"w00ts" & "oh noes"

When people ask you, "Do you want the good news or the bad news first?" which do you ask for? I always ask for the bad news first, just to get it out of the way. Then also the last thing I hear is good, so maybe I won't feel so down.

Earlier this week my friend from work got fired. That's the "oh noes". I've never had a friend I really liked get fired before. Even though I'm in charge of doing all the terminations in my company the people I'm close to are still there. It was kinda sudden too, which makes it worse. I threw me off all day; it was like someone moving away suddenly.

Also even though I got paid this Wednesday things are gonna be tight for a while. Mrs. BuddhaDave is now in charge of the finances so we'll be okay. I just suck at budgeting! Something always happens and we get in the hole, and then a little while after we get back out we're back in again. My new job in the financial depart is as follows: Quit buying shit! Sounds easy right? Well, after practice it should be, but it aint yet. In the bigger picture this is actually a good situation to be in, because it will definitely help me become less materialistic and to control my spending urges. Look for that golden lining! It's always there, it's just tough to see.

My book reading goes well. Thich Nhat Hanh is amazing. I highly recommend any of his works. I also found out today that the author of "The Dharma of Star Wars" is ordained under Thich Nhat Hanh! Kinda crazy as the current book I'm reading is fast becoming my favorite and "The Dharma of Star Wars" is my current favorite. I'm reading my Tao Te Ching very slowly, reading and re-reading only a few chapters at a time. I'm enjoying it and agreeing with what I believe it's saying to me.

Okay, now for my two major "w00ts". First, my student loans are all paid off! I actually got a check for $6.89 because there was a slight over payment, haha. I owe my grandma sooooo much. This is a huge weight off my shoulders; she has helped me out more than I ever expected. Now I just have two credit cards to pay off and I'll be pretty much debt free! Just my truck will be left, and that's not a big deal.

And the biggest w00ts I've had in a long time...The Dalai Lama is coming to Tuscon! On September 19th Mrs. BuddhaDave, my best friend Doug, and I will all be there to see him! I already gots da tickets! I'm a super excited. Seeing His Holiness has been a dream of mine for a long time and one I didn't think would be realized until much later. I just can't describe how much this means to me. It's amazing.

Today I bowled the best game of my life. Twice, actually. A 104 and a 130, haha. Not huge by any means, but huge for me. If I get in the 90s I'm ecstatic. My company had a bowling party for all of the developers and IT departments at a nice new alley in Scottsdale. From 1:30 to 3:30 we drank and ate and bowled and laughed. It was nice to see the people I work with outside of work. Especially in my department, you only talk to people when things are broke and they have to fix them. Needless to say the NOC isn't the most popular department at GoDaddy, haha

Well it's late, and I'm gonna go to bed. If you want, here are some good reads. The first one is called "The Cucumber Sage" and it's a really cute story about an accidental Buddhist saint. It's really good. The other is jokes and funny Buddhist stories. Just something to do if you're bored.

Nighty, have a good day!

- BuddhaDave