Sunday, July 08, 2007

Meltdown of the Year

95% of you will not think this video is funny. The other 5% will watch it over and over (at least 3 times). Shannon Sharpe is hilarious, and the NFL Today is the best NFL pregame show on the air right now. Enjoy! On another note, I just remembered that BOTH the national championship game of college football and the super bowl had the opening kickoff returned for a touchdown. Pretty cool, huh? Of course, there was an obvious holding penalty that should have been called on Ohio State that would have negated the touchdown. Oh well, they got their asses kicked anyway. I'm happy.



Saturday, July 07, 2007

7.7.07

Since this day comes around once every 100 years, I figured I'd better prove I was alive by forever implanting my thoughts in the world wide web by writing a blog. Happy Saturday, bitches.

I wasn't around in 1907 and I probably won't be around in 2107 (although it's not completely outside the realm of possibility - I would be 125 going on 126). But I am around in 2007, so I have been able to enjoy this once-a-century day. Yep, its the supposedly-luckiest day of the year. 7-7-07. Triple 7s, the luckiest combination there is. It blows up the slot machine, gives you 21 in blackjack, and brings good luck to all.

So, in typical fashion, everyone is going to the casino today to put this theory to the test. It all started last night when I trekked it over to AmeriStar at midnight for a little late night gaming. I've never seen a non-Vegas casino so overrun with people. It was ridiculous. Fortunately, all the rent-gamblers were gravitating to the extreme low-limit tables, so I had relatively limited company at the medium ($15) tables. $15 a hand is hardly something to scoff at, but I find that higher limits act as a filter of sorts to dissuade people who don't know how to play from sitting next to you. I generally hate playing with other people, so this helps a bit. In a perfect world, I would have my own table at the casino, with my own private dealer. Yes, I'm kind of high maintenance like that. Actually I'm high maintenance in pretty much all aspects of my life, but I do a very good job of not showing it.

My friend Kansas (who lives in Texas, not to be confused with Jayhawk, although she is also older than I), has asked to be quoted in this blog. So, you readers from random places like Qatar, Saudi Arabia, and South Africa (yes, I track everyone who accesses this page, location and all) can know what some of my other friends are like. Anyway, Kansas made an astute observation about a friend having girl problems when she eloquently observed that, "[my friend] is pussy-whipped but hasn't gotten the pussy yet." Yes, BLove, $600 tix to a concert and no ass is something most of us will not stand for.

No update with Jayhawk. Still need to tag up some parts of my condo, and then find a church in the plaza and tag it there (save it, I already know I'm a terrible person). 7 weeks left to do it. Wish me luck.

For those of you who care, I got to see three fellow classmates in KC today! I'm meeting the other two in half an hour in the plaza. I can't wait! I've always found it funny that people can travel thousands of miles to a distant place and long for familiar faces. Such is my case, and I suspect is also the case for many others.

Finally, I offer three truths for everyone to remember:

  • water will always be wet
  • the sky will always be blue
  • the Astros will never get a man home from 3rd with less than two outs
Stay up y'all.

Wednesday, July 04, 2007

Chris Does America

On this, the 231st anniversary of our nation's birth (translation: beat that British ass), I feel it necessary to comment on my most recent almost-purely-American experiences..

Nothing seems like a more appropriate way to celebrate America than a GODDAMNED TELEVISED EATING CONTEST. Yes, today the annual Coney Island hotdog eating contest is being televised (by ESPN). Why?!? Who the fuck is watching this (besides me b/c, let's face it, it's comewhat interesting)? And does anyone find it funny that a Japanese dude always wins this thing? America has the most gluttonous eaters on the planet. We should win this competition, particularly because Kobayashi is injured this year (arthritic jaw). Incidentally, someome just likened Kobayashi's comeback efforts today to Willis Reed's (!!) comeback during the '75 NBA finals. And how low on the media totem pole do you have to be to draw the hotdog eating contest assignment? So instead of spending the 4th with your family (or mistress - hey, I'm just being realistic), you end up having to interview people about cliche sports shit: passion for the "sport", mental toughness, competitive advantage - as it relates to eating a frank.

Second, to kick off my 4th, last night I went to a casino...the trashiest casino I've ever been..and I loved it..

I'll explain...

Ordinarily (i.e. at a casino where fewer than 60% of the patrons are gambling their rent money, wearing jorts or t-shirts and caps with references to NASCAR, or to the states of Missouri or Arkansas), free drinks are served, people clip their toenails, wear makeup, talk normally. Such was not the case at the Harrah's off I-210 last night.

Two things clued me in that this might not be the classiest casino. First, the presence of a bar at the entrance to the casino. Yes, you were encouraged to purchase your $3.00 beer before you sat at the table. Next, and this floored me - the casino was paging dealers and such over a very audible PA system. I've never heard a PA in a casino before, and it felt more like I was at Home Depot than anywhere. Truly filthy.

Of course, I went to this casino by myself. The roomate isn't much of a gambler and the other two interns were doing stuff with their wives. As is also the case, I get hit on by nasty ass bitches. In this case, a woman in her mid 40s. A smoker (no, she really smoked cigarettes, it was disgusting), dirty bleach blonde hair, and kinda chubby. She didn't really know how to play blackjack, so I helped her out, not because I'm nice, but because I didn't want her play to fuck up my cards. As is also the case when I give blackjack advice, she starts winning. I continue winning. Then she gets friendly and congratulates me by nudging me on my arm after I win a hand. Didn't mind it at first because I think it's collegial. I keep winning (she does too) and she starts calling me "Lucky Guy" and, instead of the little arm nudges, she elects to begin softly squeezing me on my arm after a victorious hand. This was a little weird. Of course, since I'm a guy, I had a devil/angel moment. The devil said, "Chris, it's yours if you want it." (It had come up in coversation that she had a "very nice" room at the casino). The angel said, "Chris, this bitch is nasty. What the fuck are you thinking? You have a good thing going with Jayhawk. Chill out, brother."

So, as the story ends, I let it go, played it off, had a good time, then came home. I am currently watching baseball (very American of course) and reading the college football preview magazines I bought yesterday. Later, I will eat barbeque and watch some fireworks later tonight. Then it's back to work!

Friday, June 08, 2007

The Start of Summer

It has been a while since I've posted to the blog. Since my past post (May 7), I have:

  • finished the school year
  • hung out at Hula Hut and in downtown Austin a lot
  • studied for and taken Level 1 of the CFA exam
  • followed the Spurs' run to what will eventually be another championship
  • prepared a little more for my internship
  • moved to Kansas City for the summer (the most uneventful 10-hour drive ever)
I went ahead and moved to KC this past Tuesday thinking it would take me a few days to get my bearings and buy all the necessary stuff I need that I forgot in Austin. Doing this, plus getting my car washed and waxed (only to have it rain a day later) took all of 4 hours. So the past two days I have been sitting at home, building little excel models and debating academic finance with various friends to pass the time. I've also spent a good bit of time reading the personals on craiglist.org. They're quite funny. I love the "casual encounters" section. People will go to just about any length to hook up these days.

I'm looking forward more than normal to going out tonight. I really want to see what the KC social scene is like. I mentioned to a friend of mine that, to this point, I haven't seen a hot chick here yet. Thankfully that changed last night when I was at a sports bar watching the Spurs game.

Before I forget, I also found out (from my roomate, also an intern at my company) that my company has a gym on site that can be used free of charge. This is great news to me.

I'm not sure what to do after basketball season is over. We obviously don't get Astros games here. In fact, we get Royals and Cardinals games. I hate the Cards, and the Royals simply aren't very good, so I'm stuck between a rock and a hard place as far as summer sports are concerned. And there's no way I am getting into KC's MLS team.

I start my internship on Monday. I'm looking forward to getting paid better than my banker friends, getting off at 5:30, having my weekends free, and not having to cancel dinner plans (I can hear the collective "Fuck you, Chris" retort from my banker friends already). This means I can hopefully visit some of you guys over the summer, and I'll have time to entertain guests who decide to come to KC (that's a plug, I'd like as many people as possible to visit me this summer - free place to stay, I have my car, etc).

Ok, that's it. I'm gonna take a nap. I'll keep everyone up to date on what happens during my summer.

