Jasper Jones

If you are madly in love with a woman and you want to find a very special gift for her, I can point you in the right direction. I happened to overhear a conversation at the TGI Fridays with a couple of hot - I do mean HOT - chicks talking about a bachelorette party they had attended and their thoughts on the gifts for the bride-to-be and some great girl gossip.

Well, the most important thing I took away from that eavesdropping was that hot women really love expensive, unique lingerie. And these women know the good stuff - so don’t even try to get away with something cheap and trashy. Evidently, there are some particular brands or makers of fine Lingerie that most guys can’t even name off the top of their head but trust me on this, the girls know.

So clever guy that I am, that night I surfed the night for the names I had overheard and I found some great pieces. I bookmarked them and even sent myself an email with the info, so that I will always be able to find this again. In fact, these web sites are a great source for all kinds of great items plus they are all about discounts and saving money. So you might want to bookmark Shopping.com and Dealtime.co.uk, too.

One of my personal heroes is Mark Twain. I remember reading all his books as a kid and really enjoying both his storytelling and his writing style. It inspired me to even read his biography in a book that I checked out of the school library. That shocked both my teacher and my parents! A library book? Me? LOL

So I learned a little about Mark Twain. For the times he lived in he was a very different character. He had some eccentric views about politics, race and all kinds of things that were just too forward thinking for most people who lived in his era. Strangely enough, when I was at the drug store tonight I noticed that on the cover of TIME Magazine they are featuring Mark Twain and the cover story is about his forward thinking. I might go back and buy that magazine tomorrow just to read what they have to say about my hero. Too bad I didn’t know they wee interested in a story about Mark Twain - I could have written that myself and it would have been sweet to get paid for my writing.

One of my buddies has been working this summer as a security guard for Sonic. It’s not one in a bad part of town, but all the Sonics have beefed up security since a couple weeks ago there was a shooting at one. The Sonic was full of customers on a busy night and three guys with guns drove up and went inside where they cook and tried to rob the place. But the manager pulled out his own gun and shot two of the guys as they tried to run off. So now all the Sonics are required to have a security guard on duty from dark until closing. It worked out good for my buddy - he hadn’t found anything to do yet and he loves cop stuff. He even has me interested in cops and I went to the gun range with him last weekend for a couple hours.

One of the thing he really likes is all the tactical gear. It’s all about pockets. His pants have pockets everywhere. He wears a belt with holsters and holders all around it. And he has a vest with tons of pockets. He buys most of the gear online from a web site called lapolicegear.com and I checked it out tonight. I saw a lot of tactical equipment on their site that was reasonably priced, and a lot of the items qualify for free shipping or a free extra gift like a cap or coffee mug. I think I’ll order some of the mil-spec BDU pants and try them out for hunting and yard work. Who knows? I might pick up a part time job doing security work when I get back to school, too.

You may have noticed that I don’t go into a lot of details about my love life here on my blog. That’s on purpose, as I want a little privacy there and I’m sure that the person I am dating wants her privacy, too. So to everyone who’s been wondering, I’m fine, OK.

Would really like to go to the beach for a few days. It seems like all my friends are going to either Destin or Cancun and here I am at work instead of sitting on the sand watching the bikinis go by. It’s making me chafe a little, I have to admit. However, I have responsibilities and one more year of college before I can have all my finances in order and afford to take time off for fun and games.

Instead of driving 8 hours down and back to have a few hours in the sun, I’ve been making the most of the fun things that are around here. We have tons of parks and there is always the lakes and rivers. Lake beaches are not the same as ocean beaches, but they are sand and water and sun, with a few bikinis worth watching, too.

There used to be a huge store on the outskirts of the local mall that was all shoes and all at discount prices. I went there a couple of times to check it out but never really bought anything. I tried to once, though. I found a pair of Nike’s that I liked and I went to the checkout counter and they rang it up. I whipped out my checkbook to write a check and they freaked on me. No checks taken at that store. I said, “What? Who doesn’t take checks????” But they said no. I think it was age discrimination, to be honest. They probably weren’t expecting an 18 year old to have a legit checkbook. But I’ve been working summers since I was 14 and I’ve got money, honey. I could have paid cash out of my wallet, but I wanted to keep my spending cash. So since they wouldn’t take my check, I left the shoes on the counter and walked out. Eat it, shoe store!

Now I don’t even go into a “brick and mortar” shoe store anymore. I buy most everything online from a couple of places that carry good stuff. And guess what, they all take my check aka debit card.

Like, I needed some good casual shoes for going out on dates and maybe a few nice places with my folks. Sandals won’t be good enough for my mom if I try to wear them around her and her friends, and athletic shoes are just a little too casual for some things like a nice dinner date. I need something for when I have on my nice khakis and a golf shirt. A little style upgrade. You know what I mean?

So I decided to cruise a few internet stores. One of my favorites says what it’s all about right in their name: walkingonacloud.com

Now that means the shoes are going to fit well and cradle your foot in softness. It’s all about comfort and style, plus this place has ALL the brand names.

Anybody who knows me well knows that ordinary clothes and shoes don’t fly with me. I want style, and I really like to have things that no one else around here can get. So buying on the internet gives me that edge, too. Like, I could have some Doc Martens, but everyone has those. I could have some Rockports, but that’s what my dad likes.

I’m looking for something like Josef Seibel Shoes and here’s what I’m talking about. Here’s a brown leather, casual but sophisticated shoe, called the “Bancroft.” It has style and it really well made.

Smart guys don’t buy cheap shoes. Smart guys buy well made, quality shoes - and shop for the best price around.