Below are the 20 most recent journal entries recorded in ibosmiley's LiveJournal:

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Wednesday, February 15th, 2006
11:35 am	Iron Chef Frank aka Valentine's Day Dinner I know, I know, how sad. There is a description and photos of the dinner. But I am proud of this one. I think I thought up some darn good recipes. Mindy and I typically don't celebrate Valentines Day per se. Each year I just put together a nice kinda dinner for us. Here was this years offerings: 1. Corn Chowder The hints of nutmeg and honey really accentuated the flavor of the creamy soup. 2. Steak Gorgonzola with Mushroom Sauce The melted gorgonzola cheese melded the two cuts of steak together nicely. The red wine and Worcestershire combined with the baby portabellas and onions in the sauce also was the perfect topping for the earthy flavors of the meat. 3. Tomato and Broccoli Vodka Sauce over Angel Hair Mindy wanted a vodka sauce, and I wanted a primavera style. So I blended the two with this sauce...tomato and broccoli puree cooked in cream and vodka and seasonings. Turned out to be a very nice sauce. 4. Champagne and Strawberries Quite simple... strawberries soaking in the champagne gave a really nice flavor. A nice sweet/tart balance. 5. Dessert: Strawberry Shortcake and Ice Cream Pretty Self Explanatory :) Here are some shots...how food network... (Comment on this)
Wednesday, December 28th, 2005
3:48 pm	My Christmas Tuesday, December 20th: I dropped off Mindy in Crystal City and was about to drop off our other carpooler at his drop off spot.  On the way there, my cell phone rang.  It was 7:30am.  It was my sister.  A chill ran up my spine.  She called to tell me that my mom was going to wake up my dad to go to his eye doctor appointment, but they found him face down next to the bed, bleed out his mouth and nose.  They had called the paramedics and he was being rushed to the hospital. I drove the rest of the way to my school, concerned.  Towards the end of homeroom my phone rang again.  This time, it was my mom on my sister's cell phone.  Her only words: "If you want to see him again, you need to come home now."  I stood there stunned, got someone to watch my class while I ran down to the principal and told her the situation.  She told me to leave immediately..."Just go, go now" were her words. I picked up Mindy from work, we got ourselves together and sped off to PA.  Mindy made it there in record timing.  I sat with my unconscious father in the hospital, talked with family.  My father had suffered a bad brain bleed sometime in the night.  He had developed vascular disease as a result of his diabetes over the last year.  Over night his left lobe hemmoraged and filled with blood.  It was a surreal afternoon and evening...   Wednesday, December 21st: My mom awoke Mindy and I in the morning with a call.  She called to tell me that the doctors said that his condition was not going to improve.  What little movement he had on his left side had diminished over night.  They couldnt operate as the hemmorage was too bad...his brain was a mess, more or less.  Even if they could successsfully do any operation, he would remain a vegatable for life.  I needed to go to the hospital to make a decision.  So we got ready, and left. Upon arriving, they called the doctors.  They showed me the CAT scan.  It was awful.  They explained to me the situation.  I asked my mom, "What would dad want?"  She said, he told her, he wouldn't even want to live like this.  My difficult reply:  "Then the choice is made, we remove the respirator."  I agreed. For the remainder of the afternoon we let everyone go in individually and say what they had to say "to him" and spend as much time as they wanted to.  My mom, sister and I went last.  I went in second last...not sure how long I was in there... but I made a few heartfelt promises to my father.  At 5:30 we called in the doctors to remove the respirator.  My dad lasted another hour.  At 6:40 he passed.  I was happy that I was in the room as he gave his last few breaths and "0ed" out.  It was chilling...but I was glad.   Thursday, December 22nd We had to meet the funeral director at the funeral home at 9am.  We made all the arrangements, picked out the casket... another surreal moment. That night, we had chinese and watched movies.   Friday, December 23rd A quiet day.  Mindy and I went to downtown Bethlehem...the historic district.  