Monday, May 07, 2007

My Style: The Story of Chris's Wristwear

There was a time when I was extremely shy, never talked to anyone, found it extremely making friends, or even meeting people randomly. There are still traces of these traits that remain with me, and I suspect they will for the rest of my life. So when I was in high school I noticed that whenever I met people, I noticed small things about them. The color of their belt, any cool-looking shoelaces, a pattern on someone's tie, a girl's earrings, etc. This got me thinking, what could I do to make myself stand out?

My quest for the answer took years...

For some reason I've always like wearing rubber bands, like my once-favorite NBA player, Mario Elie, used to do. I started wearing them literally because he did, so when people asked me why I wore them, thats the story I told them. Every once in a while I would vary the colors so there'd be some variety, but that was about it. On my right hand (I'm left-handed) I normally wore a watch, but, after reading Dennis Rodman's "Bad as I Wanna Be," and learning that he never wore one, I also stopped. Don't ask why I thought Dennis Rodman was the man. Look, I was young and impressionable...

...anyway, just about all of you are well aware that I wear wristbands. So here's why...

In the fall of 2002, during my senior year at Texas, I played in a video game tournament one Friday afternoon after class. The tournament was sponsored by EA Sports, who, as you might imagine, showed up with a shitload of giveaways, some of which were wristbands. I picked up a ton of different gifts. On my way home that afternoon I tripped on one of the disgusting West Campus sidewalks and landed awkwardly on my wrist. It hurt - bad. But it was just a sprain, not a fracture...

...that night, as I got ready to go to my friend P's party, my wrist was killing me. So I popped a couple pills and put the wristband on to help stabilize it. The effect was better than I ever imagined...

..as I mentioned earlier, I've always been kinda shy, so it wasn't like I was agressively hitting on girls at this party. But, similar to my thoughts in high school, the wristband gave people an icebreaker for me. The effect was incredible. I'd had some good nights in college, but mostly due to my own work. Never had I had so many chicks (hot ones, too) come up to me to start conversations. I was floored. The wristband broke the ice and then Chris ran the table. That night was one of the best in my college days, and in no small part was it because of that wristband. Remember, I'm kinda feeling like shit - my wrist is badly sprained and I'm not in the greatest of moods, but trusty wristbands saved the day (well, night)....

...so that's why I wear it: to give people something to hang on to, to start conversations. At this point I've started coming up with ridiculous replies to the question, "Why are you wearing a wristband" because it's fun. Of course, sometimes I actually need a wristband when I start sweating at a dance club (see: Spill last night), but mostly its just so chicks notice and approach me instead of the other way around. I'll admit, I have a small ego and don't like rejection, so I don't approach every chick I want to...

...in case you were wondering, I got crushed on my advanced corporate finance test last night (I don't even wanna see the grade), but I'm finished with school. The first year is too fast...

...on the other hand, I am completely free for the next 3 weeks before I move to Kansas City, so if you want to do something, my schedule is mostly clear. I'll be studying for my CFA exam, but can make time for y'all...

Tuesday, May 01, 2007

Sexy Killer

As I sit here watching the Warriors get their ass beat by the Mavs and sipping on the nastiest white wine I've ever had (do not EVER buy Yellow Tail Chardonnay 2005 vintage - it's fucking awful), I reflect on a rather strange day. Pretty much all day I doubted the whole "April showers bring May flowers" principle I learned as a kid because the weather was so bad (what is it with this horrible weather we're having? This is a serious buzzkill.). I mean, it's the first of May and it looks like NYC outside - gray skies with a nagging drizzle.

Anyway, after the typical boring ACF class, I did some reading and rolled into my weightlifting class. This is the last week of school and there's exactly one hot chick in there and, yep you guessed it, I waited until today to finally talk to her. But that's neither here nor there. So I roll out of class a little early to get my much anticipated fitness test. What I am about to tell you may shock you, but it looks like my efforts these past few months have paid off..

people, I am 7.88% body fat.

That's right, I am once again a prime physical specimen. No you can't touch me tomorrow when you see all 144lbs of my lean, mean, sexy ass rolling around campus. Except if you're hot.

I'll admit I was a little surprised. I knew I was losing fat and gaining muscle mass, but I figured I would be around 9% or 10%. This is great news. My fast food hiatus combined with fierce determination to get back in shape and the assumption of a healthy diet are paying dividends. Now I just wish I were 6 inches taller so I could play football (as a safety or other DB, wiseass).

So that was the good news of the day. Now for the better news (save the comments, I already know I am going to hell for this one)...

...many of you know how much I hate housecats (I like tigers, ocelots, jaguars, lions). As it was, I was driving home from school when this stupid-ass feline decided to park itself in the middle of the road I was barreling down. The two cars ahead of me gently swerved to avoid hitting it. I thought the bastard would get the hint and get out of the way. Unfortunately, rationality was not with this idiot. As I approached him from 50 feet away I had serveral brief flashbacks of my roadkill history. I remembered March 2000 driving back from the Salt Lick when my friend P took out a cat sprinting across the road, I remembered May 2005 driving to Kansas when this dumb-ass coyote decided he was up for the challenge. Bits of his spine are still in my car grill...

...I returned to reality just in time to hear cat bones crunching under my right front tire. It felt like a little speed bump. My right back tire, probably a bit jealous, managed to get a piece of the action. Let's call it the cleanup hitter...

I drove a little faster than normal the rest of the way. For one, I don't know if anyone saw me. This cat died a quick, painless (well, probably not painless) death. And, since it refused to move out of the way for the two cars ahead of me, it was probably retarded. So in that sense, I put a retarded housecat out of its misery and did my part to help control the pet population (shouts out to Bob Barker). See, I'm a good samaritan.

The rest of Tuesday was normal. I have a shitload of work to get done for finals. I can't believe I'm just about done with my first year (I'm drafting a blog about this and will publish soon).

Stay up y'all.

Lyrics I am feeling at the moment:

Everytime your name was brought up
I would act all nonchalant infront of an audience
Like if you was just another shorty I put the naughty on
But uh, truth be told you do me for a loop, this Hov
I'm too old to be frontin when I'm feeling Denzel
And you acting like you ain't appealing but you are
Stuting like you ain't my only girl but you are (I was just frontin)
I'm ready to stop when you are
--from "Frontin'" by Pharrell featuring Jay-Z

Wednesday, April 25, 2007

Memories

I was at each of these games. Oh, the memories.


Tuesday, April 24, 2007

Control

I didn't think it could get worse. But now she's starting to believe in her cause. Guys, run for cover.



Lessons for men and women, courtesy of Ms. Tylor (these are direct quotes):

  • If the man ain't comin', he gonna be goin' somewhere else, puttin' his penis in someone else
  • A lot of women will laugh and talk about a man if his penis is small
  • Just because a man is in love with your vagina doesn't mean he's in love with you
  • A lot of us get caught up on the dick
  • Dick will make you slap somebody
  • The penis is a heat-seeking missile, like a rocket. Information is encoded in it making it do what it do
  • Men launch their penis up in the vaginal canal. As a woman relaxes and breathes and sits on that penis and rock and move and rotate and find her rhythm and go up and down and back and forth and around in a circle, she starts getting her groove back
  • When the parts of penis hit them vagina walls, harmonizing and making them sing, a woman feels like she's in church jumping and shouting
  • Dick'll make you lose control
I don't know why I think this is so funny. I'll write about different shit later.

Monday, April 23, 2007

Farm Animals

Don't ask me why I just did this, but I went and looked up a "Jackrabbit." I didn't know what it was. and I must say that it doesn't look like a sexy object at all. So if you're also curious, go here. I met a 45 year old in Vegas this weekend who owns a lingerie store in New Orleans. Told her I would swing by if I decide to go to Jazz Fest next weekend.

Enjoy.

Thursday, April 19, 2007

And What, That Plate, What, $2.99?

This is the craziest thing I have ever seen. I'll have to admit that she makes a good point, it's just overly graphic. Hilarious.

Wednesday, April 18, 2007

Chris Goes to Bar, Meets Accountant, Rediscovers Love of Hot Sauce

Shannon Elizabeth just mugged down with David Allen Grier on live national TV. What a lucky guy...

