Some of the best shopping deals of the year can be found the day after Thanksgiving. This day is often referred to as Black Friday. I’m not sure why it’s known as Black Friday when it usually ends up in people going into the red! I’m not very funny, I know. In all reality, it begins the start of the Christmas shopping season, and it can be hectic if you’re buying on a budget and constantly on the lookout for the best deals. That’s why you should look for your black friday ads by using black-friday.net. The site gets all of the ads and lets you buy the items online without having to go to the store at 5 in the morning. They also send you all of the black friday ads when they receive them via email alerts. This really sounds like a great way to make sure you get the greatest deals on everything you need and it will also save you time. I remember when I worked in retail and there was a line that wrapped around the entire store twice, filled with people who were just waiting to check out. I don’t really want to go through that, and I’m sure you don’t either. Make sure you check this place out.

I just wanted to let everyone know that there have been some updates to my wedding blog, Greg the Pappa Bear. There is some information about our wedding music and also an awesome first dance video. Make sure you head over there to check it out.

It takes a lot of effort for me to think of gifts for Taryn’s brothers and our dads. We don’t really have a lot of the same interests. I found a website that I think has a lot of interesting things that they’ll be interested in. It’s called LAPoliceGear.com. They offer things like 511 Tactical Shorts and Danner hunting boots and special flashlights. If any of you have recommendations as far as what, specifically, I should get them, let me know.

I’ve been thinking about Hillary Clinton and why she’s not dropping out of the race for the Democratic nomination for President. The longer she stays in the race, the more divided the Democratic Party remains, making it easier for John McCain to win the general election. She knows this, and surely she knows she can’t possibly win the nomination. I think she’s staying in at this point because she wants Barack Obama to lose in November. If he becomes President then she can’t run again in 2012 and I doubt she’d be elected in 2016.

If Hillary ran in 2016, she’d be 69 years old and would be 73 years old if she ran for a second term in 2020. People already have issues with John McCain’s age, and others have a problem with electing a woman. Combining the two issues would probably not go over well.

I just read this article on CNN about the Smiley Face Killers and it really hit close to home. Evidently, about 40 college men have been killed and their bodies have been thrown into rivers or lakes to make it look like they drowned. The men have all been good students, popular, and athletic. This really sounds like a lot of my friends in my fraternity. The fraternity house sits right in front of the canal in Indianapolis (it’s literally the back yard) and, although beautiful, it now has me worried about my fraternity brothers getting drugged and then drowned. The killings have primarily been in the Midwest. It doesn’t get much more Midwest than Indianapolis. It’s scary.

In the fall of 2006, Taryn and I spent two weeks in England. While there, I tried a drink called a Pimm’s Cup. It was one of the best drinks I’ve ever tasted! Unfortunately, Pimm’s is difficult to find in the states. Hopefully that will change - Pimm’s was featured in this month’s issue of GQ as a perfect addition to a summer bar. If you’re ever coming for a visit, feel free to bring a bottle!

Well, the end of the school year has come and gone. Definitely was one of the most difficult finals weeks I have ever had. We had a presentation week and then finals week. All in all, I did fairly well. I can’t believe I only have one year left and I will have my master’s degree. Summer classes start next week, but I’m home for now. I had to get a couple of my wisdom teeth taken out. It has been a very hectic month for me, healthwise. I went to the dentist and he said my cheek was infected because my wisdom teeth were biting it, then I went to the doctor and was told I had bronchitis, then I went back a couple weeks later and was told that I had an upper-respiratory infection, an ear infection, and pink eye. Then I went and had my teeth ripped out of my jaw. I can’t wait to be healthy again.