We checked out the Cigar International warehouse store.  VERY NICE!  Made a few purchases.  AMAZING DEALS. That night...home cooked meal and movies.   Saturday, December 24th (Christmas Eve) The usual Christmas Eve routine.  Christmas Eve dinner at my Grandmother's.  Afterwards though, we did something different.  We all piled into two trucks and went around looking at Christmas lights on some of the houses...alot of people do it up big up there.   Sunday, December 25th (Christmas Day) Christmas morning this year, my sister and I (and Mindy) came downstairs to find my mom sitting on the couch waiting.  It was odd not seeing dad eating his quick breakfast in the dining room with the smile on his face waiting to watch his kids open their gifts.  We all exchanged presents.  My mom held back the tears when she opened my dad's gifts, or the gifts labelled "for mom and dad". Afterwards we went to Dawma and Pop's (grandmother and grandfather on my mom's side...long story).  Had dinner and opened gifts there... was very quiet....very...different...this year.  Afterwards back to my grandmother's (dad's side) to do gifts there. I didn't sleep much this night.  Think I finally went to bed around 3 am.  Had to be up at 6:30 the next morning though. Monday, December 26th Today was the day of the funeral.  I was happy to see so many people showed.  Between the viewing and the church, around 110 people total came.  It was nice to see how many people my dad touched.  Everyone came out to be there for his final day.  We had the viewing, the ceremony, the internment and a luncheon afterward.  I got back in touch with an old high school friend at the luncheon...funny the moments that bring people back together.  The whole day went well...my mom was happy.   Tuesday, December 27th On Tuesday, we sorted through my father's things.  My mother and I sorted through his tools...which ones I would take and which ones she wanted to keep.  We sorted through his clothes.  It didn't feel right...but had to be done. That night, she made a nice dinner...we watched movies.  My dad's best friend and wife came over, and we had a nice night together.   Wendesday, December 28th After breakfast, Mindy and I packed up the car and returned home.  It was nice to be getting back to normal again...back home... (Comment on this)
Monday, November 28th, 2005
12:56 pm	Oh and almost forgot.... The poor slug who was sitting in our back seat... the tow truck couldnt fit him... so the motorist assistance person dropped him off at the Springfield Metro so he could get to work... poor guy... (Comment on this)
12:10 pm	What a morning!!! Well, it all started fairly normal...we went to Potomac Mills, picked up a slug and started on our merry way up the HOV lanes on I-95. Right outside of Springfield though, there was a loud POP! Pulled over onto the shoulder...rear driver's side tire was flat. A trooper pulled up and called motor assistance, while we fumbled with the jack and got the tire off and the spare on. But..there was a problem...the spare wouldn't tighten onto the hub. Some of the lugs were lose and it just wouldn't totally tighten. We got the wheel on as best we could and tried to pull away....put the car in drive...but alas, it wouldnt roll. So, the trooper called us a tow truck. The motor assitance guy and I played with the lugs and came to the conclusion that the hub was stripped out....ack! We had the car towed to the Mercedes Dealership in Alexandria. Looks like we'll be having the wheel assembly on that side fixed, along with four new tires, balancing and alignment. Car is do for an oil change soon, so we'll take care of that. And why not...get a 10 point inspection done to see if anything else needs to be done. I can't wait to see this bill...oy. So we got ourselves a lil rent-a-car and went back on our way to work.... what a fun morning... (Comment on this)
Sunday, November 27th, 2005
9:53 pm	The Holidays....a recap.... Well Wednesday... family arrived around 6 or so. We got them settled, chatted, prepped the turkey in the brine marinade for the next morning. Did a run to Five Guys and Burger King to get dinners for everyone. We also hit Safeway to pick up some other things as well as the ABC for liquor. Sam arrived around 10 or so and stayed the night. Thursday....Put the Turkey in at 8:30. Started everything else around 11:00. By 5:00 the meal was ready to eat. Mindy's family showed up around 3:00. Early afternoon two coworkers of Mindy's stopped by for a visit. My family left around 7:00 or so, after dessert and helping to clean up. Mindy's family left right away. Friday...Saturday... We had Pauline and Winnie... how fun that was... Lots of movies and video games... Some time at the mall and Cold Stone Creamery on saturday as well. Sunday...Dropped the kids back with their parents after Dim Sum at Mark's Duck House. We also went to Tyson's Corner for a while. That was the fun holiday break!! (Comment on this)