Anyway, Tuesday nights in Austin are pretty nice because it's $1 beer night at a few hot spots. Last night a few of us rolled up to Cain & Abel's for some general socializing, beer drinking, and being thankful that our 8am Strategy class was cancelled. In short, it was a great time. I got a chance to meet Ryan's chick and Cialis' chick, who, along with her friend, we discovered to be 4th year PPA students that tried to convince us that "PPA kids are the wildest around." Yea right. Us MBAs know how to rock it harder than you imagine.

I got more drunk than I planned to. Since I didn't really eat anything all day, it only took a couple of Budweisers (not Bud Light) to get me going. As a result, I peaced out around 1am despite the fact that Cody's chick's friend was obviously feeling me.

So on my way home I decided to stop into Jack in the Box for the first time in literally 5 months. I got some greasy $0.99 tacos and a spicy chicken sandwich. When I got home I quickly ran out of the packaged hot sauce they give you. Since I was desperate for more, I went through my cupboard looking for more. Thankfully, I had bought a bottle last week at the store, so I drowned my remaining taco and sandwich in Louisiana brand hot sauce. Delicious. It was so good I think I may have had a dream about it. Too bad I don't have a foot fetish, or I'd do a commercial for these guys.

At this point I thought about proclaiming my love of hot sauce on this blog for all the world to see. But it's not necessary. Most of you who read this know me and know I hail (originally) from New Orleans, so it comes as no surprise that I love seafood and all things spicy. My parents have this picture of me holding a 3-lb live lobster when I was 2 years old. I guess I started on day 1.

On a couple of other topics, I am going to VEGAS in 39 hours. Can't wait. Perhaps more importantly, Laura has agreed to take down the "Fuck Off" sign she had aimed at me and let me be her friend again. Which is very good news b/c I thought there was a 1% chance of that happening. My friend Jess says, "Chris, don't fuck that up again." Trust me Jess, I won't.

Tuesday, April 17, 2007

I Can't Believe You Said That

I found myself in a funny, yet potentially volatile situation a couple of days ago that I wanted to mention...

...As fate would have it, I wound up having dinner with two different people on two consecutive evenings at the same restaurant, let's call them person A and person B. So I had made plans with person A to go to this particular establishment about a week before I actually went. I made plans with person B about 3 hours before I went. Person B suggested this place, and was really passionate about it, so I couldn't really say no. So I went. It was delicious. The next day comes around and it's time to eat with person A. I'm really thinking nothing of it. I've done this before, not by choice but by chance. So I'm thinking it's no biggie...

...I roll inside this joint and I'm greeted by the same hostess from the night before who, instead of saying something like, "Good evening, welcome to [insert restaurant name]," she says, "hey! you were here last night, weren't you"...

Are you fucking kidding me? You seriously just asked me, in front of a different girl, in front of like 6 other people waiting for tables, if I was there last night, presumably with someone else? I almost lost it. But given the situation, I stayed cool and played it off like the cool cat that I am. Thankfully person A was cool about it too. Thankfully. She thought it was kind of funny.

I've never worked in the restaurant business, but I've got to assume that when they train you, they teach you not to call people out like that. This chick evidently had no idea of the potential consequences of words like that. You can fuck up an entire evening (in the best case scenario) or an entire relationship/family/small country (worst case scenario).

So the obvious implication here is that of a cheating scenario. Thankfully, that wasn't my situation. I've told some of you how it's a small fantasy of mine to find myself eating a restaurant when the "Cheaters" TV show van screeches to a halt in front of the restaurant, barges in with their camera crew, and causes a scene [yes, I am a sick bastard].

I'm currently sitting in my advanced corporate finance class, bored as hell, obviously not paying attention. Ryan, to my left, paying attention like a good MBA student, secretly wishes he weren't here. He's probably thinking about getting drunk at Cain & Abel's tonight. Or he might be thinking about a particularly pleasurable sexual experience from 5 years ago. Who knows.

Monday, April 16, 2007

The Weather Man



Yep, Wayne makes it rain.

Sin City, Part 7

Yea, you guessed it, I'm headed to Vegas this Friday....and I can't wait.

So, it's been a while since I've been out there as a student. Normally I went out and balled out of control as a working professional, but this time its back to pure, raw, derrty fun. Someone asked me where I was staying this time, and I told them "the Palace." He asks, "Caesar's Palace?" I shyly look down at the floor and say, "naw man...Imperial Palace." But it's all good. My plan, as usual, is to gamble 14 hours a day, eat a little, drink, and go grizzly (that was for you Benton). It's been a while since I've been out here, click here for pictures of that last trip from August 2005.

My mom asked me to bring her back 10 black chips (a black chip is worth $100). While I can't promise that, I told her I'd get her something. Anything, if any of you cats want something, let me know. Nothing big (shot glass, etc), but just let me know...

..on another note, weather permitting, I am going back to Lake Travis on April 28th (Saturday). Y'all know the number if you're down for a little more jet skiing.

Stay up y'all.

Sunday, April 15, 2007

Realization

When I was a kid, I read just about the entire Berenstain Bears collection of books that my parents bought for me. Though they were typical children's books, each one conveyed an important life lesson through its stories. One particular book was subtitled "It's Never Too Late To Correct A Mistake." And throughout some recent events of my own creation, I am reminded of this important maxim.

Many of you have never met my friend Laura. Laura lives here in Austin, and I met her shortly after the beginning of school this past fall. I knew I liked her instantly, but never really got to know her very well because I had just started school and was also trying to meet new friends at school. On occasion, we would hang out, but not very often. At the time, she was dating someone and so I never saw her much.

Recently (within the past 2 months or so) we've started to hang out more, on a much more regular basis, and I've enjoyed it. But, like I knew at the beginning, I knew I liked her, not just as mere casual friends but I knew I wanted to pursue something deeper if it was there. In restrospect I wish I didn't feel that way but you can't really help how you feel. Sometimes I wish I didn't like the color blue so much, but I can't just change. Anyway, I made it pretty clear that I was interested. This was maybe 6 weeks ago. So last night we go to dinner and its going very well when we start to get back on the subject of dating. I knew what she was going to say (just got out of a relationship, not ready for another, want to be single for a while, blah blah blah) so I wasn't surprised to hear it. What did surprise me was my internal reaction to it all...

...So later on we're at a bar with some of her friends and all I'm thinking is I'm not really comfortable with this situation. So I leave. Later on, somehow, I decide that I can't really just be regular friends with a girl I actually like (which still makes a bit of sense to me). So I tell her. She flips out, we argue (over text messages nonetheless) for 4 hours...

...I start to think about what I just said and I realize that I had a moment like Albert Brenneman in the movie Hitch (where he impulsively quits his job during a meeting with Allegra Cole). I overreacted and didn't fully think about the consequences of my actions. I fucked this up badly, and I am trying to undo it. Ultimately, I have realized that you can't cut people out of your life because they don't perfectly fit what you're going after. Laura is a great girl, and I wish I knew a thousand more like her because I (and everyone else) need those type of people. So yes, I am doing the unthinkable of writing her a letter (handwritten, not e-mail), sending flowers, and doing what I can to make this right. Quite simply, she's too good of a friend and way too important to me to say "that's a wrap" on the friendship, and I'm not going to give this up.

This is not an open apology to her, she doesn't even know I have a blog. I just felt like I had to wite this. Today is not a good day. Major sadness.

Tuesday, April 03, 2007

Boredom (5 hours later)

So you're dying to know how the rest of my evening went. Well, it was pretty much just as I expected. I did some work, watched the first episode of Chapelle's Show, and talked to HMBR for a bit. Then I had 4th meal (yea, I ran for the border).

Wow, two worthless posts in one day. It can't get much worse than that...

Boredom

Fair warning: you're probably better off not reading this. I will save you 5 minutes of your life.

I had a ton of stuff due this week. And somehow I got 85% of it (granted, it was a huge stock pitch) done. So when I got home today I found myself with just about nothing urgent to do. So what do I do when I have nothing to do? Yep, you guessed it, get on AIM. So I start talking on AIM with some people, but then that fizzles out after 28 minutes. Aside: I find it extremely difficult to have even remotely serious conversations over IM. You can't tell sarcasm, you can't hear voice tone, its really difficult.

