120 Days Project

Well, I know it's time to post again. Can I blame it on all the craziness of the hustle and bustle of the holiday season? No? O.k. Well, in case you don't know, I'll be going up to Ohio for Christmas this year! I'm going to spend the Christmas holiday with Kristin's sister and parents. I wish Jungle Jims was a little closer to Cleveland, TN! I'll be heading out Friday 12/21/07 and I'll return the evening of 12/25/07. I wish I didn't have to come back that early, but work would not let me off the days after the Christmas break. Even still, I'm very excited about going up to Ohio to spend a cheerful Christmas holiday!

Now what is 120 Days Project? Isn't that 4 months? Is it some crazy title I made while listening to Alan Parson's Project? Yes and yes! O.k. the 120 Days Project is something I have come up with that will begin on January 1, 2008 and it will end in 120 days (duh) on April 28, 2008. It's a program that will help with my diet and exercise routines... well... it's a program that will get me on a diet and exercise routine! But it isn't just a diet that I can claim I'm on any day. This is a consistent diet and exercise program where I make myself have accountability partners. Who and how is this done? Well...
1. Who: Anyone who reads my blogs and/or knows about my 120 Days Project will be my accountability partner.
2. How: I have to report on my blog daily the routines in exercises that I've done and the progress of my diet. (I will develop a check list for faster posting. Like a copy and paste thingy.)

I feel that in order to stay on a diet and stay in an exercise routine, for me, then I must have some sort of a motivational reason for doing it. Kind of like looking forward to something. I know when I lost 75 pounds back in 2001, I had something to look forward to, and that was simply to lose weight and get in shape. However, with food tasting more tasty and chocolate beginning to be a make-up of my blood stream, I need a new motivation. The motivation this time will simply be to succeed in fulfilling the 120 Days Project (along with getting in shape and losing weight of course). This project has a pretty neat benefit as well, I will blog a LOT more.

I am also going to do a visual weight loss 'slide show' of the progress from January 1, 2008 to April 28, 2008 that I will show after it is complete. I will take a picture of myself once a day everyday during the 120 days.

I know I'm going to succeed in this program and that's why I know I can go ahead and do it. This is the type of thinking that is good in many areas of life. Of course we can't succeed in anything without the help of God who gives us our very breath. I feel like writing an inspiring report, can't you tell?

Anyway, you should look at this if you feel like making a little extra money on the side is something you know that you can do: http://www.mypowermall.com/Biz/Home/89480

Starting January 1, 2008, it begins. I will post more details of the actual program that day when I get fully into it (like what exercises, what to eat/not eat, what to drink/not drink, and good stuff like that).

Until then! Merry Christmas and get some figgy pudding!!!!!

Here's One (a post that is)

O.k. I know. I have been pretty bad at this blogging stuff. I'll be suprised if anyone sees this post within the next few days. I have finished work early today and got pretty bored so I thought I would put a post up on my blog. I've been pretty busy and if I can blame anything for not being able to put up a post, then I'll just say that I've been working a lot at work and at Church. Well, I don't guess that's a real excuse, but it's kind of incredible what the same-ole same-ole, full-time work can do to your body and mind. I feel like a week passes about the same amount of time as a day does. I was just amazed because it seems as if though I didn't even exist there for a couple of weeks, even to my own self! However, work is going really well and I'm still enjoying it very much. I am still trying to get used to going to bed early to rise early.

One of these weekends here soon will be wonderful. Either the end of October or the beginning of November. Me and Kristin are planning a fishing trip in North Carolina where her grandparents are from. There is an Indian reservation there that has really nice camp sites to stop and fish along the streams. It will be nice to get away from the busy life for a little bit and to relax. I'm just afraid that that 3-day weekend will only seem like a couple of hours! I hope that it drags... lol. Kristin's birthday is in one more week. October 22. Time just flies! It doesn't seem like it's already been 1 year and 7 months that we've been dating, but it has! I know a lot of people keep wondering "Well, when's the big day?" Well, I'm learning that patience is a characteristic not taken lightly. I wish I could tell everyone, but you can't catch the fish if you pull the line too quickly, and I don't want to let this fish go!!!

