I've had a great deal of luck these days, and I don't know with what to attribute it. Coincidence? Divine intervention? The Force? Who knows, but it's been pretty awesome how things have been fitting into place.

On January 5th, I had the remaining 3 molars extracted. If you remember my past dealings with the dentist, you'll know about what I've had to go through. The last three were just as easily extracted as the previous two, and the dentist didn't have to do anything extra for it. I've had zero pain since the day after the extractions, and I've even gone in for a cleaning at my regular dentist. We talked about my ordeals with Aspen Dental, and they were glad I stuck with them. I am too! The hygienist even told me that I had good hygiene, and that my cavities look like they developed a couple years ago during my teen years. I took this as a compliment towards my efforts to keep my teeth in better condition these days, as well as a compliment to my age, seems as I'm 29 and my teen years are nearly a decade in the past. The next few visits will be to plan out restoring my remaining teeth, a root canal or two, but things are looking real good there.

I don't think I mentioned this before, but several months ago I got a small chip on my windshield. It scared me when it happened, and I don't know what or where the foriegn object came from, but it made a tiny, half-inch chip just above the bottom edge of my windshield. I didn't know what to do about it, so I ignored it. Fast forward to a couple weeks ago- the extreme-cold weather we were experiencing had a fertile effect on the chip. From day to day, I watched it grow from a half-inch to an inch, to two inches, and then to three inches. Finally, in the bitterest of the bitter cold(3ºF) two weeks ago, the windshield popped, and that three inch crack exploded into a three foot crack. Again, the popping noise made me jump while driving down the road. This is where my luck came in- I had just gotten an alignment done on the car, as well as replaced the two front tires. The guy who did the work told me that most insurance cover glass and that I should call and find out. Sure enough, the entire repair was covered with no deductible. They did a wonderful job and I have not found any signs that the windshield was ever replaced.

And on the note of car trouble, I also had my brake light pop on too. took it to Lockport Tire where they found out the emergency brake was stuck, and it was a simple matter of unjamming it. Brake light didn't come back on.

Now comes the matter of money. I've done very well this month, and have stuck to my budget most of the way. There were a few hiccups, but on the whole I've managed to keep my books straight. I'm so proud of myself, it makes me feel optimistic about my financial restoration, I almost want to celebrate! But that will come later. I'm still building up for that emergency fund, I plan on having that ready once my tax return has come in. After that I should have a healthy amount saved up and I can start paying back on my debt.

Things are looking up for me right now, and I'm excited. I hope to keep that level of optimism going indefinitely.

So I finally gave up Warcraft again, this time for good. I was speaking a fellow player about our playing habits. He mentioned to me how he used to be very hardcore in the game, and no only played because his fiancée played. He told me about how he failed a couple classes and lost a job to Warcraft. It really dawned me then that I didn't really want to play Warcraft anymore.

I saw what I perceived as poor performance during the last semester. Yeah, I managed to get a B in the chemistry class, but I felt I could have probably done better. Even if the game may not have really interfered, I no longer want to take that chance. I've let my account lapse. It was a good run, and I was still only halfway through the content, but I'm finished with that game.

My video game interests have moved much more over to the casual side now too. Left4Dead, an awesome game and highly recommended, is easy to pick up and set down. I still play some TF2 but not as much. I haven't given up on games completely, but I've decided to move away from something as engrossing as Warcraft.

As of today, I've been dry for 24 days. Wish me luck!

I can't believe I am only now getting around to blogging about Christmas. Christmas is my favorite holiday for many reasons, the most important one being family. This year turned out to be one of the more special Christmases. It was great to see the family again. Visiting with Dad and Cindy, seeing Aunt Wanda out and about, delicious holiday fare, good company- it would seem pretty much standard, right?

Christmas this year was marked by two very exceptional things, both related to each other, but nonetheless distinct. This year I invited Dave to our family's party. He agreed readily- he needed the break from his stay at the nursing home. The only concern about inviting him was the drive. I would have to travel from Lockport down to Buffalo, and then on to Batavia. Overall, this is about a 60 mile drive, taking roughly an hour and fifteen minutes.

Old Mother Nature had another plan for us, instead. Our Christmas party was being held on the Sunday before December 25th. Starting on Friday, the snow and cold weather rolled in. I had a rough drive home from work that night, and I hoped that it wouldn't last much longer than a day. Who knew that the weather would get worse on Saturday, and then make Sunday one of the most stressful drives I've ever taken?

I couldn't say no to Dave. I told him come hell or high water, I will be taking him to Batavia. I didn't count on whiteout conditions and unplowed roads. I managed to pick up Dave without incident- the roads were slow going but still manageable. It wasn't until I was on the Thruway that the enormity of the risk I was taking settled in. The road conditions continued to deteriorate. Dave acted as my second pair of eyes as we dragged along at 20mph, passing several SUVs off the road, a 3-car accident. There were several times where I could not see in front of me, so Dave kept his eyes on the road markers to make sure I was still on the road.

As we approached Batavia, we found a plow and followed it to the exit. Fantastic! The sense of relief was great. As for the party, it was pretty standard. Dave got a few gifts, and overall it was quite satisfying. I didn't want to venture back that night, but Dave said he really needed his medicine. So it was back out on the road.

For the return, we didn't take the Thruway. My uncle recommended staying on local roads for several reasons: AAA will not go there; if I get stuck, I'll be stuck for a longer time; and finally, if I do get stuck, I can walk to a house. I couldn't argue with his wisdom so Dave and I headed out onto route 5 back to his nursing home. This trip was just as slow, just as dangerous, but at least once we reached the route 33 expressway, the skies cleared and I could see a bit further ahead of me. The whole time, I was saying, "Thank you God for getting us this far. Please help us get all the way home." God must have been listening because I did get Dave home to his place, and I also survived the trip back to my apartment, safe and sound.

So there you have it. This Christmas would be special to me, as it marks my friend Dave and his adoption into our family, and it also marks the stressful and dangerous trip in and out of Batavia in some of the crappiest weather I've ever experienced. I hope I never experience it again either.

So 2008 has passed. It will go down as a year of change for me. There are so many things I have accomplished this year, I don't know where to begin. So I won't.

Instead I'll be looking at 2009 with renewed vigor. With my past deeds done, I look forward to even greater ones this year. I don't necessarily want to call them... resolutions... but they will be goals. Resolutions are made to be broken. But goals are meant to be reached. So my goals this year:

1. Budget every single month this year.
2. Blog at least once a week.
3. Camping trip.
4. Getting down to 300lbs.
5. Getting my Chemistry GPA above 2.75, so that I can meet the requirements for my teaching certification.

These goals are tough, but I have every confidence that I will be able to reach them. I have my friends, my family, and most importantly God on my side. How can I possibly fail?

There are four people who have especially made 2008 wonderful, and I'd like to take a moment to thank them.

- Candi, you're one of my best friends. You've always been there when I needed to talk. Thank you!
-Amanda, you are also a great friend. Thank you for being there too.
-Dad, you're my hero. If I can have your wisdom and your motivation, then I will go far indeed.
-Finally, David, you're teaching me how to be a good Christian. How could I possibly consider your friendship worth anything less than priceless?

And to everyone else, thank you for reading my blog and for being my friend. Here's to a hearty, healthy, and happy New Year!