Anyway, so then I turn on my TV and find (as is normally the case) that it's tuned to ESPN. Evidently the women's basketball championship is tonight, and no I will not be watching. So I flip through my basic cable (which sucks) to find nothing of interest. Then I think about writing in my blog, but initially reject the idea. So I heat up some food, then come back to my computer and rethink the blog thing. So I write and continue to write and I still haven't figured out what to do next. I thought about chilling at a friend's place but they were busy. I'm thinking about actually watching a movie (yes, by myself) but we'll see where that goes. I know you're all anxiously awaiting the details of the rest of my evening. Haha...


...see, I told you it was a waste of 5 minutes. But, since you're here, you might as well poke around my blog as bit. I happen to think you'll like a lot of what's here.

Saturday, March 31, 2007

Yes, I Can Float

I am never leaving Austin.

I spent a good portion of the morning and afternoon today, on a particularly beautiful day in the always-lovely Austin, jet skiing (ok, we were on waverunners, whatever) on Lake Travis. Four of us, including myself, two business school friends and one of their brothers made the drive up RR 620 to the lake to reignite our love of all things watersporty. It was fantastic. I wish we could have taken pictures.

I can't imagine doing this at any other school besides Texas (except maybe if I were a Pepperdine MBA). No other city I've lived in offers these types of attractions at a reasonable price, simply amazing. This weekend's Preview Weekend needs to include a day cruise on the lake in what could be a deal-closer for those prespective students looking to be sold on UT and on Austin.

Anyway, I'm planning on doing this again pretty soon (think: within the next 2 to 3 weekends). It's pretty cheap ($65 per hour) and there is always a ton of fun to be had.

Ok, that's it.

Monday, March 26, 2007

My New Kicks

The Puma Future Cat Low's





Sunday, March 25, 2007

The Weekend

I haven't written anything of great importance on here in a while....and I'm not changing that here. As I sit here sipping nasty red wine (I'm gonna get my $6 worth, dammit) and jamming out to the newly-discovered Chillout Album (by the way this compilation is fucking incredible), I have decided to reflect on the weekend that was.

The big event I looked forward to last week was the Black & White party. This thing was so big that I went and bought clothes for it (Chris hardly ever buys himself new clothes - more on this later). This party (at Cuba Libre) was as great as advertised. Good drinks, good music, good company. Yea, we got trashed (Jaegermeister, you're my only friend) and went to Spill and other places for a bit before eventually turning it in). So that was Friday.

I woke up Saturday with the type of hangover that makes me want to stop drinking for life. So I decided right then that I was not going out Saturday night. Fortunately, I had gotten Subway for dinner on Friday and had 6 inches of meatball sub goodness to help fight the headache. Then I went to the mall and, for the second time in a week, bought aparrel for myself (unprecedented, I know). In a move that I will openly admit was a complete copy from my friend Beau, I got a pair of bright white Puma kicks. I will only be sport these on select nights.

Saturday night was pretty much exactly as planned. I didn't go out. Just drank some wine and chilled.

Today, for the most part, has been a typical Sunday. I got up at noon, did some homework, and watched tv. Florida and Georgetown advanced to the Final Four to join Ohio State and UCLA in the fight for the national championship of college basketball.

Ok, I have to do a negotiations assignment for tomorrow.

Stay up y'all.

Tuesday, March 20, 2007

Driving Away The Snakes

St. Patrick's Day was simply awesome. I'll write more later, but I think I should start wearing outrageous shirts like these more often...




Monday, March 19, 2007

Caribbean Summer

I am thinking of taking a trip to St. Thomas or St. Lucia either in June or August 25th through 28th (school starts on the 29th). Think about this and let me know if it something you may be interested in.

That's it for now.

Wednesday, March 14, 2007

John Legend (and a little DeAngelo) Gets You Laid

I'm blabbering away as I wait for DM to call me, so I want to mention a few things:

1. I got an intership offer with a Houston-based investment management firm. But I declined it. So, I will be at a Kansas City-based investment management firm. Hey, it's only the summer, not permament. And no, I am not crazy. Ultimately, the KC-based firm would allow me to intern on 3 different funds, whereas I would work on just one at the Houston-based firm. I'm not sold on living in KC (actually I don't think I'll like it much), but I feel the opportunity there provides more professional development potential than my other option.

2. If you're a guy and you bring a girl home, throw on some John Legend (or DeAngelo - How Does It Feel when you get back to your (optimally, her) place. You're gonna score. Do not question this. I'm batting 1.000 with this mix. :-)

3. I predict Florida will repeat as champions of the collegiate basketball world. I predict they will defeat Texas A&M 73-67 on April 2nd in Atlanta.

4. I hope all of you are enjoying your spring break.

Wednesday, March 07, 2007

The Old Guy

Yea, I never thought it would come to this. I am officially the old guy. And I realized this tonight during a meeting with some extremely smart and talented undergrads.

So, most of you know I'm on the Investment Fund. Well, there's an undergrad version of this deal called FAP. We mentor the FAPs. So tonight we met a few of them. I'm impressed. They're all very cool, easy to get along with, and fun to be around. I was drinking beer because Chris drinks beer. But some of them couldn't, and then it hit me - I'm the old MBA student, the person who, when I was an undergrad, I thought was older and way lame.

Somehow, I'm comfortable with this. I also realized how out of the social scene I am. I can't remember the last time I stayed out all night (till the sun started rising) partying. A couple people were doing a city-wide IHOP tour (literally going to 9 of the 10 Austin-area IHOP restaurants in what will probably end up in an overcrowded hot tub party at 5am - the only way I know how to do it), and I kick myself for not thinking about something like that when I was underage.

Anyhow, I'm definitely looking forward to working with them. I'm privileged to have this opportunity.

However, I'm not so old that I don't have the facebook. So maybe I can be cool. Hah.

Internship update: I have an offer from an investment management firm based in Kansas City. My final round with an investment management firm based in Houston is on Friday. This is going to be a tough decision to make if I get this second offer (my third offer is a corporate finance position with a Las Vegas-based gaming company).

Friday, March 02, 2007

Health Pellets, 2007 edition

If this post had a newspaper headline, it would read something like "Spill stock plunges as Chris takes break from alcohol, dirty drunks."

A couple of years ago I had the revelation that it made sense to stop drinking for a period of time each year. Not only would I save a ton of money, but also I would wake up with substantially fewer hangovers, improve my decision making as it relates to potential encounters with females, and enable me to focus on getting in shape.

2007 will be the third campaign of this sort, and it started yesterday. As was the case in the previous two years, people have already started to question the motivation, if I'm crazy, etc. So it began last night when, for the most recent Think-n-Drink (TnD), I started the campaign with 7 Club sodas with lime, and quickly realized that it's going to be a long month.

But, it's not without cause, and I'll probably end up drinking on special occasions (like tonight for Mara's bday). I'm going to Vegas in 6 weeks, and I am really making the push to get into top shape for that trip. That is a side reason for my choosing to underweight booze in March.

Of course, this will be hard, and some have asked why I didn't do this in February (the shortest month). It's just that every once in a while, I like to reaffirm my ability to meet strict personal goals. A lot of people couldn't do it. I can. Ok, thats it.

I'm in town for the next two weeks and will be bored out of my mind, so I'm looking to go out as much as possible.

Vegas trip with my b-school buddies: 49 days away.

Sunday, February 25, 2007

Not Your Daily Vitamin - Continued

In case you all forgot...


That's right. I want some grape drink, baby.

Monday, February 19, 2007

The Girls of 314 - Part 4

Ah, yes, the sights and sounds of Columbus, Ohio. Snow falling, dirty slush frustrating drivers and pedestrians alike. Heavy trucks spraying salt all over the roads. A beautiful winter storm makes its presence known on the Buckeye campus.

In what is becoming at least a once-a-year event, I trekked (well, I flew actually) up to C-bus to visit my wonderful cousin DDP and her roomates. As is normally the case, I had a ton of fun, despite the weather being 15 degrees all weekend and there being a foot of snow on the ground. Since I don't have classes on Friday, I went up Thursday night.