Well, Good Lord, I pray that you give me wisdom and strength for the day and clarity of mind, and may I always walk according to Your will.

Wonderful Work

Hello again everyone! I figured that I would go ahead and enter another post about my job at Unum and how everything's going.

I started work at Unum on August 6, 2007, and I am a medical records specialist in the medical records department. I have been in training these past two days, but the training has finished! When I go in tomorrow, I will go to my cubical and start working like everyone else there! I am very excited because I'm doing a job that is related to my field of study in many areas, and the work is something that gets easier over time. It's a great atmosphere where I work, and I get to decorate my cubical how I want it. I think I may put my degree certificate from Lee on my wall there! Oh, I finally got that piece of paper about a week ago! I feel that I have gotten all the basics down pat and that I'll just get better and faster at them over time. I wish I could go more in detail about what I do step-by-step, but there is a confidentiality issue not only with medical informaiton from customers and providers, but also with the processes of our jobs even down to the programs that we use to process them. It would probably be boring to a lot of people if I was able to post it anyway. I got a cool Unum badge and access card that I get to where in a cool fashion so that I can increase the coolness of my walk as I walk around the cool buildings :) Well, I'll tell you more about it in the future... even about the good food that they have in the cafeteria (such as the ham and cheese panini that I had for lunch) lol!

Kristin and I finally got Raven to the vet office yesterday to get her shots updated, spayed, and declawed on the front two paws. Kristin actually dropped her off there yesterday and she picked her up today. Raven may be a little cranky because after Kristin dropped Raven back off at her house, she ran and hid under the futon. I think Raven will get over it and be out and about again soon, hopefully.

Well, I have some notes and documents to look over for work tonight. So I think I'm going to go ahead and look into that. Just notes that tells me how to do my job and do it more effectively. Talk to you guys later!

Door Remains Cracked

Well, I went in for the job interview at the Hamilton County office today and it didn't really go as I had expected it to go. The overall interview went very well, but there were just a few small red flags that I saw when Bart (the man in charge) interviewed me. The job description can be found here: http://www.hamiltontn.gov/HumanResources/JobDetails.aspx?JobID=300
I would get to program in Visual Basic .Net through Visual Studio .Net which is something that I believe I would enjoy very much. He also mentioned that the hours would be from 7 to 5 just Monday through Thursday. So, a four day work week is a plus, but he mentioned that the salary would be negotiable. I told him what the link to the job description said as far as salary range, but he made it sound like that that I would be starting out lower than what was on the job description... well... I'll just go ahead and go to work at Unum for now and if I hear something from Bart again (he said that it may take 2 weeks before I hear anything from them) then I'll get more information as far as a salary and whether or not that is the path I should take. But we shall see. The door remains cracked. I'm just so very grateful and happy that I am about to start work soon! It pays well, and even if I don't get the job at Hamilton County, I'll still have a big Unum playground to play in :)

Another Door?

Well, as a lot of you know by now, I will start working at Unum on August 6th. That's exactly one more week! However, I got a call today from Hamilton County (in Chattanooga) and they would like for me to come in for an interview tomorrow..... I told them that I would come in because the position that they are hiring for is one that is directed exactly towards my degree. It's a programmer position using Microsoft Visual Studio .Net and Visual Basic .Net. Also, the pay would be even better than what Unum offered. I really would like to receive that position instead, but I'll just go in for the interview, see how that goes, and I'll still go to work at Unum as if though Hamilton County hadn't called. I have my interview at 3:00 tomorrow so pray that God will have his will in that situation and whether the door should open or close (cause it seems as if though it is cracked open for now). I'm going to go have a wonderful lunch with Kristin tomorrow! If you haven't heard of the Sitar Indian Restaraunt, then hear it now! It's an Indian restaraunt, of course, that has some of the best food I've ever had. I don't know if I like Chinese or Indian food better. I'll get some to-go boxes and take it to Kristin's work for tomorrow. I've been craving that place for a while now! Well, I'll let you know the status of the interview and future happenings. But for now, take care!

