Thank You Eva Mendes and Rashida Jones

Forget about the long lines at the supermarket, the traffic, lines at airports, screaming kids, puking kids, annoying kids, mom asking you when you're gonna make her a grandparent, mom asking you when you're gonna get married, mom asking you when you're gonna get married again, forget about the extra pounds of food fighting against the belt or waist band, forget about the drunk cousins who take things too seriously.  Forget about it all.  Just say thank you.

We often forget to cherish the little things in life when it happens and use Thanksgiving as the day to give one big THANK YOU for all the little things.  I'll admit, I'm the same person.  But I also love the little things, the things that make you smirk in an awry inquisitive type of way.

So the official work week has ended for most, the ovens are warming up, I'm catching up on this weeks X-Factor and 90210 and wanted to say thank you.  But there's so many things to be thankful for, where do I start?

I'll start with the givens.  The friends that put up with my nonsense, stubbornness and at times my mental instability.  The family that put me here, taught me things and didn't give me the "I'm better than everyone" speech but gave me the "screw up your life and I'll kick your ass" speech.  Then there's the health, 10 fingers - check, 10 toes - check, nose, teeth, ears, eyes - check and check, receding hairline - nope, so check, irritable bowel movement - nope, so thank GOD and no zits on my back, so bonus check.

With the basics covered, time to thank all the little things that make me want to wake up every day.  So this year there are a few things I'm very thankful for and others that I'm just medium rare thankful for.

• Having a new job that requires me to laugh, smile and play with toys and games all day
• My new leather couch
• The last few weeks without Kim Kardashian in the news
• The cop last month that didn't pull me over when I was doing 100
• Less Law and Orders and more The New Girl
• New friends becoming old friends, old friends becoming new again and old friends that shouldn't be friends anymore
• My Godson Amias who's growing up every day and now has a baby sister to share his wonderful life with
• My nieces (Ally and Jessie) and nephew (Ben) who aren't afraid to ask for the really really really expensive toys for their birthdays or Xmas
• My extended niece and nephew (Ava and Jacob) who greet me every time I come over like I'm a long lost uncle or maybe it's because I always put money in their piggy bank
• The best mentors that have helped me throughout my career
• New Edition when Bobby Brown was with them
• Romantic comedies that give me hope that one day I may meet "the one" by reaching for the same item at a store, tripping and falling in front of her, buying a puppy, doing the Running Man to a Bon Jovi song or chasing after her on a busy street never getting hit by a car just to make it to the airport and having the ticket agent feel bad about my situation and letting me through the gate while I scream her name as she's about to board all the while with Adele playing in the background
• Eva Mendes (especially when she's doing the Running Man during the credits to Hitch)
• Adults that still think Mr. Potato Head and Elephant toys are fun
• Waking up without an alarm because I'm excited for the day
• Waking up with an alarm because I had an exciting night
• Seal Team Six
• Never having watched one episode of Jersey Shore
• Watching every episode of Glee
• Attending Jernine and Sadoux's wedding and letting me share a dance with Kelly while Brian McKnight sang Stevie Wonder's "Overjoyed" and having Bill Rancic call me a "delicate flower" afterwards (still scarred)
• My Franklin crew, when the Bat signal goes up, we are all there within an hour and Elaina who pours soda into the shot glass when others want to have too much fun
• Rashida Jones
• Late night dance parties to the Backstreet Boys (yeah I said it)
• Never losing my jump shot
• Cool whip after surgery
• My annual New Years Eve / birthday dinner 
• And lastly, I'm thankful for all of you...

Wait, scratch that last one, too cheesy, let's rewind a bit.

And lastly, I'm thankful for pajama jeans, the shake weight, Bieber's paternity suit, Eva Mendes and Rashida Jones (they're so nice I had to thank them twice).

It's a big world full of big things.  Enjoy it, live to tell about it.  Now back to 90210.