I didn't know how hard these girls party on Thursday.

Since last week celebrated DDP's 20th year of service on Earth, there was still cause to celebrate. Given this, we decided to spend the evening pre-partying at 314, partying at this bar/club called Sugar, and, of course, post-partying at 314. (Sidenote: Sugar is a great place. Envision an upscale version of Spill on 6th street - almost like Pure on 6th.) You can dance at Sugar, which is great b/c, and all of you know this, I love to dance. So I had to get on the floor for a bit. DDP wouldn't do it (c'mon, this skill runs in the family). Thankfully, KP was a willing participant in the dance floor experience. And this place had some good drink specials. I got hammered. Apparently I spoke with the San Francisco accountant for a while that night, but I can't remember it.

Friday night was equally entertaining, with ACJersey's father buying the bar at Mad Max's. And, for the record, I absolutely was not hitting on your stepmom. I guess my style is so smooth it only "looked" like I was. Haha. On this night, Chicago Mike was also out. Pretty cool cat all around. Again, got hammered at Mad Max's. I love going back to college :-)

Saturday was a little more chill. After watching Jackass Part Two (love the "How to Milk a Horse" scene haha), DDP and I decided to chill in and hang out. And then, of course, I flew home yesterday.

All-in-all, a great weekend. I got to hang out with DDP, meet ACJersey's parents (and sister), and do some good partying. I'm definitely going back in May when it's warm(er).


Thanks girls!!!
But, Austin is still better :-)

Thursday, February 08, 2007

Undoubted Overreaction

I know I'm overracting to this, but in the spirit of the new year and the hope for a better tomorrow, I get really annoyed when I watch those overly cheesy eHarmony commercials and see 15 couples that are the same race.

I am well aware that we all have our preferences (physical, professional, religious, etc), but I find it extremely hard to believe that, after evaluating and weighing the heralded "29 dimensions of compatibility" that you won't find 1 happy and successful couple that just happens to be interracial. Seriously, this annoys the shit out of me. And it really tells me that as a society we still aren't ready to see that on TV. I'm SO glad Taye Diggs dates a white woman on Day Break (to date the only such situation I've seen on TV). I can't wait for the day where it's not an issue and that people don't react to seeing this type of stuff or have no problem putting it in the public forum.

Ok, that's it. I'd imagine most of you disagree vehemently to this. Actually, most of you probably don't even think about it. Till next time, peace.

Tuesday, February 06, 2007

Damn This Windshield Is Clean!



It seems so nonchalant, just three little words: Low Washer Fluid. But what it represents goes much further than a spot-free shine.

Let's face it, everyone abuses rental cars. Whether you rent a manual and perform clutch-free shifting, take speed bumps at full speed, purposefully wear down the brake pads, or put sugar in the gas tank, rental cars are constantly made the subjects of pent-up agression and anger. But beginning in 2007, Ron Jones elected to make his own mark on those poor cars. Yep, he started shining glass. By that, I mean he started draining ALL the wiper fluid out of the reservoir. Now you understand the picture. This becomes his trademark move. EVERY car he ever rents for the next 60 to 70 years will have its wiper fluid drained. No driver on the road will see more free and clear than Ron, and we all will be safer because of it. It is because of this thinking that I will always find humor in these situations.

So when Ron went to the desert last week for business and sent me a text informing me that he had buffed the windsheld to a shine, I didn't believe him. But then came the evidence. Truly hilarious.

In other news, I found out I got a second round interview with AIM Investments and Goldman Sachs. Today I interviewed with American Century Investments, so hopefully I'll continue in the process with them as well. Everyone, pull for me.

Tomorrow night at 8pm: Doc's for the Duke - UNC game. Join us!

Still working on next Wednesday's Valentine's Day festivities. If you've got ideas, I'm all ears. I'm thinking dinner and drinks on 6th street might do the trick. FilthFest add-on is still in the works. However, someone better buy me some damn chocolates. :-)

Sunday, February 04, 2007

Super Sunday




So today's the big day. The Super Bowl. Millions of American males (and some females) will officially go into football withdrawal at the sound of the final gun tonight, a withdrawal that lasts throughout the spring, summer, and into the beginning of September. Truly a bittersweet moment.

The Bears should win this game. It's raining - hard. The Bears have a better ground game. Somehow, although I'm not as big a fan as most people, I feel somethig is a little wrong with having Grossman win a championship before Peyton. Just seems weird. But, then again, Peyton never beat Florida when he was at Tennessee...and Rex Grossman went to ...yep, you guessed it, Florida.

Big party at KBs today. T minus 5 hours.

Saturday Night In Austin, Texas - Part Deux

Part 1 of this same-titled post included commentary about strongarming one's way to ass for the evening. Hell, it's efficient, though not my choice of "sealing the deal." I suppose I could make some reference to this very subject tonight, but I'll stay away.

So, its Saturday night. The hoes are working the corner, pimps are sitting pretty, bars are stocked, cabs are alert, the pedi-cabs are anxiously waiting, best wurst is cooking, and I am optimistic.

After a wonderful sushi dinner at Silhouette, the crew for this evening (me, James, Tar Heel 1, Tar Heel 2, Tar Heel 3, Erin, and Gator) made our way to 5th street to the Lucky Lounge. That's a total misnomer. I've never gotten "lucky" there. Total crock. Tar Heel 1 and Erin bounced after a while, so the rest of us joined Strongarm Simpson, KW, Big Bad Harla, and KW's friends (more on this later) at the Chuggin Monkey and Spill to finish off the evening.

There's not a lot of commentary on this evening. It was actually pretty fun. Way better than last night. Maybe it was because I went to Spill. Maybe it was because I didn't go to Logan's. Maybe the mood was different. I dunno. Anyway, observations from the evening include:

1. Somehow stumbled onto Gator's extreme situation. Totally sucks; my friend Kingwood Girl went thru the exact same shit this summer, except it also involved a domestic situation and the Houston Police Dept. Awful. So I gained clarity. Gator gets 1 (mayyyybe 2) more calls (see yesterday's post for theoretical insight).

2. Actually believed KW when she said her friend (who clearly dug me at Spill) was not prime hook-up material. I'm sure I'll be glad I listened to her. On this evening, I'll just constantly reevaulate whether I should have listened or not. Yea, Chris isn't cool with chicks who do the whole city. The Next Generation is too important to risk it. (If you don't know about the Next Generation, just ask me.)

3. Generally, a good night in Austin, although I am sad that Tar Heel 2 had to leave early. It was hard to cope with that (double pun, bitches).

4. Super Bowl is tomorrow. Go Bears. KB had the great idea of getting a Mike Ditka sweatshirt for the game tomorrow. Problem is, so did everyone else. He couldn't even find one on eBay. That's got to mean they're out.

I'm gonna get in a TON of trouble in 2007 for this blog. That's ok.

Valentine's day showdown and FilthFest: 2.14.07

Saturday, February 03, 2007

Going Out

Disclaimer: Wendy, John, James, Eric, Kate, Rob, Mike, Mara, Amber, Amber's hot Gator friend who won't call me back: I love you all.

Friday night in America is typically a time for 18 to 40 year olds to go out for a night on the town, see friends, meet new ones, and soak up the social scene. We call this "going out," as in, "Hey, are you going out tonight?" "Yea man, I'm going out downtown with so and so." So it is not uncommon for me to "go out" with any number of friends I have. Sometimes, however, it seems routine and largely pointless. This evening was a perfect example.

In what started as a promising evening (see The Friend Zone - August 2005) at the delicious Musashino Sushi Dakoro restaurant quickly deteriorated into an average "couple of beers, standing around and bullshitting" evening. I was really kind of disappointed. My friend Mike's band had a set at Light, which was cool, but painfully ordinary. After an hour or so, I chugged my way over to Canvas to meet Wendy, John, James, Amber, Amber's DC friend Lauren (???), and Amber's hot Gator friend who won't call me back (more on this later). Again, very ordinary. After performing the ceremonial cross 'em with Amber ritual, it was just ordinary drinks and bullshitting. Not my cup of tea on this night.