Answer to Prayer

For those of you that have not heard, my hard work at searching for a job has finally paid off! I have finally got a job working at Unum in Chattanooga (www.unum.com). Unum is one of the world's leading employee benefits provider. They are an insurance company that helps employees who become injured or sick. Thanks to Kelly Services (www.kellyservices.com) in Chattanooga, I was able to be employed with Unum. For those who think that I'll just be there temporarily, don't worry. Unum talked with me and said that more than likely, I will be hired full-time through Unum without Kelly Services after 90 days. I am very thrilled to get to work in something that I like to do! I will be a Medical Records Operator. Basically, I will contact Unum's medical clients and update, verify, and record new data in their Access database while maintaining the databases. I will start this posistion on August 6th at 8:00 a.m.! I'll work Monday through Friday from 8:00 a.m. to 4:45 p.m., and I'll get to work in my own little cubical on the third floor on the east building hahahaha. Oh, the dress is even casual!

Let me tell you about the physical place which is what struck me when I first saw it. It is A-MA-ZING! I said I'll be in the east building. They have two buildings: east and (yep) west buildings. They are across from each other. The east building is where most of the actual work, tasks, and assignments will be given and performed. While this building is really really beautiful looking on the inside, the west building is fantastic and could be considered the playground for Unum's employees. The west building has a really nice looking cafeteria inside where you can get your breakfast or lunch. They also have a Starbucks inside the main part of the cafeteria! I'll defenitely be getting some of that! There's a 100" (at least) screen in the cafeteria that you can watch while you eat. They leave it on CNN news which is o.k. I guess. They then have a gym in the lower floor for the Unum employees to go and workout in. Makes me want to go to work early! I just can't believe that there are really places to work that are like this.

When I had my interview with Brian and Adam, they provided an atmosphere that was really laid back and made it really easy to talk to them. They mentioned that with my degree in Computer Information Technology, I will probably even get to move up into their IT department one day in the future. That sounds good to me! I'm just so thankful that God provided me with such a wonderful place to work at. He's answered my prayer and then some! Thank you everyone for your support and prayers too! I'll try to keep you updated when I remember to blog again!

Hola mi amigos!

Hey everyone! How's it going? I'm off work today, Wednesday, and Thursday, so I'm going to add a new post! I still have not received that final grade yet from my online course... I'm not sure if he's just taking his time giving the grade or what, but if it's not in by Friday, I'm going to try to call him or something. I'm ready to have my actual, tangible, non-artificial, real, genuine and authentic diploma in my possession. As far as job hunting is concerned, I'm going to be doing a lot more of that during these days off from work. I have looked online and in newspapers, but the good majority of those want experience. I think I'm going to just apply to them anyways. Well, I went over to Kristin's yesterday and we watched Strictly Ballroom and had some good food from Qdoba. Kristin's parents are coming in for the weekend. It will be very good to see them. I hope we go to Rembrandt's again! If you have not been to Rembrandt's, I recommend everyone to try it! It's in Chattanooga and they serve really good panini's, salads, coffee's, teas, and desserts! The atmosphere is really awesome too. Here's some more pictures of me and the loverly Kristin!

Me and Kristin

Me and Kristin and Raven

Speaking of Raven, that cat is crazy! It's going in phases of being in heat and that cat loves to do her annoying heat meows. She just loves to be bad anyways. I've never seen a cat that can't seem to grasp the concept that if you get on the table or the counters, you're going to get the spray bottle. But that doesn't seem to stop her for her ultimate mission of getting food wherever it may hide. One day that cat is going to be getting a fixin'. O.k. I better get off here. I love you Kristin a.k.a. Sugarbabe!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Hello again!

