How to cut a Gordian Knot

Like many other weekend in our life, this past weekend was a busy one. We went to the IMA Friday night to see “Office Space”, we had a CMA (Christian Medical Association) picnic Saturday, then Sunday it was off to our friends Houswarming party (which we were actually throwing). Seems like any other regular weekend for the Heaton’s, right?

It was, actually. Unfortunatley, now is not the summer. It’s fall. The fall has brought on MBA classes, Med school, LSAT studies, and of course, marriage. We now found ourselves sitting down Sunday night and looking at each other, thinking “Have we actually TALKED to each other this entire weekend”. Thus the new challenge we face: finding time for each other in the new mish-mosh of a life, where strands of life cross and curl to form this huge knot that, if we’re not carefull, threatens to choke the life out of us.

We sat down, we prioritized, and we went through all of our activities, trying to see where we can makes cuts. Sadly, the answer was all to obvious; we are going to be seriously cutting back in our social activities. Simply put, school, church, and time for each other are NOT negotiable. That just leaves social outings. So, we now are going to try and limit ourselves to one activity a weekend, and seriously try and curtail ALL midweek activities. Are we becoming stick in the mud, isolated married people? No; but we are trying to be responsible, top of our class students who still put their marriage at the forefront, second only to God. So, we’ll see how that goes.

Thoughts for the week:

• This is actually the second time I’ve tried to write this post. The first time, I wrote it, and the computer deleted it. I was to frustrated to try immediatley, so I had to wait a few days. I apologize for the delay.
• John mark Karr was proven completley innocent in the JonBenet killing. What a shock! Just like I figured – crackpot, creepo, possible molestor, but not the killer.
• Iran wants to sit down for a debate with Bush. Look, I’m not supporting Iran’s views in the least, I’m 100% American, but does anyone else think Bush would most likely lose that debate. Not because of his views, but simply because hes a HORRIBLE debater. Seriously, in six presidential debates and all the different primary debates he’s been in, I think he’s about 1-14 or something. He’s just awful at the art of linguistic battle.
• Chavez is saber rattleing in the Mid-East, cozying up with Syria and Iran. Does this really surprise anyone. He says he’ll stop U.S. hergemony if its the last thing he does. This spells bad news down the road, I have a feeling.
• Tigers have just been awful in August. Lets hope September helps them get back in form as we close in on the playoffs. Lions have just looked awful in the preseason, no surprise
• It’s been a year since Katrina, but I’ve just been amazed at what a great job the city and the government have done to rebuild this great, truly American city! (Yes, that statement was laden with bitterness and sarcasim. I love New Orleans, this is simply an ongoing tragedy)
• You gotta shake it…before you bake it

One love to you all.

A sad day in the Solar System…

Today, astronomers took the heinous and dastardly step we all dreaded, and officially demoted Pluto from planet status. In the little guys honor, here are the lyrics to “Pluto” by 2 Skinee J’s. If this song doesn’t make the case for you, you must have a cold heart indeed:

With depravity, I break lots of gravity
Blast past the atmosphere To the last frontier
I go boldly through space and time
The sky’s the limit, But the limit isn’t the sky
I break orbit by habit, I ignite satellites and leave rings round the planets
A flying ace like that beagle, Nevertheless this alien remains illegal
Cause their discovery don’t cover me The immigrants been left in the cold
To grow old And disintegrate
Discriminate Against the distant and disclaimers,
Cause small minds can’t see past uranus
When i shun their race Cause that’s just a phase
And my odyssey runs in 2001 ways
And i can see clearly now like hubbell
Shoved off the shuttle, Here’s my rebuttal
It’s a planet.
{Chorus}Pluto is a planet. pluto!
Pluto is a planet. pluto!
Pluto is a planet. pluto!
Pluto is a planet. pluto!
Who do you represent? I represent the smallest planet
A tourney in this journey Versus those who tried to ban it.
If you don’t agree Go see interplanet janet cause
The sun is star like Pluto Is planet.
So lend me all ears And let me state my case,
About all the types of satellites we must embrace
Cause like parents’ Great-grandparents,
This planet was an immigrant, To deport it’s an offense.
It’s an upstanding member of the solar system
Abide the laws of earth and make it a victim.
Of proposition 107,
When pluto spawns a moon it will apply to the heavens.
A dandy like judas of a chariot If you demote this boat Remote to a goat
It’s like taking et’s custody from elliot,
Support yours Clearly put cause,
Simply put
{chorus}

Hungry like the Wolf

Last night was the start of my career as a graduate student. Starting with a small reception at 5:00, I am officially in the midst of being a student of IU’s Kelley School of Business MBA program. I looked around me, and for once in my life, I feel like I’m in the middle of a bunch of hungry, driven people, who will pass me in a heartbeat if I don’t run with the pack. Frankly…I love it.

Holly often makes fun of the fact of the “andyheaton” phenom she perceives when we go back to Montevallo. Yes, I accomplished alot of things at Montevallo, was somewhat successful. When I look at it though, I don’t feel like I particularly racked up this impressive plate of accolades. Simply put, I was a big fish in a very small pond. Don’t get me wrong, I’m proud of my time at Montevallo, love the gold and purple and red brick world of Motown, and wouldn’t trade it for anything. Now, though, i have a chance to prove myself against a group of peole who truly are all gunning to be at the top of not just campus life, but the top of Indianapolis and the business world at large. I like the push, the challenge. I can feel my mojo starting to get worked up. The talked about the GBS (Graduate Business Council, an SGA-like institution), and I got that old tingle. Yes, this will be good.

