Another Blog? Seriously? Seriously...

So, I've started a blog. I know, I know - another one out there; but this one is different... It's about me, and as far as I can tell, it's the only one out there dedicated to my life and my life alone. (If anyone knows of another, please pass on the link...)


Of course there will be recurring roles by others in the blog, but as all entries will be ten sentences or less (please refer to the "blog description" section) these appearances will most likely not be given the proper due as people important to my life. So I've decided to write out a character list for all of you unfamiliar, basically outlining those who may choose to make an appearance in the blog, for future identification - and no, these descriptions don't count as sentences. I make the rules...

The Real Fam (In age order)

Dad - a retired Army Colonel who now lives in an Atlanta suburb practicing law; married anew to Kelly, with two adopted Russian children, Rylie (girl) and Kyle (boy); I look up to my dad in many ways, and we have a pretty good relationship, though we don't get to talk as often as I'd like - we share a lot of things, like our love for the outdoors, our laid-back, relaxed style and I've notived that I stand with my hands in my pockets like I remember him doing...

Mom - the loving person who brought me into the world (and, despite what she says, cannot take me out any time she wants - and yes, she still threatens) a professor at Columbia College in Columbia, SC - I love her very much

Megan - older sister, married to Noah with three kids, Will (6) Colin (3) and Drew (1), a schoolteacher in Columbia who named her third child for me (or so I believe, even if it is a girl named Andrea), loves baseball along with her husband and has climbed Everest (or at least has read "Into Thin Air" and rented the DVD...)



Brett - the older of two younger sisters, married to Ben whom she met at Florida State, has two kids Kat (3) and Jackson (2 mo), living in Sea Island, Georgia



Susannah (Suz) - the younger of the younger sisters, just graduated from Columbia College and ready to take on the world; in what capacity, we may never know...



The New Fam:


Matt and Kellie - Matt was my first real friend in my new home here in Roseville (just outside Sacramento); we play soccer on the same team (the Kumquats) and have aspirations to be one of the great television writing/producting duos in history; Matt let me move into his trailer when my landlord and friend Steve died suddenly and I didn't have a place to go; Kellie, his fiance at the time and now his wife, also took me in; his family (heretofore known as anyone "Bragg" for future reference) has been like a second family, inviting me to cookouts, Sunday dinners, and generally looking out for my well-being; future Braggs to make appearances here will be Tani, Andy, Thomas, Marcus and Mom and Dad Bragg and Amanda and Robby Gant and their baby Will, who doesn't blink...ever...; Matt is the storyteller and comedian of the new fam - if we aren't laughing at his stories of past (and present) life, we are laughing at his gigantic noggin; Kellie is his rock and a little bit of the den mother - but I suppose that could apply to Tiff and Ash as well... you'll have to keep an eye out for their kids, as they are two of the most competitive people on the planet, and I can only imagine the spawn that will subsequently come...



Joe and Tiffany - Joe and Tiffany are the tallest couple I've ever seen in real life; Joe is hands down the toughest, and Tiff is one of the most loving, as you can see on her blog site http://talltiffany.blogspot.com/ - she'd kinda have to be to put up with us - but I guess that applies to all the women of the new fam; Joe used to be a bouncer and has the look of a happy-go-lucky cage fighter, and I'm glad we're friends cause I'll never have to fight him...


Ryan and Ashley - Ryno and Ash bring down the median age of the new fam, which is good because we are getting up there in years; they have been married for a few years and have seemingly lived up every minute of it, as you can read on Ash's blog site http://rawaddell.blogspot.com/ - they went on vacations and generally had a great time having fun with each other. They are both back in school now, which is good for them I guess, but it also means they weren't able to go with us to the midnight showing of "The Dark Knight" so it stinks for them, too; Ash is an unabated Repub, and she gives me hell for being on the other side a lot, but I know she just secretly harbors a desire to join the cool kids on this side of the aisle...


Jessica Branich - a great friend; we dated for a good long time and she let me into her life, opened her family up to me and I will forever be greatful for that; we are on great terms and talk often, and I count her as one of my closest friends; it's one of those things - we didn't really work out romantically, but she'll be a good friend for life and I wish her nothing but the best, which is what she totally deserves...


Others:

Noah Drews - a friend from SC, we don't get to see each other as often as I'd like, as I'm not in SC that much anymore, but we go back in the day...

Patrick Coker - my best friend from the college days; he was there when my dad told me he had gotten remarried in the NC mountains; he saw me through my J-school classes and knows the secret behind my getting involved in politics; I was a groomsman as his wedding and could not be happier for him and Tiffany, who just passed their one-year anniversary;


So there you have them, the cast of characters. You'll notice that there are no work people on my blog and there's a simple reason for that: this blog is a happy place, and will remain such as long as the only people talked about and the only instances written about are not work-related. I will just say this as my last sentence (this will be the tenth) - I am totally lucky to have wandered into the real fam that I have and the new fam that was waiting for me in Roseville - you'll be reading a lot about our adventures camping, spelunking, obstacle-course-racing, movie-watching, television-writing, snowboarding, cross-country tripping, soccer playing, hanging out and generally having a good 'ole American time!

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