Saturday, March 29, 2008

Beer Friday.

So we all have dreams. They could be completely lofty, or dangerously attainable, but none the less, we all have dreams. Want to know one of mine?

Owning a restrurant.

I don't know if I would be any good at it. But I know I enjoy cooking, and things that I cook seem to go over well when I cook for others. I enjoy the challenge of plating a dish, and enjoy seeing others being surprised of the presentation. But more then anything, I think that gesture of cooking for another, that exchange between people, is a very loving thing. And, well, I enjoy those moments.

Now I don't know if I would be able to handle the face pace of a kitchen. But this past Friday, that was put to the test. At work we had something called International Beer Friday, where some of us would break into teams and present international beers paired with a side dish.

My team had Asia. What did I decide to do for a side?

Pan fried dumplings.

I had some techinical difficulties with the equipment I had. But I have to say, I really enjoyed the moment, cooking, presenting something delicious to people I know. It was really fun. And if my dream of a resturant should ever come to pass, I think I would really enjoy rising to the challenge of making it a success.

Anyway, enjoy the picture of the cooking fun.

Best Friends Ever!

So can I just say I have the most wonderful friends ever! The thing of it is, I turned 30 last week, and I have to say, it was one of the best birthdays... actually, one of the best days of my life. Never before had I felt like I belonged, or felt so much love as I did on March 26th. Family, friends, even people to whom I would not have expected happy wishes from... all made the day truly wonderful.

But you know, at the day end of the day, it was my friends that made the day just perfect. I have to say I truly feel blessed to have such loving people in my life.

The End.

Monday, March 24, 2008

You learn something new everyday...

...today I learned my birthday was on Easter Sunday. True story, March 26, 1978... yup, Easter Sunday. Which is weird for me, Easter Sunday just having passed.

Who knew.

Sunday, March 23, 2008

Shave to Save: Latest hair growth update...

So you kids know I'm helping to raise money for cancer by participating in a event called Shave to Save, at the end of which I will get my head shaved. For the event I thought I'd grow the locs out as part of the fundraising efforts, thought you enjoy seeing where I'm at:



Help me raise money for cancer patients by donating at: http://main.acsevents.org/goto/benlee

Thanks for your support!

Friday, March 21, 2008

My Latest Obsession? Realization?

So let's be honest, us guys, we buy clothes for comfort. At least I do... or did. You know if a pair of jeans is comfortable on the waist, so what if it's a little long on the inseam, I'll just roll it, right?

You know, little elements like that, really make for a sloppy appearance, no? I mean, it's fine if I was still in college. But as I enter my third decade, it occurs to me that maybe, just maybe, I should be thinking about my clothes.

In what respect you ask?

Well, my latest obsession, dressing my body to fit my proportions. Making sure that things fit like they should, rather then dressing because it's comfortable. That said, you don't have to sacrifice comfort for being fitted. But, I don't know, I think I should grow up a little bit, no?

So enter GQ.

I won't tell you how I came across this microsite, but GQ has a site where for a month they will give you a new style tip everyday. Now, not surprisingly, there are days where it's, "every man should have a proper shoulder bag, so why not try this Louis Voutton bag that's a gazillion dollars..." BUT there is a lot of great information there for guys. Like what one should look for when buying a suit, how it should fit, and all the variations of a suit. Or how you can mix business wear with casual where. And when it's good wear certain things with others.

But most importantly, proportions. If something is long, hem it. Buying a dress shirt, make sure the sleeve stops at the hinge of your wrist. Really stressing fitting your proportions.

It may sound like a trivial thing. Like if you're comfortable, what's the big deal? Well, simply, as I enter my third decade of life, I'm wondering, nay, feeling like I can't live like I'm in college anymore. I should start thinking about not only how to dress myself, but also my home. Basically, though for the most part I feel I am mature, but have all aspects of my life reflect that.

Now I'm not going to go out and buy a Pottery Barn living room set, or that $900 dresser from West Elm. But, that coffee table handout that I nailed a leg back on to and is riddled with X-ACTO blade cuts from college... well that has to go.

If you know me, don't expect a overnight change. Because, well, I just can't afford that. But it's something that's been on my mind, and hopefully be considerate of moving forward.

But where am I going with this huge lead up?

Well at work, we filmed this video for a corporate event. Of which I was to be running around and doing all sorts of stupid exercise crap. In preparation, I bought a track jacket and matching shorts. And I have this say as I picked up my default "L" off the rack and went in the dressing room. I stood, looked in the mirror, and spent a good 30 minutes analyzing and thinking, "Does this fit me properly?"

You think that would be a easy thing to determine, yea not so much. I started looking at how they dressed their manniquins, asked a store clerk for her opinion, grabbed a smaller size, and did some more looking in a mirror. Put the large back on... seriously this was a back and forth that lasted probably another good 30 minutes.

For a track jacket.

Who knew shopping could be so problematic.

But GQ worked knew their stuff, put the knowledge to work, and got a jacket that fits well, I'm not swimming in it... just the selection process was so stressful...

