The Best Man And His Kryptonite

My brother David married his long-time, special ladyfriend Laura (now known to the boys officially as "Aunt Laura") this past Sunday (11/1/09). I was the Best Man, which meant that I got to hold Laura's ring for David, pose for a ton of wedding pictures, and give a little toast to the happy couple.

I ended up not doing any toast research ahead of time. I've been to quite a few weddings and have heard my share of toasts (my favorite is still the one my brother Simon gave me after my first wedding that went along the lines of "May you have many happy days and even happier nights."). My toast was pretty easy going (like myself), and I even started to choke up and nearly tear up as I gave it. They've been together a long time now and just seem very comfortable with each other. Much happiness to them!

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So, I've now been The Best Man twice, which makes me feel kind of like a super hero (especially if both marriages stick). So, as a super hero, I have to have some kind of kryptonite, right? Of course, I do. And I think I know what it is after all these years: Time sheets!

While I'm a salaried employee, I still have to complete time sheets for tax purposes. We're supposed to have them done by the Monday after each completed week, and I can't for the life of me ever get them done on time. I set reminders for myself in Outlook; I add it to my To-Do lists; and I even use Post-It notes. But I always seem to end up prioritizing other tasks over completing my time sheets.

If there are any supervillains lurking out there (and I'm sure there are), I've now made it public knowledge that the best way to weaken my superness is to sling time sheets at me. (Maybe I can get them done on time next week.)

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The November PAD (Poem-A-Day) Chapbook Challenge is rumbling along over at my Poetic Asides blog. I love doing the challenges for two reasons:

1. It's so cool to see everyone create poems based off one of my prompts.
2. As a participant myself, I love having that motivation (err, peer pressure) to try and write something once a day throughout the month.

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I've been Tweeting poems randomly over on Twitter. My handle is @robertleebrewer if you want to follow me. Here are a few of my poetic offerings:

Poem #1: I am a giant whale carried above the ocean by little birds.

Poem #2: I am a robot with a missing hand. Thanks for noticing.

Both poems are inspired by Twitter messages and corresponding graphics. But it is interesting to try and create a poem in less than 140 characters. And I think I prefer the term Poetweets for these 140 or less poetic offerings.

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Quote of the day (maybe even week): Test before you change.

A programmer instructed this to me today. And he's right. And I wish all programs and changes were made after being tested. The world would be a much happier place for it.

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I'm trying my hand at NaNoWriMo. I'm not officially registered or anything, but I'm quietly (or not so since I'm sharing my progress on this blog and other places) trying to put together more than 50,000 words during the month of November on my novel idea.

I am currently behind pace for 50,000, but the outline is coming together. And I can feel momentum building with each section I write. Here's hoping the momentum just continues to build.

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Went trick-or-treating with Ben, Jonah, Baby Will and Tammy in Kettering, Ohio, on Halloween. There was a nearly full moon, leaves scattered across the sidewalks, candy pushers sitting on their front porches and the occasional really cool (really scary) decorated house. Much like a high school football coach, I pushed the boys to keep collecting candy even as their little legs felt rubbery. In the end, I think they were glad I did, because their bags were loaded with things sweet and sour and sugary.