So I thought changing scenery might do the trick. So at the behest of Wendy, I roll over to Logan's with them. The rest of the crew shows up 5 minutes later. Ok, this is where I vent a little. The ONLY reason I go to Logan's is because I have friends who go there. Seriously, I hate that fucking place. There's nothing inherently wrong with it, but there's nothing right with it either. I'm gonna have to stop going there, which is really hard because I genuinely like the people I go there with. This is a source of internal conflict for me.

Anyway, after a few minutes (1 drink, to be exact), I had to get the hell out of there. So I bailed. As with the first bar, I just kind of bullshitted. This leads me to my only somewhat relevant discussion point of this post. Yea, I've wasted your time, and, more importantly, mine. Anyway, I didn't really talk to Gator (so called because she attended the University of Florida), not because I was mean, but because when I met Gator 3 weeks ago, I hit her up to hang out and got no response, not even a negative one. So this is my question. Guys: how do you handle setting up times to hang out with chicks you've just met who you think are pretty cool? My view is this: if I meet a girl I want to hang out with beyond some initial drunken night on 6th, I call once, leave a v-mail, then either call or text. That's it. 1 call and 1 text, or 2 calls. Maybe, if she is luckly, she'll get 2 calls and 2 texts. But that's it. Gator got 1 call and 1 text. No response. I'm done. As much as it hurts (because she is fine), I gotta stick to principles. Anyway, I wanna hear your view on this.

So I say all of this to say that I want to start doing different things on the weekend. I'm up for going bowling, skating, or even a night at the movies. I just get really tired of doing the same, routine, shit each weekend. I love you guys, or as James says, "Olive Oil", it's just that sometimes, it gets kinda stupid. It's like social masturbation: you do it over and over and it never gets you anywhere. Maybe I'll start going to church to meet chicks. Who knows.

Finally, we need to plan something for Valentine's day. Having spoken to many of you, this could be a dirrrrrty night, which means I'm excited. Single folks only, of course.

Stay up y'all.

Monday, January 29, 2007

Spring 2007

So the new semester is upon us. With it brings the usual mad scramble to buy textbooks (or, in my case, to not buy them until I absolutely need to), plan workouts in the gym, check out all the new chicks you're gonna hit on during the semester, and secretly mock the overzealous "gunners" in your classes. I have a developing theory that "gunning" is the manifestation of an intellectual insecurity probably caused by a lack of attention from mommy and daddy and perpetuated by some bitch elementary school teacher. Or at least this is how I justify my relative lack of over-participation in classroom activities.

Fortunately, or so I thought, I've got a class thats 50% undergraduates. Check that, I've got two. I'm taking this weightlifting class that's got a couple girls. Except only one chick is hot. What's wrong with this place? I want classes with 18 year olf freshmen, or at least 21 year old senior social work majors.

Not much new on the social front. In an awkward move, I've decided I'm gonna limit my Spill intake. As much as I like a little filth on my Friday and Saturday nights, I need a new scene. Yea, it's time for the 18+ scene :-) And I am also thinking about not drinking in the month of March. I did this last year during the month of April and I felt great...and my wallet stayed full.

The Super Bowl is this weekend. Go Bears. I can't believe I am cheering for Rex Grossman. What's wrong with me?

I cannot wait for Think 'n Drink this week. Everyone come out.

Finally, I get to see my good friend Lien tomorrow. We were very good friends in undergrad but I haven't seen her since I finished UT in 2003, so almost 4 years. Very excited.

Monday, January 15, 2007

I have A Dream

Sunday, January 07, 2007

In-Game Adjustments

In case you didn't know, the BCS championship game is tomorrow. Go Florida.

My latest time-waster is this new, digital sports crack pipe called Bodog LIVE. This lets you wager play-by-play for football and has similar applications to basketball betting. I'm the first to admit that prop betting is generally pretty stupid and is almost a sure way to lose money. Except this is different. Betting on LIVE action enables the savvy sportsman (c'est moi) to detect patterns in the game and capitalize on them through every play. I've done extremely well on the NFL games this weekend, and I plan to spread the good luck to all of you faithful, gambling, readers. Watch for me to continue this trend as the NFL playoffs continue next weekend (go Saints).

In a major ironic twist, Strongarm Simpson lost an epic battle over the weekend at Spill to none other than his biggest friend and wingman, alcohol. Yea, you guessed it, the girl was too drunk.

Haha, we love you man.

Friday, January 05, 2007

The New Year - and One Special Memo

In my approximately quarter century on this earth, I've created many memories, but only a few have the ability to bring tears of joy to my eyes, and I'd like to mention one here. Exactly one year ago today, January 4, 2006, the Texas Longhorns beat USC to win the national championship of college football. Of course, I was in attendence, and I still think about that game every day. It is something I will tell my kids about one day. I'll show them the dvd, everything.

Ok, that's out of the way. Now on to new year's shit.

I trekked it out to Orlando with Ron Jones and Strongarm Simpson to celebrate the new year. It was wild. We drank like there was no tomorrow. I made out with a girl from, of all places, Wisconsin, a red state (translation: Republican), which was a personal victory for me. Ron blacked out. Strongarm smoked a black, then puked all day the next day. It was classic. The preliminary plans for next new year's eve is to spend it in Los Angeles.

As no new year recap would be complete without mention of some goals for 2007, I shall mention them here. In 2007, I will:

  • get my abs back
  • get a full time job offer
  • go to las vegas
  • go to the caribbean
  • start dating again
  • reach 160 lbs in weight (currently 144)
  • take better care of my skin

Yep, thats what's gonna happen. I think this will be a good year. I'm looking forward to continuing to meet people in my MBA class, and to enjoy all that comes my way. Happy New Year everyone! Let's have fun in 2007.

Wednesday, January 03, 2007

Where the hell am I?

Yea, yea, so I’ve told most of you that I’ve been in Sugar Land for the past few days. Well, there’s a limited bit of truth to that. In fact, I thought I was safe in the city of Houston until three nights ago, when I’m convinced I went to Mexico. I was hanging out with Jenni and Diana at the original Sam’s Boat when 2am came and we had to leave. Although we were supposed to head to what I think is a large, fun after-hours place, we got lost somewhere along the way and wound up in a random pool hall behind Sharpstown mall. There’s nothing weird about a pool hall. But I figured something was up when I got frisked by the police officer upon entering, saw the place was 100% Mexican (Jenni and I were the only non-Mexican people in there), and heard the non-stop Tejano music. On top of that, they served beer after-hours. Cheap beer, and they charged $3 a can for it. Absolutely ridiculous. Anyway, as you may imagine, people are looking at me like I’m lost. They’re right. I don’t know why I am here. Diana, who was probably trashed when we got to the place, was enjoying herself. I wanted to leave. Then, some dude comes up to me and starts making small talk. Very sketchy guy. After the short convo, I decided it was time to go, so we left. Over the next 50 to 60 years, I’ll go to a lot of places, thousands of them. That pool hall will not be one of them.

Anyway, tomorrow my friends Sonali and Prayes are getting married to each other. I’m very happy to go and be a part of what (to date) will be the best day of their lives. Then on Sunday, Strongarm Maurer, Ron Jones, and I are headed to Disney World, I mean Orlando, for New Years!

Sunday, December 17, 2006

The Last Days

First off, big props to Logan, who turned 26 yesterday. Happy Birthday man!!!

Tuesday will mark the end of my first semester of business school. And I must say, I've really enjoyed it. It's going too fast. Three more semesters and I'll have to pack up and leave Austin again. I'm kind of tired of starting over. I want this to be close to the last time. Anyway, tonight typified by experience:

We've got final exams on Monday and Tuesday, yet tons of people were out tonight. I was always convinced of this, but Texas has the best program around. Top to bottom, classroom to dance floor, its just better here. If you're trying to stay in the south, I can't imagine why you'd think about going somewhere else.

Many of us were at Union Park, this relatively new spot on West 6th. Definitely a more sophisticated crowd, a ton of fun. In typical fashion (and sometimes I really don't know why I do this), I bailed out early to go to the "other end of 6th street." So, I hit up Maggie May's, the Wave (the place is cool, I don't care what anyone says), and Chuggin Monkey before heading back. Saturday night seems so much more lively that Friday. I don't get it.

