I don’t even know what day today is, but I’m pretty sure it’s been at least two days since I last posted on here. Time is flying by…Jessica and I are still having a great time, and we’re still a little torn between wanting to stay here for another month, or wanting to get home to finally get everything started in our new lives together.

The last time I posted we were on our way out to the shopping tour. We picked up a few souvenirs when we were out, but the guides were mainly trying to direct us to the higher end jewelry stores. I think we’ve bought enough jewelry lately, haha…maybe Jessica will get lucky again in a few years.

My favorite part of the shopping tour was getting to walk out on the streets and seeing the locals. I got a few interesting pictures that I’m going to try to post…if not, you can see them next week.

Yesterday we took a catamaran out west into the Caribbean, along the coast of Jamaica. We made a stop near the port of Ocho Rios for Jessica and my first experience snorkeling. I thought it was pretty cool that I saw a few of the fish that in my parents’ aquarium back home. After getting back on the boat, we sailed to the mouth of the Dunn’s River where the cold river meets the ocean by falling 900 feet in a series of waterfalls. We were able to climb up the falls together which was pretty cool. When you get to the top you walk back down the stairs and back onto the boat where alcohol is served. I don’t know if Jessica remembers much of the rest of the trip, but I can tell you that she found out she likes the rum punch that is served on the boat.

As you could probably have assumed, we’re doing our best to take the advantage of the open bars around the resort. After lunch and a nap yesterday afternoon we ate a nice candlelit Italian dinner complete with wine and Jessica’s favorite…spaghetti. We capped the night off at a quiet little piano bar. Jeff (one of my best men) and Julie (Jessica’s old roommate) were nice enough to suggest a few shots for us to take during the night. We have pictures proving we took those as well.

Today we went on the excursion that Jessica was looking forward to the most, the Jungle Canopy tour. This one has been planned for a few months now. We were driven up to the top of a mountain and dropped off for the tour then led through a series of zip lines that took us down the mountain. Jessica was a little nervous at first, but after getting a few under her belt she really enjoyed it. It was nice being able to see a different side of Jamaica, no shops, fewer tourists, just trees.

Jessica is now getting her hair ready for dinner tonight. I better go get ready as well. Thanks for checking in, and thanks to all of you who helped us get here; especially my parents who will be receiving most of the honeymoon bill. We’ve had a great time.

I’m typing to you from Jamaica in our honeymoon suite, just waiting out the tropical rain that kicked us out of the pool. My new wife is getting her hair ready for the shopping trip into the city that we are about to go on. Our honeymoon has been great so far. We’ve been in the country for a little less than 24 hours, but we’re already getting used to the friendly people and humid air of Jamaica.

I’m going to be documenting our trip for our friends and family, so keep checking in if you’re interested.

We left Portland on Sunday evening after a great morning with our closest friends. We enjoyed a few taquitos and some of our famous hometown lemonade while opening a few of our wedding gifts. Jessica and I can’t believe how blessed we are to have such good friends to help us get started in our new life as a married couple.

We flew from San Antonio to Dallas where we had a 10 minute sprint through the airport just to catch our connecting flight on time. I sure am glad that I spent a few weeks working out before the wedding. Even so, I was exhausted. We caught the flight with just a few minutes to spare and spent the first part of our flight catching our breath.

We arrived in Montego Bay in the afternoon and spent the next two hours in a small bus to get to Ocho Rios. We were greeted with champagne and a cool towel; no problems checking in.

Maybe I’ll give you a photo tour of our place later in the week, until then, I’m off to enjoy more of the honeymoon. More updates and our final thoughts on the wedding to come. Thanks for checking in.

Well, I’m out.  It’s been a long year and a half engagement, but it’s hard to believe that it’s finally here.  I’m looking forward to seeing everyone at the wedding.  Thanks for everyone’s support, we really appreciate it.  Talk to you when I’m married.

Oscar Pistorius is no doubt an athlete; he has probably run more sprints than any of us combined.  He spends his day training, sacrificing, and competing to become the best that he can be on the track.  But the main physical difference between us is that I can wiggle my toes.

Oscar was born without a fibula in either leg.  The fibula is one of the major bones connecting your ankle to your knee.  At 11 months, both of his legs were amputated below the knee.

He has adapted well to his handicap.  He currently holds the Paralympics World Record in the 400m dash at a time of 46.56.  The reason he has made so much news lately is that he was recently cleared to participate in the Olympic games as an able-bodied athlete.

The ruling means he’ll be able to run at the Olympic games; competing with other world class athletes (if he can cut a second off of his best time and qualify).  It is a ruling that I strongly disagree with.

The reason that I disagree with the ruling is because Oscar gets to use his artificial legs during the competition.  He is artificially receiving help from science in order to be able to compete with the other athletes who get to the Olympics naturally.

Oscar’s argument is that even with the help from science, he is still at a disadvantage compared to other able-bodied athletes.  This may be true, but the ruling from the Olympic decision makers clearly opens a Pandora’s box of problems that we will see in the near future.  As technology increases, it may actually be an advantage to have your legs amputated and replaced with prosthetics.

As any athlete could tell you, the key to your conditioning is the health of your heart.  Without it, your blood could not flow as efficiently to the muscles in your body.  These muscles use your body’s oxygen which causes you to be out of breath.  Oscar doesn’t have as big of a problem in this area as the average athlete.  He doesn’t have to supply a good portion of his body with oxygen, allowing his heart to more efficiently supply the rest of his body, resulting in less fatigue and greater endurance.

And what happens when technology begins to catch up with and surpass the human body and his artificial parts begin to become more efficient than my calf and ankle.  Are we going to allow Iron Man on the track?   Where is the line drawn?

It may not be a very popular or politically correct position to hold, but I say we keep Oscar out of the Olympics and keep the integrity of the event in tact.

New site, new posts… let’s recap what’s happened so far this year.

After last year’s graduation from Texas A&M, I got a job here in Houston as a broker of electronic components. I moved into a new apartment, got a new big screen TV, and began to pay the bills on my own for the first time in my life. Work has taken up most of my time, but I’ve managed to spend a few weekends having a little fun.

Jessica has been slowly moving her stuff into the apartment when she gets a chance to visit. And I’ve been slowly stocking the cabinets with early wedding gifts from our friends…. at this rate I may need to get married a few more times (joke). But seriously, thanks for the help to get us on our feet as we finally start our life together.

The biggest highlight of my family’s year so far is my sister’s engagement. Jennifer and Ben got engaged on April 18th (I think I got the date right). If you’d like to see the pictures, you can find them by CLICKING HERE.

The biggest highlight of my year so far was my bachelor party. We had a bunch of guys in town to celebrate one of my last free weekends as a single guy. If you’d like to see the pictures… well, if you’d like to see the pictures you’ll have to throw me another bachelor party and take some. Who takes pics at a bachelor party?

Jessica and I have been putting the finishing touches on our big wedding day on Memorial Day weekend. An event that’s sure to knock my sister out of the running for the biggest family event of the year (at least in my mind). It’s coming up quick.

I’m glad you found the new site, I hope this gets everyone caught up on whats been going on with me. Keep checking back to watch the improvements and see the (more frequent) updates.