Good evening to you all. This year I decided not to do Thursday Rundowns.

Just kidding!! I present to you my first Rudown of 2016…

Experiencing Uber: It took me long enough, but I finally took an Uber ride. On New Year’s Eve, Sidney, my brother, his girlfriend, and I took advantage of a promo deal for a free pickup. When we identified the vehicle in the parking lot we hopped in and I immediately thought one thing: Man, this car is really clean. The driver was probably in his 40’s or 50’s and made no attempt to talk to us. As we had just finished celebrating the new year, we didn’t mind picking up the slack. We chatted happily with him but only received one word answers. It didn’t matter though, it was a safe and free ride. I would ride Uber again.

From the Archives: Two years ago today, I sat down with Bryden Vukasin, a former contestant and key player on “The Bachelorette.” To this day it is still one of my favorite blog posts because he painted such a vivid picture of what a high profile reality show is really like. The day after I met with him at a Missoula bar, I wrote this post. For your behind the scenes look at what truly goes on during the course of shooting, I encourage you to give it a read.

Bryden Vukasin and I exactly two years ago on January 7, 2014.

Making A Murderer: The Netflix documentary “Making A Murderer” is all the rage right now. I must say that the hype is justified. Sidney and I started watching the documentary series on Monday night. Watching two episodes per night since then, we have now viewed six of the 10 episodes. I don’t even want to explain the plot because what I detail might not even come out as the truth when we finish it up. Just know that the series focuses on a man who is accused of heinous crimes and spotlights his tribulations through the justice system. What stands out to me the most about “Making A Murderer” is just how much research and time must have been devoted to making it. It seems there is not a single jailhouse telephone call, evening newscast, courtroom confrontation, or attorney press conference that is left out. It is very, very thorough. When we finish watching “Making A Murderer”, I might devote a whole blog post to it.

NFL Playoffs/College Football National Championship – Big football weekend coming up! The NFL Playoffs will start this Saturday but I could care less until Sunday rolls around. My Seattle Seahawks will travel to Minnesota to take on the Vikings. The fact that the Seahawks already beat the Vikings at U.S. Bank Stadium this year makes some Seattle fans confident and others nervous. In my case, it makes me a little nervous. However, I really hope they pull it out and give me plenty of entertainment throughout the rest of January.

As for the national championship on Monday night, I am “All-In” for the Clemson Tigers. Sidney’s sister and brother-in-law (both Clemson alums) will be in Arizona for the game and I want them to leave happy. Also, I have really grown to admire Dabo Swinney this week as the stories chronicling his amazing life have swirled around. Talk about a guy who is easy to root for!

Sidney and I will be ready to cheer the Seahawks on.

Wedding Update #14 – We are now just five months out from the wedding! I have narrowed my choice of our Mexican honeymoon location to two resorts (thanks everyone for the suggestions). I hope to book by mid-month. As for the rehearsal dinner venue, I am still struggling on that front. You would think that in a town of over 1,000 restaurants it would be easier. As I mentioned in an earlier blog post, our initial desired location did not work out. On a lighter note, Sidney’s dress arrived this week!

————————–

This completes my first week on my normal blogging schedule since my holiday vacation. Please excuse me if my writing seems a little rusty. You will have Sidney on Sunday with her latest blog takeover. We will chat again on Monday. Don’t Blink.