A Tooley Family Christmas

Our first English Christmas was a pretty comfortable and lazy affair. We didn't get out of bed until 10, and then slowly got Lucy up and went downstairs to open gifts. Jess got me a black 30 gig iPod (officially making me snobbish) which was quite nice, as it is something I'd never ask for. I got her the Lady in the Water DVD, a book she's been wanting, and a nice sized gift certificate to Sephora for our big Chicago shopping trip when we get home. Lucy got some clothes, but she will really only remember chewing on her fist and farting a couple times.

After that, we went over to the neighbors in our pyjamas (british spelling) and playing on their Nintendo Wii for hours. That new system is awesome! It's been a long long time since I had actually had fun playing any video game, but jumping around the living room playing tennis, baseball, golf, and boxing was incredibly fun.

There was tons of food too. Jess received a book on secret restaurant recipes, and we cook the Outback Bloomin' Onion. To our surprise, we didn't mess it up, and it tasted dang close to the real thing.

We can't wait to see everyone when we get home and celebrate Christmas all over again, but it was pretty cool having a tiny Christmas with just us, as one family. I've uploaded a bunch of photos to the link below.

Christmas 2006

Finally, some good news for Davenport!

To help quell the homesickness, and I check QCTimes.com, QCOnline.com, and RCReader.com pretty much 3 or 4 times a day. I read much of the business news, because I want my cities to do well. I loved living there, and I feel a sense of pride when I hear good news. But, there just hasn't been much good news at all. River Renaissance seems to have been overly hyped, with a SkyBridge that is the butt of most jokes. The River Music Experience and the new Putnam Museum in downtown appear to have been flawed plans, though the leadership of these two organizations do have brains, and appear to be doing a good job of "righting the ship". Western Illinois University's expansion campus expansion is doubly good, bringing more jobs AND technical training to the Quad Cities, but then again who knows if the State of Illinois can actually fund the thing. Lastly, the Food Processing plant in East Moline. More jobs yes, but at the inconvenience of local residents that aren't being heard.

But, the good news finally came. Cingular has chosen Davenport to build a new call center, bringing 500 jobs and more development to the Elmore area. The call center jobs will be $9.50 an hour, with medical, dental, and 401k. This isn't the best pay, but the benefits make it nice. Plus, with proper and responsible budgeting, this should be more than enough for singles and even married couples without children to make a decent wage AND build a savings. I stress the word RESPONSIBLE though.

When I lived in the QC, I was still pretty young and ignorant. I thought that purchasing things and dreaming of being rich was the only way to live. I got a job at Lujacks selling cars, and bought a brand new Mazda Protege before I proved that I could actually earn the money to pay for it. Instead of paying off my '91 Nissan Sentra, which only had $300 left on the loan, financed the new car that had a $300 a month payment. I moved out of my parents house and rented a place with money borrowed with a personal loan from a bank, AT A 21% INTEREST RATE! This was also on top of $4,000 of credit card debt and $10,000 college debt! I was so stupid and selfish. Now, on my fourth year in the Air Force, all that debt is finally gone, and Jess and I can breath easily. We actually have a savings!

All that is to say that these new Cingular jobs are going to be quite good for the Quad Cities, but only to the individuals that can handle it properly. If they can budget properly, put money aside for every contingency, and save, they can find themselves living comfortably.

I always come back to my friend Jenn Swift. She has set up her life so that she can spend as much time in ministry as possible. She works for herself, and from what I can tell, isn't what anyone would define as "rich". But, she is responsible, and most certainly relies on Christ for her being. And now, she has a house, and an adorable one at that. She has always been a blessing to the people around her, and I think it's because that she is a good steward of the blessings God gives her.

Anyways, it's good to hear good news.

Also, can anyone mail me a Hungry Hobo sandwich?

(don't actually mail me a Hungry Hobo sandwich)

Vacation-itis

We finally bought our plane tickets, so we know when we'll be where in the States. From Jan 3rd through Jan 18th we'll be in the Quad Cities with my family. From Jan 18th through Feb 2nd, we'll be in Florida with Jess' family. It's been a while since I've published a list of the things I'm going to do when we get home.

In the Quad Cities:
1. Eat at my old Hardee's in Eldridge at 6am and watch the old guys play poker in the back room by the ball pit.
2. Go to Border's in Davenport and put a severe butt dent in one of their chairs.
3. Walk around downtown Davenport and see what's changed since I had been a bell-boy at the Radisson down there.
4. Take Jess on a massive Michigan Ave shopping trip in Chicago.
5. Act incredibly manly at John Wayne night at my dad's church. (Dudes only)

In Florida:
1. Eat Moe's Southwest Triple Lindy burrito. Substitute the salsa and guacamole for sour cream and cheese.
2. See a movie at the Rave that doesn't cost 25 pounds ($50!)
3. Go to my old squadron and beg for a contractor graphics job. Do you think Colonels like roses?
4. Go to Barnes and Noble in Destin and put a severe butt dent in one of their chairs.
5. Take a trip to the beach to take in the beauty, and wrestle a shark.

Anyways, here's a random video. This guy is hilarious (at least I think so).