141 Days Left to Go - Houston, The Friend Has Left The City

My friend who I have been generously helping by letting him stay in my apartment, sleep on my couch rent free, paying for his storage locker, and above all dealing with his uncleanliness and drunken mornings has moved out and is now living with his grandmother in Corpus Christi.

In honor of this momentous occasion:

142 Days Left to Go - Grandmothers Always Know Best.

I had a great conversation with my Grandmother today after work. We caught up on things that I have been doing and I told her something that has been bothering for quite some time. I told her that I was lonely and right away, the first thing she told me was:

"Be patient and let that person find you. You are a great person that anyone would be lucky to have. You both will find each other one day, and when you do it will be like magic."

Patience is key.. The time will come when the time is right.

143 Days Left to Go - Responsibilities Are Part of the Journey to Change

It feels great to live in a clean area. That's the only thing I have left here now that my roommate and his feline have tormented Harvey Duke and I. As long as I clean and simply follow my responsibilities in this home, I should be okay.

When I got home, all I wanted was to cook a simple dinner and when I walked into my kitchen, garbage galore, gnats, the microwave was filthy with something exploded in it, and the stove had the same thing on it. I was livid. I ended up going to Chili's to eat dinner.

I was not having a good evening, but I decided to take things into my hands.

When I got home, I cleaned the kitchen, told my friend to take out the trash, and feel a lot better.


Good night.

144 Days Left to Go - Awake.

I'm wide awake.

My roommate came home drunk again.. at 5AM, and left his keys in his car and someone took him home. Now he's watching TV very loudly and laughing louder than the TV show itself.. bleh..

Good news: With permission from his recruiter, he will be moving to Corpus with his Grandmother and taking his cat with him!

*crosses fingers*

Celebration Party at my place if it all goes through!

Today, I have a brunch date with Jason, someone I met online. This will be the third time that we've met up for brunch. We are also going to be clipping coupons and searching for deals around the area. I'm very fascinated in the extreme couponing craze.

Afterwards, I'll go visit my parents and see how they're doing.

...A change is gonna come

147 Days Left to Go - Who are my friends?

I have always said my friends shape me into the person I am today and in no particular order:

Sonja - My friend who I have known the longest. In a lot of ways we are very alike, for example, we are both kind, at times too nice, creative, active and young at heart. We tend to view the world in a different lens. She is currently applying for pharmacy schools across the U.S.

Ezzy - The friend I call at 3AM when I am balling my eyes out. She usually, well, always puts me in place. She's probably one of the only friends, along with Sonja, that I can talk to her about anything. I also come to her with medical questions too, since she is currently in nursing school at UT Tyler.

Raymond - My one of a few gay friends that I have. We met when we were both working at Freebirds. I then got a job at Memorial Hermann, and a little while later I helped him get a job there too. He currently works at Central Market. We see each other perhaps once a month or so, and he always helps me whenever I have "gay" related questions.

Wells - My old college roommate my senior year at the University of Houston. During college we would always have breakfast almost everyday and then go our separate ways, until we met back up at night. After I graduated, we kept in contact, and I would see him once every few months for brunch. He is so chill, that it makes me remember to relax sometimes and let things go with the flow. His cat had a litter of kittens and that is where I adopted Harvey Duke! Photo on the right side bar of the blog.

Katie - One of two friends I met at the Hilton College. She is quite different than many of my friends that I have. We are complete opposites of each other, but it somehow works. We eventually went through a lot of different experiences together and have lots of adventure stories between us. When she worked in Disney, we would both write letters to each other and send photos back and forth through the USPS.

Aurora - The other friend that I made at the Hilton College. We would always meet up on Monday for Margarita Mondays. She always tells me how it is, black and white, plain and simple, whether I want to hear it or not. I wish she was here in Houston. She's currently working for Hyatt in Chicago. (side note: her mom is pretty awesome too)

Jeana - I have always considered Jeana to be my fun friend. She's so much fun to hang out with and be around, and she can easily spark a conversation with a random person. We met through mutual friends and when our mutual friends moved, we met up through Twitter, had dinner at Yia Yia Marys, and the rest was history.

Siobhan - One of the most awesome people I know. She's so interesting. Fascinating. I want to pick her mind sometimes. We met at a very awful situation. I was dating this one guy and she was best friends with this other guy who was friends with the guy I was dating. We took a casino bus to lake charles, turns out the bus broke down, and it was a long trip, I lost money, her friend was a racist, and the guy I was dating was a douche. We had more things in common than the other guys. We have had a lot of good moments together, my favorite was probably crazy death taxi rides and all of her panda stuff.

