Random Mumblings

Wow....where do I start?

It's been a while, kids, & I've found myself being a completely different dude than the Gary of years ago. Married, 3 kids, living in a modest 3 bedroom house in Bartonville & working for the American Red Cross. Years ago, I was unemployed, living with my parents & REALLY fucked up on various chemicals & liquids.

Goes to show you what maturity can do to somebody.

Not that I'm 100% mature....let's not get too jumpy here. I still play video games, still have my longtime friends over for weekend shenanigans (whatever they may be). There is really no way the inner child in me will ever grow up.

Ever since I turned 30, I 've been in a "reflective" frame of mind. Always reminiscing about years past, re-living stories good & bad, finding myself reaching for the wore out, yet trusty photo album. Facebook hasn't really helped my cause as it's allowed me to reconnect with numerous old friends & acquaintences. 108 friends.....and I know each & every one of them. Not to throw out any digs at people who have upwards of 500-1000 "friends" on their list, but everybody who has added me or I've added myself are family or friends who I can at least share one good story about, validating how I know this person.

As much as I dislike the city of Peoria, my roots are firmly planted there. That damn trailer park off of Knoxville St. was my longtime stomping grounds. Everything I learned about life was taught to me or self taught within the cozy confines of Royal Highlander Mobile Estates. The fights, the games, the days & nights of chaoticness that came with hanging out in our clique. Don't even ask about the Summer of '98....that's another blog for another time (I promise).

Every Saturday & Sunday, Lite Rock 106.9 plays their "Awesome 80's Weekend". I'll head downstairs to the basement & flip on the shitty JVC boombox that resides down there. The moment that first song hits, I'm in flashback mode. You ever heard about how certain songs take you back to a certain moment and/or place in your life? Add some early-mid 90's music to the mix & it's a fucking soundtrack to my life!

But as everybody knows very well, there's no time machine. Time only moves forward & all we can do is get old & plan our next course in life. That's not to say that it's necessarily a bad thing, it's just life....and I love my current state in life. I'm married to the greatest woman ever, my children are everything I could ever imagine (no matter how much of a pain in the ass they could be), & I find myself pretty content.

From the skinny, young rugrats to the East Peoria girls (both groups!)...from the Brotherhood to the Rock & Roll Society...from the hazy days of '98 to my self-imposed recovery in '00...it's been one hell of a journey. And I can't thank each & every one of you enough for being a part of it!

This blog will serve to mainly let me clear my mind once a while, but also to re-live some of those funny childhood/teenage stories. Nobody will be safe....including myself! :)