Why San Francisco should be De-Annexed

You stay up for 16 hours

He stays up for days on end.
_________________________

You take a warm shower to help you wake up.

He goes days or weeks without running water.
__________________________

You complain of a "headache", and call in sick.

He gets shot at as others are hit, and keeps moving forward.
__________________________

You put on your anti war/don't support the troops shirt, and go meet up with your friends.

He still fights for your right to wear that shirt.
__________________________

You make sure you're cell phone is in your pocket.

He makes sure he has ammo in his.
__________________________

You talk trash about your "buddies" that aren't with you.

He knows he may not see some of his buddies again.
__________________________

You walk down the beach, staring at all the pretty girls.

He patrols the streets, searching for insurgents and terrorists.
_________________________

You complain about how hot it is.

He wears his heavy gear, not daring to take off his helmet to wipe his brow.
__________________________

You go out to lunch, and complain because the restaurant got your order wrong.

He doesn't get to eat today.
__________________________

Your maid makes your bed and washes your clothes.

He wears the same things for weeks, but makes sure his weapons are clean.
__________________________

You go to the mall and get your hair redone.

He doesn't have time to brush his teeth today.
__________________________

You're angry because your class ran 5 minutes over.

He's told he will be held over an extra 2 months.
__________________________

You call your girlfriend and set a date for tonight.

He waits for the mail to see if there is a letter from home.
__________________________

You hug and kiss your girlfriend, like you do everyday.

He holds his letter close and smells his love's perfume.
__________________________

You roll your eyes as a baby cries.

He gets a letter with pictures of his new child, and wonders if they'll ever meet
__________________________

You criticize your government, and say that war never solves anything.

He sees the innocent tortured and killed by their own people and remembers why he is fighting.
__________________________

You hear the jokes about the war, and make fun of men like him.

He hears the gunfire, bombs and screams of the wounded.
__________________________

You see only what the media wants you to see.

He sees the broken bodies lying around him.
__________________________

You are asked to go to the store by your parents. You don't.

He does exactly what he is told.
__________________________

You stay at home and watch TV.

He takes whatever time he is given to call, write home, sleep, and eat.
__________________________

You crawl into your soft bed, with down pillows, and get comfortable.

He tries to sleep but gets woken by mortars and helicopters all night long.
__________________________

You sit there and judge him, saying the world is probably a worse place because of men like him.

If only there were more men like him.

Web Marketing

I got my degree in advertising which is under Journalism. The department that I landed in at NextStudent is a very complex. I have learned so much stuff that I did not learn in college. I still have only discovered the tip of the iceberg. I cannot believe they didn't teach me what SEO meant during my four year tenure. It has been a struggle to relearn excel. I have been so used to doing still ads and billboards that I missed a lot of info pertaining to the Internet.

We work in a fast paced department with a bunch of web techies. If anyone is interested in seeing the work we do feel free to link to our site.

<a href="http://www.nextstudent.com">NextStudent Loans</a>

Football is the Only Sport that Matters

College football is the most important sport in my opinion. I am a die-hard Sooner fan with Alabama being my second favorite. I never got much into the NFL. It just seems like there is no heart in the pros. The college game atmosphere cannot be explained; it must be experienced. My mother's family came out of Birmingham so I do have some Bama blood in me. Nevertheless, I bleed Crimson and Cream.

I was disappointed in how poorly the Big XII fared this bowl season. My Sooners suffered a heartbreaking loss to Boise State and Texas barely squeaked by. I have to hand it to Florida. I don't think anyone saw that coming. No one from Ohio can use the 55-19 taunt anymore. 41-14 Suckeyes :)

Fried Okra

So I have hit up just about every BBQ joint in the valley and have yet to find a place that knows what fried okra is. We went to Famous Dave's BBQ and got some great brisket and sweet tea but no fried okra. This seems strange to me. I thought surely somebody in Phoenix would have this awesome food. I will give them this: They sure know how to smoke some sausage.

Southerner Stuck in the Desert

Hello
My name is Kent. I grew up in Southern Oklahoma. After college, I moved to Phoenix, AZ to work for NextStudent. We are a student loan consolidation company that focuses on getting money for students to go to school.

The reason I started this blog is to discuss some of the pitfalls that Southerners encounter when they leave the Bible Belt. I have many experiences of my own that I will gladly share on here. I want to hear about bad food, rude people, lack of culture and intolerance to our ingrained values (that most southerners share). I have seen almost everything you can imagine. I have heard all the stereotypes, all the hillbilly jokes and constant cracks about my accent. I would like to hear similar experiences and the pride that other southerners share.

Let's try to keep it clean.

Oh, and by the way. In case y'all are unclear about what states constitute the south: The U.S Census Bureau defines the south as Oklahoma, Texas, Arkansas, Louisiana, Tennessee, Mississippi, Alabama, Virginia, West Virginia, North Carolina, South Carolina, Florida, Georgia and Kentucky.


I don't want to hear about who belongs and who doesn't. I can assure you that Oklahoma and most of Texas are not anything like New Mexico or Arizona. Oklahoma is nothing like Wisconsin either.