Then there's also Endymion Quinn, Jenn/Greg, Jemel, Alyssa, Brittany, Jorge, Brenard, Jason, and Marcelene. Who I will explain more about tomorrow, since it's getting late tonight.

Good night.

148 Days Left to Go - Not Going According to Plan

I had a great day at work, got a lot accomplished, and actually loving what I'm doing at work, which is difficult for many people to say. There are many great people who work there and there are a select few that make me smile each time I see them. I am truly blessed to be where I am at in my professional career. Eventually, I would like to move up within the company. I spoke with one of the corporate executives of the company, and he suggests that I continue doing what I have been doing, but also making sure that I am the "go-to" guy. Reason being, the more things I can handle and be responsible for, the more appealing I will look in the company.

So my friend, now roommate, just told me that his basic training isn't until February. We talked about it late tonight about what bothers each other about the other person. It looks like he's gonna be here, with no intention of moving out. He also mentions that his cat, Lukas, will be living with me for six years while he is away. At least Harvey won't be so lonely when I'm at work. He's looking for a job in the meantime, I expect him to pay rent in the coming month.. I'm not sure how long this living arrangement will work, but I can just hope for the best.

As far as how I am going to change my life, let's take a look again of my goals:

• Lose weight - Workout & Eat Right

• Gain self-esteem - Lose Weight

• Figure out what I enjoy doing in my free time. - Test new hobbies until the right one comes.

• Join a new organization/social group - Would like to Join Kaminari Taiko Houston.

• See my family more often. - Visit my parents once a week, maybe Tuesday or Sunday.

• Meet new people - No idea how I am going to do this, but perhaps through my good friends.

• Be a success at work. - With all the changes that are occurring at work, I need to make sure I am on top of my game. I have to make sure to get all of my assignments done and do everything according to the books. I must make sure to get all my paperwork done too.

• Find new adventures. - I should look into different events in Houston and the surrounding areas.

149 Days Left to Go - It's Not What I Had Planned

Spontaneous events can be a lot of fun, however planning in my opinion can lead you to the right direction toward the success of your goals. So let me give a brief description of what occurred last night.

My friend upset me, which made me go out last night to karaoke. I played a slot machine and won $30. I ate Burger King. A handsome Mexican guy who did not know any English bought me all my drinks last night. Exchanged numbers with thus guy, and today we texted each other in Spanish while I translated the conversation on my Windows Phone.

I ended up making plans last night to go out on Wednesday as well.. The only reason why I decided to go out again tomorrow is because I owe my friend dearly, who helped me greatly when I was dead broke and only had a few dollars in my pocket.

I would like to end with a thought my co-worker asked me about this blog:

"You mention what you are going through and where you want to be, but you don't mention at all how you are going to make the changes.."

I must admit, she is actually right. I will figure this out in the coming week. Until then, I know to make sure I follow the plans, and if spontaneous events occur, to make sure I am aware of my end goals.

150 Days Left to Go - The Beginning of Change

Change can go a long way for someones life. Change can be both good and bad. Change occurs every second of our lives and can alter the future depending on what we decide to do.

I feel like I'm stuck in a constant. I pretty much do the same thing day in and day out, without any intention, motivation or drive to change it. Some might ask why? Because change can be scary, intimidating, and unnerving.

Let me explain my life right now:

• I constantly work, including most weekends and holidays, with a hope to move up in the company.
• I have gained 20 lbs since starting my new job at a new location back in April.
• I have not worked out since the start of the new year.
• I am helping a friend by having him crash my couch until he can get back on his feet.
• I adopted an awesome kitten named Harvey Duke.
• I don't see my family enough.
• I have some of the best friends a guy could ever ask, but only see them once in a while.
• I am a frequent regular at a drag bar.
• Karaoke is part of my life.
• I am single.

Now that I have laid all of that out on the virtual table, there are some things that I want to change in my life that I hope to be most beneficial:

• Lose weight
• Gain self-esteem
• Figure out what I enjoy doing in my free time.
• Join a new organization/social group
• See my family more often
• Meet new people
• Be a success at work.
• Find new adventures.

This is the beginning of my journey toward change. I am unsure how to go about this, but I do know that I need to take one step at a time, find my support system, and maintain my motivation. Right now, it's seeing myself around a group of people that love me on my birthday, but not only them but myself.

-Dennis