I also had lunch with the Westlake girl today. It was cool, especially since I hadn't seen her since like 2004. Probably hang with her again tomorrow. Hopefully at least.

Tuesday is gonna be dirrrty. Finals are over and we're pretty much gonna act like partying is going out of style. So if you're up for getting down and really dirty, hit us up. We're gonna be out for a loooong time.

Of course, no blog would be complete without mention of some random shit that happened to me today. Stupid shit happens to me on a daily basis, particularly when I'm drinking around people.

Random thing #1: A lady basically asked me to strip for her. She did this while her husband was standing right next to her. Sorry, not gonna happen.

Random thing #2: This really isn't a specific event. But I want to reiterate the message. If you are a busted chick who hangs out at the Wave or Spill or anywhere on 6th street, STOP TALKING TO ME. NO YOU CAN'T GRAB MY ASS, NO I WON'T TALK TO YOU, NO I WON'T BUY YOU A DRINK. LEAVE ME THE FUCK ALONE....and get your good looking friend over here.

Ok, thats it. Hope y'all had a good Saturday evening.

"it takes skill to be real, time to heal each other
And although it seems heaven sent
We ain't ready, to see a black President, uhh
It ain't a secret don't conceal the fact the penitentiary's packed, and it's filled with blacks"

-Tupac Shakur,"Changes"

Sunday, November 19, 2006

The Art of Small Talk

Ok, apparently I thought I was good at this, but I guess not. So my question is: what the hell do people talk about at bars if you're talking to people you don't know very well? This is separate from hitting on chicks when you're just being a smooth dude, complimenting them, making jokes, dancing, telling fish stories, etc.

But otherwise, bar talk is weird. Its generally loud, so its hard to hear. In that case, keep taking shots, jaeger bombs, and beer, and then the night will get crazy in a heartbeat. When its not loud, I guess there are a couple of general topics to discuss, but when dealing with people who are hard to talk to (i.e. just don't have much to say), this becomes difficult and frustrating.

I also find it hard to have general conversations with women I'm attracted to. Sometimes this is necessary. For example last night I was out with a couple prospective students and I definitely was into one of them, but, for the sake of keeping things solid (after all, they were here for a school visit), I elected to keep things passive.

So anyway, I write all of this to ask the question as to how you extend general conversation in social settings. What topics seem to interest people the most? What do you do when you meet someone who can't hold a conversation?

On a final note, Explore McCombs weekend was extremely successful. I met a lot of fantastic people, and I really hope that they all apply and are accepted to Texas. I'll be keeping in touch with many of them as this school year progresses in the hope that they become my classmates in the fall.

Ok, thats it.

Wednesday, November 15, 2006

Just Getting Away

Confessions of Chris S. Part Uneaux

When I was a kid I hated taking long driving trips. To a large degree, I still do. However, after making two long driving trips last year, I've concluded that I want to drive, alone, to some random place. I've told some of y'all how I want to go to some random bar in the middle of nowhere (such as a hotel bar) just to hang out with the locals.

Anyway, if you think talking a random roadtrip sounds really cool, let me know. Peace y'all.

Finance

Over the past 2 weeks, I participated in 2 finance-intensive business school competitions. The first was a stock pitch competition in which my group was asked to prepare a buy/sell recommendation on Coca-Cola (we said sell).


The second competition was a finance case challenge where my group (a different one from the first) was asked to put together a recommendation on the potential acquisition of VANS shoes by Vanity Fair (we said VF should buy VANS for $18.36 per share).

I won both of these competitions, which means either (a) I'm pretty good at finance or (b) I'm good at finding really strong teammates. I'm a pretty humble guy, so I'm gonna go with (b), although, to my pleasant surprise, most people are telling me its (a).


Anyway, the following picture was included in a draft of our KO (KO is the NYSE symbol for Coca-Cola) presentation and I thought it was funny.

Saturday, November 04, 2006

Lyrics

I went to 6th tonight, met up with some cool b-school friends, and some cool non b-school friends (Sara, Abby). For some reason I had Pharrell lyrics going through my head all tonight, so I may as well post them. If you read this, go ahead and download the song. Pharrell's lyrics are good, and since I've been told I look like him, just imagine me singing it (girls only, guys please do not imagine me singing this). It's called Number One and its Pharrell featuring Kanye West. This is the first verse only.

I musta hurt your feelings (come on)
Your temper hit the ceiling
You know I wanna talk to you (get em P)
Oh girl come on (come on)
But to maintain this livin (come on come on)
God knows it's not given (come on)
You know I got a lots to do (let's take em up)
Oh girl come on (come on)
I know this part ain't pretty (come on come on)
But you know I been busy (yeah)
Thats why I can't talk long on the phone (uh huh)
Oh girl come on (come on)
So honey if you with me (come on come on)
Know I'll look for your pretty (yeah)
Face to smile when I get home
And when we make love you know it's gon' be amazin (yeah)

Cause you're my
[Chorus - Pharrell (Kanye)]
Number 1 (baby girl you and me)
Smash hit (thats a hit to me)
Off the charts (look how she get to me)
Classic (she may not be nothin to you but she the shit to me)
Soon as I'm done (tell me how you love that)
I'm dashin (number 1 can't put nothin above that)
Home to hold your heart (you deserve a verse from me)
And smash it (we gon' party like it's our anniversary)

Ok, thats it. Catch y'all later.

Friday, November 03, 2006

Quite 'A' Name

This is just a thought I had just now. Over the past 10 weeks (since school started), I have met quite a few people. But what's strange is that a ton of the girls I've met all have names that start with A. I don't have a hard time remembering all this, but I just thought it was strange. A rundown:

Amber (cross 'em)
Ally
Amy
Abby
Abby
Alison
Ashley
Alicia

Yes, I know its only 8, but when was the last time you met 8 people in a 10 week span who all had names that started with the same letter? And this is all girls, I've also met 2 guys whose names start with A, so you could call it 10. See, exactly - you've never done it.

Anyway, there's a party at Canvas (5th and Congress) tonight, so come join me!

Sunday, October 29, 2006

The Weekend

While I'm still not really into the whole Halloween, dressing up thing, I do enjoy going out and looking at the "costumes." To be clear, I am all for women dressing up (or undressing, actually) in sexy garb for the holiday. I encourage this behavior for Halloween. Actually, I encourage this behavior generally. If a girl can put on lingerie and a set of wings and call herself a Victoria's Secret angel in October when its cold outside, then I don't see why she can't do the same thing in August, or September when its warmer.

While most of the costumes were pretty creative, a few stood out (for better or for worse):

The Home Wrecker: typed in the same style as The Home Depot, I thought this was really cool
Super-absorbency and Flow: don't think too hard about this. Pretty funny nonetheless (and it has to be if a guy is talking about it)
Steve Irwin: this is why I mentioned "for worse". This guy mounted a stingray on his chest. Very bad taste. I think he even had the fake Australian accent to boot.

I don't anticipate going to 6th on Tuesday (the actual Halloween day), but we shall see.

The rest of the weekend was pretty sweet. Texas came back from a 21-point deficit to win (sorry DA), but didnt move up in the BCS.

I also came pretty close to cussing out an intramural referee. In what was by far the worst officiated game I've ever been playing in, our coed flag football team lost. I'm still super, ultra pissed about the game, but I'll take my agression out in the gym this week.

Ok, thats it.

Monday, October 23, 2006

Saturday Night in Austin, Texas

In the second part of a post-midterm drinking double header weekend, I went to 6th street last night. As was usual, I went to 6th street with friends from grad school and friends from undergrad. As was also the normal case, we all drank a lot. Jaeger bombs, beers, jello shots, the usual.

A visit to the club Spill is becoming more of an occurrence during nights on 6th. There's dancing undergraduate girls, good drinks (and pretty decent service, too), but it's crowded as all hell, so it makes for the perfect last-stop/last-resort/if-you're-gonna-hook-up-but-don't-know-who-with-yet-then-go-here kind of place.