Friday, November 18th, 2005
3:09 pm	OMG!! CIGARS OMG!!!! Mindy's auction winnings came in today. Like 60 cigars!! I dont have room for them all! AHHHHH!!!! (Comment on this)
Thursday, November 17th, 2005
3:04 pm	Birthday with Christi!!!! I got invited up to see her house... very cool house..I loved it. Especially the kitchen!!! Plus gotta love her room and her stash of cigars in her humidor. YUMMMM! We were gonna go to Jillian's but soon discovered it no longer exists... it's now a Dave and Busters!! They dont allow cigars, so we tried this restaruant in the Mills there. They had this awesome pulled Pork Pasta dish, good beer, and some awesome desserts. Christi's bread pudding was sooo tasty. After dinner we went to light up our cigars which we were told we could...and then the manager tells us..."We dont allow cigars and pipes in here." Now I've seen people smoke them in that place before and they told us WE COULD when we went in... grrrr. Soooo...we got some coffee from starbucks and went outside to smoke our cigars... fresh rolled cigars that Christi got for us from San Franscisco. They were pretty good...I will review them in my cigar blog. After that she showed me the apartment complex leasing office that she just got a job at...YAY!! Then back to her place to end the night. I had a lot of fun, which I always do when I hang with her...she's my buddy. :) (Comment on this)
Wednesday, November 16th, 2005
3:02 pm	Bucca Di Beppo Went to Bucca di Beppo for my birthday tonight...it was awesome. Had this awesome pasta dish with cream and artichokes and grilled chicken..mmmm. And we had veal parmasean. Also the 1898 salad and some calimari to start. When we got home, Mindy had a cheesecake for me...and a candle. Awww. Twas a good bday. (Comment on this)
11:17 am	Thanksgiving 2005 Menu!! Through some work and research and thought... I have the menu for this year's Thanksgiving: 1. Curried Pumpkin Soup 2. Tossed Garden Salad 3. Herb and Citrus Brined Turkey w/ Cranberry-Ginger Chutney Apple-Pear Chutney Giblet Gravy 4. Cornbread Stuffing 5. Garlic Cheddar Mashed Potatoes 6. Frank's Candied Yams 7. String Beans with Fennel, Shallots and Wild Mushrooms 8. Roasted Root Vegetables with Walnut Gratin 9. Creamed Spinach and Artichoke 10. Lasagna 11. Bread 12. Various Pies and Desserts (1 Comment |Comment on this)
Sunday, November 13th, 2005
4:09 pm	And this is why I love my wife.... Here is a direct snippin from her myspace blog: auction gets out of hand Current mood: shocked Now I've gone and done it...spent WAY too much of my birthday money on cigarbid.com. I thought I'd get outbid on most of them for sure so I said what the hell and laid the autobids down. Turns out I won like 6 lots out of 10, and I have 2 more lots ending tomorrow that looks like I will be winning as well. No more cigar shopping for me for a looonnng time! Here's what I won: Montecristo Le Cigar des Arts 6" x 50 (5-pack) - $21.00 GREAT DEAL! Leon Jimenes Robusto 5.5" x 50 (5-pack) - $7.00 Leon Jimenes Creme de Mente Tin of 10 4"x30 - $5.00 Leon Jimenes # 5 5"x38 (5-pack) - $13.00 5 Vegas Robusto 5" x 50 (5-pack) - $7.00 5 Vegas Sampler Pack - $17.00 2 – 5 Vegas Gold Robusto (5”x50) 2 – 5 Vegas Limitada ’05 Belicoso (6.2”x52) 2 – 5 Vegas Original Double Corona (6”x48) 2 – 5 Vegas Series ’A’ Artisan (5”x52) Probably will be winning these: All Star Sampler - $15.00 currently Connecticut by Rocky Patel Toro Camacho Corojo Toro CAO Black Ltd. Bengal Fonseca 5-50 Gurkha Master Select Toro Indian Tabac Super Fuerte Double Corona La Vieja Habana ‘Leather Patch’ Habanos 54 Serie ‘55’ Sun-Grown Double Corona Dirty-Dozen Sampler - $21.00 currently - Camacho Corojo Toro (6”x50) - Carlos Torano Exodus 1959 Toro (6”x50) - Felipe II Reserva X (7”x48) - Gurkha Regent Churchill (7”x48) - Hoyo de Monterrey Governor Maduro (6.1”x50) - Indian Tabac Cameroon Legend Robusto Maduro (5”x52) - Joya de Nicaragua Antano 1970 Consul (4.5”x52) - Onyx Reserve Mini Belicoso (5”x52) - Perdomo Reserve La Tradicion Maduro ‘C’ (7”x54) - Puros Indios Gordo Maduro (6”x62) - Reserva Maxima by Puros Indios Piramide #60 (6.5”x56) - Triple Ligero X3 by K. Hansotia (6.1"x52) As you can see I'm way over my head, haven't had this many since I bought the box of Montecristos and the El Rey del Mundos. Good thing Frank approves of this since he will get to share in my bounty. Ain't she great!! :) (Comment on this)