...I think adulthood is going to be a little exhuasting.

Tuesday, March 11, 2008

And Yet Another Ambiguous Blog...

Really kids, in the hectic lives we all lead, prioritizing our responsibilities, being slaves to our routines... take time to smell the roses when the opportunity arises. Slowing down and appreciating the moment, can make all the difference in your life.

Well, at least it does in mine.

That's it, and goodnight.

Sunday, March 09, 2008

Words Escape Me...



I believe the word you're looking for is, "Yoooooo".

Thursday, March 06, 2008

word of the day

"frustration"

Discuss.

Monday, March 03, 2008

Darkness...

So the power is out in my building. How am I blogging now? Well, a laptop battery is a beautiful thing. What gets me though is my router and modem are still working... riddle me that Batman, riddle me that.

But yea, I get home today, and my power is out. They tell me KCPL discovered a bad transformer and is in the process to replace it. The management lady that met me at the door told me it will be 12-16 hours to replace. I don't know what goes into a transformer replacement, but that's a hella long time. I sit, and wish that they discovered the problem earlier in the day so we could have cut that time in half... but wishing does me no good.

So I sit in the dark. Well, I have a trusty flashlight, but I'll save the power, as I will my laptop here shortly. But I feel scared a little bit, I don't know why.

Maybe not scared, but definitely helpless. Darkness is a scary thing.

But I sit. Hoping the light will come on, though I know it won't. Finding myself wanting to ask for help, but can't. So I sit, in the dark, thinking I'll go to bed early, or maybe, I'll read a book by the flashlight.


This is really weird, I don't like feeling like this.

Sunday, March 02, 2008

I Don't Claim to be...

...the most tech-savvy person around. But you know, I get by.

Anyway, so I have videos I like to put on my iPod, whether they be from my camcorder, video files I get from friends, whatever. But if I don't get them from the iTunes Store, well, I have to convert them into a mpeg-4 format right. Well, that process has been fine until just recently. See when I drag a mpeg-4 to a device it transferred just fine, only now I get a error message saying the device won't play it.

So NOW, I have to convert to mpeg-4, so iTunes will play it, THEN I guess there's a new option to convert video to play on a Apple device whether it be iPod, iPhone, or Apple TV...

Now that wouldn't be so bad, if Apple's conversion process didn't take forever! Seriously, I mean the process to convert to mpeg-4 for me is annoying, but it's like the 1/8 of the time for Apple's conversion. And what I don't get, okay, so previous mp4 videos I have on my iPod, well, I deleted and put the videos back on, no problem. But any new videos that are mp4, I have to convert... I don't understand it.

I mean if this is a 'patch' or something in the last update, it's made this process so long and annoying... I don't know, there has to be a simpler way to do this. Like I'm missing something all the Smart Kids are seeing...

Seriously, it almost makes me not to want to use my iPod.

I realize there are probably worse things that are happening, and there are worse things I could be complaining about. This is just the one thing that is seriously annoying me for the moment, and I needed to vent.

Anyway, that's it. Enjoy, and goodnight.

Vow of Silence...

So I think the monks have ti right when it comes to the Vow of Silence. Because, seriously, even with the best intentions, I feel like I always say the wrong thing. Perception is the bane of my existence.

So I think about the Vow of Silence... ahhh.

The Whole Hair Growing Thing...

Seriously, growing the hair out since October... man, I shed more then a cat in heat... I don't know, do cats shed more in heat? Well, yea, I shed. What's up with that?

Saturday, March 01, 2008

Shave to Save

Hey kids!

Those of you who know me know I am participating in a fundraising event called Shave to Save. Those of you who don't know what that is, well, Shave to Save is one of the American Cancer Society’s most exciting and unique fundraising events and the only special event that directly benefits the Hope Lodge which provides free, temporary housing to cancer patients and their caregivers during the duration of their treatment. To date the Hope Lodge has served over 4,000 individuals and their caregivers since its doors opened in 2000. It is an amazing facility and has assisted countless families during a very trying time.

For my part, along with 14 other Shavees in Kansas City, I'm helping to raise money for the Hope Lodge and on May 8th I will get my head shaved in honor of those fighting cancer and all those who have lost someone close to this disease.

And as a added bonus, I thought if I am going to get my head shaved, why not see if I can grow enough hair to donate to Locks of Love. Probably won't hit 10 inches by May, but shouldn't stop a person from trying, right? But you'll be able to see the progress at www.baldyellowlove.com, site is not live yet, but hopefully soon.

It is my hope that you'll join me in this journey and help me raise money for this cause. You can visit my Shave to Save page at: http://main.acsevents.org/goto/benlee, there you can learn more about the Hope Lodge and make a donation to help me reach my goal of $5000.

Thank you for your time and hopefully your support. I'll keep you all updated on how things are going.

Ben

thoughts of the day

1) sometimes I wonder if there are rumors about me.

2) throwing up Long Island Ice Teas is by far the worst, most painful, citrus-burning experience ever.