Big Bucks No Whammy

13, 22, 31...c'mon 13, 22, 31... "black 8!"... Fuck! Well, double up and try it again...13, 22, 31... Fuck again!

I'm a gambler by blood.

I grew up around it. I grew up learning that I shouldn't pay full price for anything but I should try to gamble and win it. I learned the fastest way to get something is to risk it all. The sweet smell of success and the power of the adrenaline was too big to stifle. I needed more. I wanted it all. There was nothing that I wouldn't gamble on. I would bet friends that one pigeon would fly away before another one. I'll bet that one cloud would dissipate before the other. I'll bet that a women would walk out of a store before a man. Anything, I would put odds on it.

As an adult with disposable income and time to burn, this addiction now lives beyond the blood. It's the air I breathe. The flash of thought on winning something creates a palpating rhythm that echos through my soul. Beads of sweat with the sweet smell of adrenaline.

But now it's not limited to games or trivial daily happenings. It's personal. I'm playing with funds that can't be counted. I'm losing more than pride and ego. But if I win... It's a euphoria that if bottled up would make the cocaine game in the 80's look like a Tic Tac party.

22! "Winner winner chicken dinner!"

I'm not up but the wind is blowing in my direction. I can feel it now. It's looking good. Breathe. Don't change anything that I've done to get to this win. Think the same thoughts, say the same words, look at the same things, don't fuck with the juju. Oh damn, my ass itches. Don't scratch! It's a test, it's a cosmic detour to take me off the winning path. BOOM! 31! Two for two. Who's the big winner with two thumbs? This guy is. People are envious of me. That hot chick with the sequin dress, legs that run longer than a Kenyan and eyes that would make an ice cube commit suicide in a pot of boiling water, she's looking at me now. Yeah that's right, I'm the man now. I'm the winner. Where were you when I only had the one dollar chips in front of me? Fuck you then. Keep staring. I'm not messing with this streak.

All eyes on me. Hugh fucking Hefner could walk by me with the greatest hits of centerfolds all dressed in a whip cream bikini and I'd still be the center of attention. Yeah this guy with the jeans that is ripe with the smell of loserville, the t-shirt that is screaming "let me go, I'm too small and can't breathe" and the hair that's supposed to have the bed head look but should be a bang my head against a bed look. But I'm the hot ticket right now. I could have an old Atari t-shirt on with crumbs from last nights grilled cheese and snot stains on it matched with beige capri's and a hat with two budweisers attached to both sides and I'd considered a trend-setter at this point. That's what winning does to a person.

Knowing when to walk away is the hardest thing to do in life. We are wired to be gluttons for punishment. We continue to pound our heads against concrete walls because it feels so good when we finally stop. We shoot for stars in hopes to lay with the Gods and throw out the consequence of the fall. Our emotions tell us we can. Our dreams tell us it can be real. Our mind tells us we're strong enough.

Then it crashes. We fall. After a high so high, there's no parachute that can brace this fall. Life happens in slow motion as you plummet. Just a minute ago you were so high you were looking down at the sky. Now the ground is coming at you at a rate that you can't even fathom or think straight about.

Close your eyes...

Brace yourself...

You'll live...

The roulette table is now empty, I've given it more time than I should've. I'm no longer the popular guy. I'm just the guy that didn't know when to walk away. My high stakes bets are now petty attempts to put something in my pocket. There's no winning here. My juju is gone. I've scratched the itch. I've done the impossible and gave it all back. So I walk away finally with my head down with not even enough money to tip the waitress for a bottle of water so I use the water fountain, who uses a water fountain these days, losers do.

This was not about roulette. This was not about being a junkie addicted to the thrill of victory. This was about life. The risk reward. The high and low. The winning and the losing. The hedging your bets and protecting your interests. The being happy with what you have. The downfall of greed and the highs of the moment.

We're all hooked one way or another. We will lose more than we win. We bounce back. We hope for more. Even a broken watch is right twice a day. It's a matter of looking for the time when the time is right.