4:06 pm	A Good Weekend! Well Friday night we went to the Madison/Pallete cigar lounges for Mindy and I's birthdays. It was a total Asian invasion... Yeoten and her two brothers, her boyfriend Anthony, Hwa and us. Pictures posted on myspace! Had me two scotches and a good cigar that I shall blog about on my cigar blog!! Last night caught up with a friend from college...Jess. Havent seen her in like 8 years. We had dinner with her and her bf at Macaroni Grill in Ballston. Twas a good time. Today I shall be moving a piano into my house. Mindy's parents found it dropped by the dumpster of their warehouse...in perfect condition. Needs a tune up. But otherwise...looking good! In the words of every emo kid...*woot!* (Comment on this)
Thursday, November 10th, 2005
11:15 pm	And an up note... Apparently one of my students...Malik.. told his mom that when he grows up, he wants to be a math teacher just like me so that he can drive two Mercedez Benzes. He apparently talks about me all the time and says he loves math class. Who says we dont all make a difference in small ways. Should I break it to him that my teaching job has nothing to do with the two benzes? lol (1 Comment |Comment on this)
Wednesday, November 9th, 2005
10:28 pm	The Tipping Point Hey all, Havent written in here in a looong time. Need to start making it more regular. I just need to vent. It's been a week. The kids have been relentless...really trying my patience...especially considering we've had subs in Soc St, Science and Lan Arts. When you're the only actual teacher on the hall....it's NEVER a good day. SO that has stressed me out. Plus the constantly fluxing schedule. Every time I think I've made the last schedule change...more come. Or, we need to add a new class into the schedule... we need to switch these classes. And the ESOL students CONSTANTLY need changing. And I teach 3 classes. ANd they expect a schedule done the SECOND I get it. HELLLOOOO, I'm in CLASS now. And saying "Hey, you 35 kids, sit perfectly still and quiet for 10 minutes while I do this" DOESNT WORK! I upset a best friend today too. I'm still confused as to what exactly happened. There was a misunderstanding...I hurt her. I love her so much....I would do anything for you... yet I upset her...apparently alot. I wish she would talk it out with me...it hurts to hurt others...especially when you never intended to or a misunderstanding causes it. I think my birthday may end up cancelled this year. My two best friends..one's mad at me and the other can't go unless it's saturday night. No one else has gotten back to me. I might just cancel my birthday this year...right now, I dont think I have much to celebrate anyway...it all just sucks. I need business motivation too...I'm stagnant...stale. I'm mad at myself for being so lazy the last like two months. I need to get some motivation. Can someone give me a hug???? :( (1 Comment |Comment on this)
Wednesday, July 13th, 2005
11:58 pm	The Tongue -- A Creative Force I was reading from a book tonight, and I came upon two great quotes. The book is called, "The Tongue--A Creative Force". Yes, they're scripture...but the meaning is powerful either way: Mark 11:23 "For verily I say unto you, That whosoever shall say unto this mountain. Be thou removed, and be thou cast into the sea; and shall not doubt in his heart, but shall believe that those things which he saith shall come to pass; he shall have whatsover he saith." Galatians 6:7 God is not mocked, whatsoever a man soweth that shall he also reap. So in other words....Most people SAY WHAT THEY HAVE. Instead people could HAVE WHAT THEY SAY. Definitely pondersome.... (1 Comment |Comment on this)
11:47 pm	Review of Two Weekends Ago Just looking over my notes from the business function the weekend of July 1st... here are some great points that I wrote down: Even if you win the rat race of life, you're still a rat. Never condemn, criticize, or complain... just change. (the 4 C's) Your best friends bring out the best in you. There is no try. Either you do or you don't. Be a friend; don't be a teacher. Your eyes tell everything about you. Integrity = Doing the right thing because it's the right thing to do. (At the end of the day, can you live with your choices, decisions and actions?) Most people have nothing because they've done nothing. Winners find a reason to win; losers find a reason to lose. (2 Comments |Comment on this)