Everything else is going good in life. Work is fine, though dull at times. This past weekend was pretty busy, between an Indians game on Friday with Holly’s Med School, a Saturday night with our friends Jim and Beth, church on Sunday, and then D-Rock and myself heading to the Colts pre-season game against the Seahawks. And yes, this weekend is already packed up yet again! It’s a beautiful life (oh, oh-oh-oh).

Closing notes and thoughts:

• Maybe you get a different feeling, but I get the feeling that John Mark Karr, the man who has confessed to be Jon Benet’s killer, is full of it. When everyone in his life is saying, “He was with us in Alabama back then” and “There’s no way he was in Colorado” and “He didn’t even know Patrick Ramsay”, it all just doesn’t add up. I think he’s a sick individual, I think he is a danger to kids and probably has been a molestor, but even more, I think he was someone who became obsessed with this story and saw a way to get himself made apart of it. But he’s not the killer.
• K-Fed made his rap debut. Wow…that’s all I really can say on that.
• For good music, check out Gnarls Barkley’s “St. Elsewhere”. By now, you’ve heard “Crazy”, the lead single. The entire album, though, is a triumph of soul-infused funk and pop with a tecno edge. MC Danger Mouse is amazing and has been golden on most anything he’s touched. Cee-Lo Green (a member of Goodie Mobb and on the Dungeon Family label with OutKast) has been boiling below the surface of mainstream conciousness for awhile, but is an amazing rapper and singer. You should also check out Cee-Lo’s first solo album “Cee-lo Green and his Perfect Imperfections”
• Italy’s going to lead the multi-national force in Southern Lebanon. Seriously, Italy. That’s supposed to show that the modern world is really serious about this, by letting ITALY take the lead? I’m angered beyond belief about this.

That’s all for now, one love to you all.

The big empty

For months straight, I felt like I was in a perpetual state of motion. There was always something that needed to be done, always some place that I needed to be or some call that needed to be made. Between the wedding, church leadership responsibilities, work, and pre-req classes for my MBA, I often felt like there weren’t enough hours in the day.

So…yeah, that’s changed. Now the wedding is over, for now our church group is on hiatus, MBA classes don’t start till next week, and work is kinda slow. Needless to say, there is a feeling of restlessness bubbling inside. Especially now that, with Hawaii out of the way, I don’t really have any big vacation to look forward to anytime soon. All leads to a bit of a “twiddling thumbs” feeling. Holly is going through her own “post-matrimonial-funk”. We know that it will quickly get replaced with the craziness of school. We both start next week, and she’ll especially become crazy-busy once again.

For now though, I twidle my thumbs some more.

The weekend was a good one, very active. Polka Boy was at the Rathskeller again Friday night (ran into my boss…awkward), then the fair on Saturday night and then church and my fantasy football draft on Sunday. So the weekend itself was pretty packed and this upcoming weekend is already looking to be just as packed.

A few closing notes:

• My fantasy football team looks strong, but everything hinges on Cedric Jones being a solid starter for the Bears. Keep your fingers crossed {Editor’s Note: So, I’m an idiot. Cedric Benson is the RB I drafted and #1 on the depth chart in Chitown, Thomas JONES is the #2 player on the depth chart. What have we learned? I’m a freakin moron}
• Israel and Hezbollah have agreed to the UN-backed truce, but it seems both sides will jump at the slightest twitch. And Syria and Iran both like to be twitchy.
• The wedding has made Holly and myself commiserate on how much we both miss our college friends. Especially our respective greek brothers and sisters. If scientists would get their aces in gear and invent teleporters, everything would be just fine. Come on, science!

Tis all for now. One love to you all.

And your new life starts…NOW

 That’s what was going through my head the minute the “I do”s (or in our case, “I will”s) were done. I was embarking on a new life. I was no longer just andyheaton. I was now a member of a partnership, a lifetime team. It was a lot to think about and still have to remember to walk back down the aisle.

 Needless to say, I’m back. To try to truly describe the past two weeks would be pretty impossible, so I will try to summarize as adequetly as possible.

 Simply put, the wedding came off splendidly. Holly looked amazing, more beautiful than any bride I’ve ever seen. The rehearsal dinner, wedding, and reception could not have gone any more perfectly. I can say, without trying to be to braggadocios, that the receptions was one of the biggest and best parties I’ve even had the privilege of attending. Everyone had a blast, friends of all shapes and sizes and area codes came together and partied like they’d known each other for years. We couldn’t have asked for anything more.

Hawaii was simply breathtaking. We went to the remote island of Molokai and spent eight days just being away from civilization on the whole and spending time with each other. Our two connections to the outside world were the TV and our rental car. In the fog of it all, I somehow got Holly addicted to “Flava of Love” on VH1. Cause ya gots to hold down ya boy Flav! We hiked mountains, strolled coffee plantations, and simply loved one another.

 Now, it’s back to bills, school, work, and the grind of normal life. I’ve never been more ready for it, energized and ready to impact life. And for those worried – yes, pictures will be coming soon.

One love to you all.