Spill was great, but its two events that ensued my trip to Spill that I'd like to highlight. One these is fucking infuriating. I'll be blunt: I'm sick of getting hit on by unattractive girls. Seriously, look at who I roll with, look at my style and make some assumptions. Look, I'm not a vain guy at all (you all know this or should have figured it out by now). In fact, looks mean less to me than they do to most other people. But I'm gonna fuckin lose it the next time a busted girl comes up to me telling me she like how I look, "thinks I'm fly", wants my number, etc, and then tells me she has a 1-year old at home. I don't care. Don't talk to me!!

Second, and this is kind of funny, but I've been reintroduced to the concept of "strongarming" a girl. Remember I talked about this some time ago in one of my posts. Strongarming refers to the physical practice of "escorting" a girl somewhere by grabbing onto her arm. Harmless, right?

Wrong.

WRONG.

In what may go down as the most agressive deal closing (if you can even call it that) in Gulf Coast history, my friend Big EZ bypassed all small talk, flirting, and probably foreplay by strongarming his way to ass (Chinese style, for added strength) last night. Literally, this is how it went down:

2:56am: get back to Big EZ's place
3:12am: the girls walk in (aside: we hadn't talked to any of the new girls while on 6th, even though they were with us), and Big EZ starts making shots like there's no tomorrow...he's on a mission...
3:20am: I change into PJs...brother is weary
3:23am: KW's boyfriend locks her out of his room. He has to be at work at 7:45.
3:24am (28 minutes after getting back from 6th having not talked to these girls AT ALL while there): Kate is still trying to get into her bf's room, I'm watching TV, and out of nowhere I see Big EZ "coaxing" this chick into his room. The grip on this chick's arm was classic. It was going down. KW was drunk and emotional (why do girls get all pissy and start crying at the drop of a hat when they're trashed?), but EZ had bigger fish to fry. The story ends here. See diagram.


Important lessons from the night: they will come to you. Just wait.

Update

I promise to update this thing more often. I've had many requests to do so. People (apparently) like this thing. My life isn't that interesting (at least I don't think so), but if you do, then thats awesome. Ok, so brief update is:

Academic:
September: more classes, homework, studying
September: 20th-ish: Intel diversity challenge
September 26th: Atlanta for National Black MBA conference. Awesome time.
October 16th-20th: Midterms aka Hell on Earth

Social:
September - October: Got drunk, made more friends in my class, got to know others better
October 7th: Texas-OU weekend. Made the annual trip to Dallas. Stayed at Eric's parents. Introduced to the 80 inch HD screen. Fell in love with 80 inch HD screen. Negotiating access privileges to the residence.
September: met 19 year old at a power hour (yes, Chris does power hour). met 20 year old. Chris has problems meeting girls his own age. Clearly.
September: learned how to play flip cup. My life has changed.

Sunday, August 27, 2006

The Central Texas Heat

It's been about a week since I moved back to Austin. I've gotta tell ya, it's been quite an adventure already. I began my MBA orientation last week. I've met a ton of people, each of whom is impressive in his/her own right. We go out at night, try to be as social as possible. It looks like I'm in for a fun two years.

As suggested by the headline of this post, it's hot as hell outside. I think Austin hit 100 or 101 degrees every day this week. It was ridiculous. My car's AC is definately getting a workout. I think it's going to rain next week, so hopefull it'll cool off.

I'm still getting my apartment situated, so I'll write more when I get the chance. I still have pictures to hang and my computer setup to complete. Hopefully it'll all be done soon!

Texas begins its quest to defend its national title in 6 days. I'm excited. Are you?

Thursday, August 17, 2006

The Path to Greatness

I've never been afraid of change. As a young person finding his purpose in this life, I find that change is an essential part of the process. I'm constantly meeting new people, moving to new places, doing new things, and since I subscribe to the belief that we are defined by our experiences, at times I find it necessary to occasionally reflect on my significant experiences in the world.

So as I prepare for the next (albeit very short) chapter in my life (lets call it "The Graduate School Years"), I'd like to briefly reflect on my time spent in Houston.

It was with cautious optimism that I made the move from wonderful NYC to Houston. Not knowing what to expect, I sought residence in an area close to work. Work was fun, but I didn't know many people outside of it, especially that first year. So I dated a girl long distance, left town on the weekends when i could, and hated investment banking life during the week. We had the super bowl, midtown blew up, downtown blew up, and all was right in the world.

The second year was better. Peyman, Logan, Eric, Omead, Diana, Lisa, Monica, Ted, Russell, and others all migrated to the area. I reconnected with them and other friends I had lost touch with along the way. It was great. The 'stros got to the NLCS but lost. Texas made the rose bowl and won. I discovered more bars and clubs than ever. Houston began to feel like home.

The third year was great. The 'stros made the Series, Texas won the title, and I hooked up with an asian. I left banking. I went to vegas. I still kept in touch with friends and got closer to some existing ones. Jenni Taylor, who I met the night of the big 12 championship through Staci, has become a good friend of mine, so good that we hung out basically every day since last December. I also met KingwoodGirl, who I mentioned in an earlier post. She's awesome.

Anyhow, A couple of moments are particuarly impressive, and I'd like to recap them.


  • Las Vegas, August 2005: Myself, the beloved Fade, and R. Jones decided to blow off some steam in the desert. After the smoothest airplane landing in world aviation history, we took vegas for all it was worth. Between caesars palace, club Pure, and the strip, we painted the town red. This was the end result.

  • The Rose Bowl, January 2006: This doesn't need much explanation. R. Jones, Big Easy, The Man, and I flew out to the city of angels and watched Texas beat USC for the national title. The tickets were free! I could go on and on. Unforgettable.

  • t e n i n t e n, June 2006: In the most aggresive hunt for new alcohol I've ever undertaken, my friend Jenni and experienced 10 totally new bars in the Houston area. It was a great success. I'll probably do the same in austin.

Although two of the three events occurred outside of Houston, everyone I experieced them with lives in Houston, so it counts. Clearly, this list is by no means exhaustive, but I thought I'd cherry pick some of the ones that stood out.

So as I leave Houston, I wish everyone well, I invite anyone and everyone to come visit myself and others in Austin, and I assure you all that I'll be back.

Thursday, August 10, 2006

State of the Union

It's been a little over a year since I started this blog. At first, I started it because it was a way for me to deal with a tough break up. I decided I would focus on meeting new chicks and recount my experiences here. But after a while, I decided against it. Then, this blog became something fun to write and gather reaction to. People read it, liked it, commented, etc. Now, a bit more than a year later, its still fun (now that I finally got it working again), and I'll still talk about random girls, but it will perform a different function. Since I am going off to college (again), I'll use it to update people on my graduate school experience.

But first, lets review the girl action:

  • March - April: met NYC girl, hooked up, determined she was nuts, cut all ties
  • March - June: met medical school girl, very much into her, but totally wrong timing
  • April - Present: met Cecil's chick online, total hook-up relationship...pretty cool....sorta
  • May - Present: met KingwoodGirl, definitely into her, timing sucks, but willing to wait
  • June - Present: met AngryChick, hooked up, found out she was AngryChick, still figuring out my angle with her, haven't ruled out cutting all ties

Whoop, there it is.

Tonight I went out to Cecil's (fucking LOVE that bar) with Jenni. She had the great idea of composing an "ode to htown" of sorts. I like the idea. So stay tuned.

Without question, I am a little sad to leave Houston. Although I am looking forward to my time in Austin, I can't get away from all the good times I've had, the new people I've met and/or reconnected with, and the amount I've grown as an individual. Fortunately, this isn't 1970 where you kept in touch with people via written letter. We have the internet, cell phones, e-mail, and more.

Stay up y'all.

Sunday, July 30, 2006

Update

Blogger has been fucking up my posts since April, so I havent posted anything on here in a long while. I don't have a computer to post with because my computer burned up about two months ago.

Ok, so here is an update on me:

April: Decided to attend Texas-McCombs business school
May: Got drunk, partied
June: (a) Drank more, partied more, (b) did a 10 bars in 10 days tour with my friend Jenni. Met some cool people along the way.
July: see (a) from June, went to the grocery store, bought my Texas football tickets, turned 25 and saved a lot of money on my car insurance

I'll fill in the details later. Peace ya'll.