Hello, how is everyone doing today? I'm just staying up late. I'm about to go to bed. I had work today from 3 to 10 and I got a little bored and decided to update my blog so that everyone can see that I'm still alive and blogging. I redid What a Wonderful World so you can listen to that if you want. I also did an experiment song using nothing but midi samples. Hope you enjoy them. As for what's going on, nothing much. Just looking around for some job openings that I can start working into. I hope to find something soon! Please be in prayer for Kristin. She is giong through some hard times with her work and other situations. We know that God is in control and can give peace and comfort through hard times. Also keep praying for my dad so that he won't cry so much. It makes me cry whenever I see him cry :( I love you dad! Well, I hope you guys have a wonderful time and here's What a Wonderful World 2.



And here's my experiment song that I have had in my little archive.

I Can Only Imagine

Well, I found out that I really like to record music and put it on my blog. I was trying to think of another song that I could do today to put into my blog and I thought of how it seems that everyone wants me to do I Can Only Imagine either at church or at family get-togethers. So I decided to put it on here so that you can hear it whenever you want to :) This is a better recording than what I did with What a Wonderful World as far as the music is concerned, but I'm still working on the voice part.



Well, I may not post anything tomorrow. I will be at work from 7 to 3 and will be going to Chattanooga to see my Sugarbabe! :) Well, I hope you guys have a blessed day! Until next post! Oh, I also went to Lee today to work on my resume and they did some great changes that helped the overall effectiveness. Now I just have to do some hunting and resume posting! See ya!

It's a Wonderful World

I'm about to go to bed, but I wanted to post another post to keep everyone informed of what's going on in my life. I am getting my resume updated and have an appointment at Lee's campus tomorrow (technically today) for tips on getting it looking good. I'm hoping to get a good job somewhere that will let me use my degree in computer information systems. Kristin showed me a place that I'm going to try to apply for... Blue Cross Blue Shield in Chattanooga, TN. They have an intern position available that I'm going to apply for and hopefully, Lord willing, will get hired! Please pray that I will find a job soon! I was thinking how wonderful life is even in the midst of trials and tribulations. God is so good. I sat on my computer and recorded What a Wonderful World today. Here it is for you to listen to.

I deleted this version of What a Wonderful World. Go up to the post titled "Hello again" to hear it.

I think I'll post some more songs too along the way. I love you guys and I'll talk to you later. God bless!

I'm alive!!!

So, here I am putting up a new post to my blog. What can I say? My Sugarbabe left this morning to go to Florida for her job. So I'm stuck here all alone, and I find myself with lots of time on my hands. I guess, that means I can do some posting on my blog. Well, the good news is that she'll be back Saturday! Some of you asked that I put up some pictures of her on my blog, I planned on doing that anyways, so here she is! This is Kristin, a.k.a Sugarbabe!

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She's so beautiful, I know. I love her very much, and I am very excited to be with her!

Kristin can cook like a chef! Now, please don't think that this is why I'm dating her. Of course the food that she cooks is magnifico, but even if she didn't cook, I would still be very happy to be with her! However, I'm just considering her wonderful cooking abilities and her vast knowledge of food as blessings within a blessing! God is good :) These are some of the wonderful dishes that she has made before in the past.

This is a butternut squash dish that was unbelievably delicious!

Here it is on my plate :)

This is a tortellini salad that she made one time for Church. Amazing!

I thought I had more pictures than that. Well, don't worry. I guarantee that there will be plenty more wonderful looking dishes to post on here in the near future.

Well, those are my thoughts as of right now. I'm doing o.k. I will finally finish finish school this coming Friday (June 1)! Then it's time to enter the world of work, work, work, work, work, work, work, play?, work, work, work, work, work, work, work.

Well, you guys take care! Untill next post!

Hello! My name is Jonathan. My last will be kept secret from all you crazy internet stalkers out there. Well, I just found out that my username is JTBrannen. That displays my last name. I guess all you internet stalkers are welcome to come see my blogs, but just don't come over to where I am living. I will probably not tell you that information. No, I will not. Forget it.