andrew dodson

I’ve owned my iPhone for a few months now, and I absolutely love it.  While the camera isn’t quite up to par with my high (read: picky, anal, etc.) standards, I love having it with me in a pinch to get photos.  Here are my favorite photos from 2009:

(click on a picture to load the Lightbox gallery in a pop-up window)

In two weeks, I will get married.  Eighteen months ago, I would’ve called you crazy if you told me I’d be getting married on New Year’s Eve 2009.  But, here we are.

Since our engagement a few months ago, we’ve been planning, preparing, going to showers, taking a marriage prep course from my pastor, and booking a honeymoon.  I’m glad we decided on a short engagement because it has forced us to get stuff done quickly.  I’m a bit of a procrastinator (okay, maybe a huge one), so having to tackle the planning quickly has been good for me.

Though, I will say, I have not done half the work that Julie, her mother, my mother, and Julie’s aunt have done.  I can’t thank them enough for everything they’ve done.  With Christmas thrown in the mix, the next two weeks will be slightly insane.

I’ll be posting more updates on andrewandjulie.net in the next week or two – catching everyone up on the past month or so of wedding planning and activities.  Until then, enjoy Amos Lee singing “What’s Been Going On?”

This past Saturday, Julie and I ventured out to Cove Spring Park for our engagement pictures.  We asked Kari McGrath to do our photos because she is amazing!  We’ve seen a few sneak peeks of our photos and we’re very excited about how they turned out.  We can’t wait to see the rest of them!

I took the Flip along and got some video of the day.

Ok. Let’s try this again. I haven’t blogged in quite a while, but I have plenty to blog about.

First, I’m engaged! Julie said yes to my proposal last Saturday at Evan’s Orchard in Georgetown. We will tie the knot on New Year’s Eve.

I finally caved to pressure and joined the cult of iPhone owners. My Verizon contract ended, so it was a good time to jump over to AT&T. So far, I’m loving the iPhone. I’m typing this post using the WordPress app.

More to come in the next day or two.

I guess I’ve been on a money-saving kick over the last month.  As mentioned in my previous post, I’m considering canceling cable and internet.  I’ve already changed my cell phone plan to save $40 per month.  I’ve also canceled my gym membership to save $30 per month.

While saving $30 per month is nice, the ultimate reason for canceling my gym membership was because I never went.  Over the last two years, my gym attendance has been extremely sporadic.  I couldn’t muster up enough motivation to get my stuff together and drive to the gym.  I’ve always thought it would be nice to find a way to workout at home.

A few months ago, I found out about P90X.  It’s an intense 90-day workout routine, but it doesn’t require a lot of equipment and can be done at home.  I was able to borrow the DVD’s from a friend, but I can tell you I’m already thinking about buying my own.  I’m really enjoying it so far.

I’ve elected to do the “lean” version of the workout first.  It involves doing more cardio and less weight training.  Since I’m trying to get back in shape, I figured this would be the best way for me to jump into P90X and not kill myself.  After 90 days, I’ll move on to the “classic” version, which is the normal P90X routine.  The next stage is “doubles” which is more intense than classic and involves more cardio (recommended for athletes trying to get back in shape for the season, or people that want to die from working out, I guess).  Even though it’s a 90-day workout, it can be repeated over and over again.  If it gets boring or easy, there are ways to challenge yourself to do more.

I mentioned P90x requires only a few pieces of equipment – a pull up bar, and dumbbells or resistance bands.  Optional equipment includes a yoga or exercise mat.

So far, I’ve purchased a Perfect Pullup bar (found a great deal on one for $20), a set of Perfect Pushup handles, and a set of resistance bands.  I already owned a set of 30lb. adjustable dumbbells.  Along the way, a friend of mine was getting rid of a great exercise bike, so I picked that up as well.  Even though I’ve spent a decent amount of money on this equipment, owning it will save money in the long run.

Happily, I’ve turned my small apartment into my own home gym.  I don’t have to bother with going anywhere.  I can exercise whenever it’s convenient.  I don’t have to worry about getting outside when it’s blazing hot, raining, or in the dead of winter.  It seems I’m finally motivated to work out on a regular basis for the first time in a few years.

I’m thinking about doing something crazy.

Canceling my cable and internet service at home.

Yes, I told you it was crazy.  Maybe it’s not so crazy to cancel cable.  But, how could a web designer cancel his internet service at home?  How could someone, like me, that loves the internet get rid of it at home?

Two reasons:  idolatry and money.

Over the last couple of months, I’ve started toying with this idea.  Far too often, the television and internet get in the way of doing so many other things in my life.  Most often, they get in the way of my time with God.  Too many days and evenings have been wasted away by watching show after show, or a ball game, or spending far too much time on Facebook, Twitter, or reading all of my favorite blogs.  All the while, I’ve “not had time” to read the Bible that day.  Cable and internet have become idols in my life.

In a lesser sense, too much cable and internet has not allowed me to do other important things:  exercise, read books, practice drums, get things done around my apartment, get outside on a nice day, or spend time with family and friends.

On top of all of this, canceling cable and internet would save money.  Specifically, around $75 per month.  Who doesn’t want an extra $75 per month?

It’s not like I’d never get to use the internet again.  There are two or three free wi-fi hot spots within walking distance of my apartment.  There’s Panera and other places that offer free wi-fi.  If I really needed to use the internet, I’d have plenty of options.  I can also do simple things from my phone.  The bottom line is, I think I’ll be alright.

