like you don’t know exactly what I mean.  So if you’re having a slow afternoon and reading THIS, why don’t you send an email to your mentor, older siblings, aunts and uncles, mom, dad, or grandparents?  I can guarantee you it will make your afternoon more meaningful.  Meanwhile, I’ll be continuing to toy with the idea of deleting my Facebook…

However, if you haven’t seen this bad boy yet today…you should probably take a quick look: http://happyplace.someecards.com/28039/girl-has-perfect-response-to-friends-triple-engagement   (courtesy of the blog-owner’s baby mama).

Cheers!

Meg “Auntie twice-a-year” Curran

Proud Groomsman Bridesmaid in Stay at Home Dad’s Wedding

It's a Marathon

I tend find my understanding of things that are confusing and difficult in sports. The idea that you work hard enough and you get a chance, sometimes just one chance but you get that chance to change history. This sometimes seems to idyllic to be applied to life, that's where I find myself standing on the rooftops screaming to all that can hear, it isn't to good to be true. The difference between sport and life is simple things are clear in sports. There are rules and structures, in life it is much more of a moving field. The opportunities for you to prove your worth, strength, will, and desire are often unclear and thrust upon you. There are times when the things you are facing seem innocuous enough even pointless but these are the times you need to stand up and show your strength.

I can't tell you if every moment in life requires this sort of self awareness and due to the pure exhaustion of this task makes it impractical to follow as an everyday thought. I however want to adopt this idea as much as I can. When you do something, prove something, whether to yourself or to others prove that you acknowledge an importance. This is not about viewing life as a competition, even though I do sometimes, I instead want to look at life as a series of check points. You may not be where you want when you reach those marks in the sand. That is to be expected and most importantly noted. Change the things you can, and keep in mind you can change more than you ever know.

This relates to my life because I am watching someone complete their first milestones. I know there are the obvious markers but that's not what I'm talking about here. This is about defining yourself and where you correlate and differ from your family, define yourself, and establish your goals. We aren't to the whole persona side of this, however the lady and I are seeing more and more of ourselves and more of who she is everyday. We are both fairly, as I say, "particular". This is all to say the kid also likes things just so. I love this and I am so excite that as she grows she gets more attached to the world.

These are the small victories.

Have a great day and smile, it could always be worse.
AJ

Thanks Giving

With the impending holiday joy, I feel as though some the season is seeping in to my thinking. I want to say that life is so much broader and richer than I ever expected. It doesn't seem like that when you are young and everything happens so fast and often for the first time. I liken it to the first day at a new school. That first day seems so huge in your mind, the funny thing is everything feels like that in retrospect.

Now however things seem like they have always been the way they are. My life isn't even crazy to me anymore, it's just life now. I think this is an important change. This change has allowed me, at the very least, to realistically enjoy the things I have.

I am thankful for where I am, who I'm with, and I am just happy to be here. There will always be things you wish we're different, the key, in my opinion is that there should be more things that you glad aren't. Those things you don't like, look at them change them, the only reason things are bad is because they take effort to address.

Be thankful that effort is connected to imagination, and that's something you can always find.

Be thankful in a painfully honest way, take a little less credit, just for one day give the credit to those who have helped you. The smallest aid from some one can often be the most important.

Finally, be thankful that it could always be worse, seriously! I'm in no way saying that you should,take joy that you are better off than others. All I'm saying is realize your luck hasn't run out just yet.

So with that I'm done, pardon the sentimental post. I blame the pilgrims!

Have a great day and smile, it can get worse,
AJ

The Princess

To start today, I just wanted to tell all of you that the kid will today be known as "The Princess." I just wanted to inform you.

This change comes from an affliction that has been thrust upon me. Lets look at this logically. First premise everyone is who we believe them to be, which is to say that reality is as we know, so there can't be any secret identities. Second premise princess has a secondary message of saying someone should be exhalted as if they were royal, as in "who is this little princess?" In reference to a little girl. This premise is my problem because it is secondary in my mid and thusly affecting my logical thought process. So when I think out logically when someone calls the kid a princess, I think princess as in future queen. The problem is if she is a princess that means her parents are a king and queen, I am her father, ipso facto I am a king.

I am not a king, and if secretly I am, where of? If I am why has no one told me? The questions are really killing me, further more why do people think I'm a king?

I understand that people mean it in a cutesy way and that is wonderful and I hope people don't stop because its very sweet. I however am going to remain very confused because I want to know where I am a secret king?! I could use some capital, given my luck I would probably be the king of Detroit and I would actually owe money.

That's all today!

Have a great day and smile, it could always get worse
AJ