Thursday, July 7th, 2005
11:44 pm	Christi's Birthday Awesome night out at Bailey's! Lots of appetizers, drinks, cigars. Christi and I both lit up CAO Brazilia Anacondas...yummy! We got her friend, Shannon, an Acid ambrosia cigar... she liked it...score! I gave her a humidor for her birthday too... with SMOKIN' engraved on the top. She loved it! I was happy! HAPPY 21st BIRTHDAY CHRISTI!! Love ya buddy. (Comment on this)
Monday, July 4th, 2005
11:43 pm	4th of July The 4th of July Fireworks went great! The crowd loved the fireworks. All the bands were a hit...and they got some great publicity for themselves. The kid's area did very well for our first time having it. Each magic/puppet show was packed with kids. All the games did well. The food vendors had larger lines than normal... craft vendors did well it seemed. Everything was great! The nice weather helped...first time it didn't rain or drizzle in years. Cant wait to see if we made any profit this year. I was amazed at the crowds. We had a huge crowd at the lakefront by 3pm. Usually it doesn't start getting the least bit packed til around 6pm. By 9pm....it was standing room only...definitely a few 10,000s down there. It was awesome!!! (Comment on this)
Thursday, June 30th, 2005
2:33 pm	Been a while.... Hey, I rarely post on this thing...I suck at keeping up. But I need to really vent here and this seems like the place for it. Especially since I know no one reads this damn thing lol. I've been in a mental whirlwind lately. Businesses wise... gaining momentum and getting my drive back... but still feeling a little lost about it at times. My job is a major pain right now... just I hate how the PG County school system cannot get anything together. They are late on everything... they dont give you the right information...or they give you half and leave you to figure the rest out. Trying to get a master schedule together for next year...and still so much I dont know... so much that gets sprung last minute... what the hell? Personally, I am a mess too. I have lost my libido it seems...and I can't understand why? What man has trouble expressing his sexuality?? Me apparently. Sometimes I just look at my wife and want to just dive on her and consume her....but I cant get that mental imagery to show physically. Last night I pissed off one of my most cherished and dearest friends too. I shouldn't have been sarcastic and such while she was drinking...hell, I shouldn't have at all. I care about her so much, and I swear I would take a bullet for that girl. She is one of my dearest, and most cherished, friends....yet I make her mad by just being silly and she just didnt pick up on my playfulness. And especially to make her mad so close to her birthday... I'll be so upset if I dont get to spend that special day with her. I wish I could make her realize how sorry I am for that, and that I didnt mean anything by it. I was up all night sick to my stomach, throwing up, and couldn't sleep because of what I had done and how I had made her feel... Oy....what is wrong with my brain...someone fix it...please?? Someone help.. :( (2 Comments |Comment on this)
Sunday, May 15th, 2005
2:52 pm	Brenden and Heidi Today Mindy and I met up with Breden and Heidi. It's interesting... she is from Hellertown...which is right near where I lived in PA. And he is from the montgomery county area...where Mindy lived. lol. We went to Hard times for drinks, cigars and darts. It was fun. Mindy and I won at darts...ya!! (Comment on this)
Saturday, April 23rd, 2005
2:16 pm	Herf at Guido's! Well, this was my very first Herf. Mindy and I showed up to Guido's in the afternoon, and let me just say it was a good time. Got to finally put faces to alot of the guys I had been seeing on the cigarutopia.com board. Had a lot of good cigars, had some AWESOME burgers that Uncle Mikey brought. Got to see Cindy and her new hubby..that was cool. Also, left with a ton of free cigars. Brian had to empty out his stash, as he was being deployed. And Smokem and Blues also gave out some freebies to everyone. It was an awesome time!! (Comment on this)