What will I do in place of cable?  I’ll watch local stations if I need to, or pop in a DVD.  I don’t watch any shows regularly, so I don’t anticipate missing cable.  Until UK basketball season begins, at least.

This week, I’ll begin the experiment.  I won’t use cable or internet at my apartment unless I absolutely need them.  If I can go two or three weeks without them, I plan on canceling both services.  I’m looking forward to the challenge!

Happy Birthday, America! Somehow, I’m missing out on the party. Both my girlfriend and brother are in Washington, D.C. today. Jason is with his girlfriend, and Julie is with people from her church. Had I thought about it sooner, I should’ve made plans to be there too. Instead, I’ll do some random blogging.

• I absolutely love my new Flip UltraHD.  For the price, I don’t think you can find anything better in the world of video cameras.  It’s small (fits in your pocket), takes 720p HD video, records digitally (no tapes), does great in low light and is super easy to use.  My only complaints are:  the zoom isn’t the greatest, and you can only use battery power (no AC adapter).  Julie took it with her to Ireland and got some great videos.  Here’s one of my favorites, of a great street band in Dublin (note: video embedded in HD.  If it is loading slow, press pause after pressing play and let the rest of the video load before playing.):

• It’s almost the All-Star break and currently, the Reds are only three games back in the central division.  They haven’t been playing very well over the last few weeks, but fortunately, neither has the rest of the division.  It hasn’t been too out-of-the-norm for the Reds to stay in contention until around August and then fade as the season comes to a close.  Here’s to hoping they can get hot after the All-Star break and actually contend this year.
• eMusic just rolled out a huge addition to their catalog.  If you’re not a subscriber, it might be time to look into it.  They just added a bunch of big name artists, and they’re still cheaper than iTunes.

Ahh, hello blog.  I have missed you.

Looks like it’s been over a month since my last post.  I’ve been on a quest to live a slower (more slow?) life.  For the last five years, I’ve operated BADmedia as a freelance business on top of having a full time job.  While I enjoy recording and design work, the ultimate purpose of BADmedia has always been to have a supplement to my full time income.  While the extra money is nice, it is more often outweighed by the extra time and effort needed to do the work.  In turn, I don’t have time to enjoy life – reading books, getting some exercise, relaxing, having fun, playing drums, blogging.

Getting the job with Crossings has confirmed that I am “getting out” of the freelance business.  I say that with quotes because I will continue to do freelance work – but only for a select few clients.  Basically, I’m not going to take on any more freelance work from this point.  The current clients I have don’t require a lot of my time, so I will continue to fulfill my obligation to them.  The daily drive to Louisville consumes more of my time, which only adds to the confirmation that I don’t need to be doing freelance work.

I’ve spent the past few months finishing up a few of the leftover projects from my brief stint of operating BADmedia full time.  It’s been a busy month, but last night was a great night – I was able to come home and not have any responsibilities.  Just because it’s part of my nature, I still did “work,” but it was stuff I wanted to work on.  That’s how I want it to be – I want to only work on things that I care about.  Work on fewer things, but do better work because I truly care about the finished product.  Not working on things just to get a check when the work is done.

So, even though I’ve said this before, I look forward to blogging more frequently.  Life should be slower now.

A couple of days ago, I was the recipient of good will.  I arrived home from work, entered my apartment and noticed a package sitting in the middle of my kitchen floor.  I realized my landlord had probably brought the package to my apartment since it was too big for my mailbox.

Stepping in to my living room, I noticed something else.  There were vacuum cleaner marks on my carpet.  Or, so I thought.

Before I go on, you have to know some of the back story on the carpet in my apartment.  The previous tenant lived there for seven years and, apparently, never thought about keeping the carpet clean.  There were spills, cigarette burns and general filth.  I was a little disappointed that my landlord did not replace the carpet before I moved in (though I did get a fresh coat of paint).

Now that you are caught up:  As I inspected the vacuum marks, I realized they had actually shampooed my carpet.  I had thought about renting a carpet shampooer in the past, but never really had the desire to rent one, or the desire to spend the money on one.

The one final piece to the story is this:  Earlier in the morning, I had emptied my trash, but left the bag sitting in my kitchen.  My hands were full as I was heading out to work, so I left it there – to be taken out later.  I looked in my kitchen and the bag was gone.

All in one day, my landlord had delivered a package to me, shampooed my carpets and taken out my trash.  So, thanks, landlord.  I really do appreciate it.

Several days ago, while reading my ESV Study Bible, I accidentally bumped a glass of V8 Fusion (Acai Mixed Berry) sitting next to my Bible.  The drink didn’t spill, but the bump caused some of the drink to splash out onto the page of my Bible.  2 Peter 3 to be exact.

I quickly went to the kitchen to get a paper towel.  I placed the towel on the page, and it soaked up the liquid pretty quickly.  Bounty really is the “quicker picker-upper.”

I dreaded the possibility that the drink could’ve soaked through several pages.  I made sure to soak up both sides of the page with the paper towel and just left the Bible open to those pages for the next several minutes.  To my surprise, once it all dried, there was only a barely noticeable spot on the page, and no other pages were affected.

So, thanks Crossway and Bounty.  Crossway has used quality paper in the ESV Study Bible and Bounty lived up to its advertised slogan.