Ask Matthew: Questions answered! (pt 2)

As promised, here are most of the rest of your answered questions!  I’m still holding out hope that Matthew will make an appearance in a vlog in the near future, but don’t hold your breath.  ;)

Let’s turn it back over to Matthew!! (once again, I inserted my own comments here and there…)

He WILL kill me for using this picture, but I just can’t help myself.  It looks like a picture from a tabloid, doesn’t it? I can just see the caption now… “Matthew out shopping… he’s just like US!”

What made you decide to be a lawyer—lifelong dream? 
I've always had a desire to go to law school and become an attorney.  I don't think it was a lifelong dream though.  I've done well in my business and felt like it was time to take the next step in my long term career goals.

If you could only pick one, what is one trait from Jenni you would want your kids to have? One that you wouldn’t want them to have? 
Jenni has a great heart, is very intelligent, and has a memory like an elephant. (that’s three babe.) I wish I had her memory. I have an awful memory. I have to write myself reminder notes to look at my reminder note.  I wouldn't want our kids to have her procrastination.  And it's not that Jenni procrastinates, it's just that she lacks discipline to get started on things. (alas, ‘tis true)  A great quote that I love says: "Discipline is doing the things you hate, but doing them like you love them." Guess who said that?  Mike Tyson.  I know, i know.  Not only is it smart, but maybe the only complete sentence he's ever articulated.

What is Jenni's biggest pet peeve with you? 
I think I have like 492 that are all tied for 1st place.  She gets frustrated that I can't remember what I did that morning.  I always have to remind her that I deal with so many stresses that my brain has to make room for the really important stuff. (of course, sometimes our opinions differ on what’s important… ;)  She gets frustrated with my impatience and that I'm always hungry. (the man eats like 6 meals a day!!)

I am sure there are many things you love about Jenni, but what was the one “thing” that really spoke to you saying this is THEE girl?  The first time I looked in her eyes.  I knew right away.  She was gonna be my wife whether she wanted to or not. :)

Jenni does a lot of outfit posts, but what is your favorite sort of outfit to see her in? Glamorous? Casual? Sweatpants/hair tied chillin with no make up on? (lil Drake lyrics) 
Hmmm...my parents read this so I can't answer honestly. Soooo, my second favorite would be glamorous.  Probably because I never really get to see her that way.  (And no babe, this isn't an open invitation to go shopping). (and by saying he never gets to see me that way, I don’t THINK he means it’s because I’m a slob… it’s because we rarely go anywhere that calls for “glamorous” dress!)

What is it like being married to a(n) (awesome) blogger?  e.g. Very well knowing many things in life are documented.  I'm really torn on the whole blog thing.  On one hand, it takes a lot of time away from our relationship and it gets really annoying when she's always taking pictures or doing things for this whole other world. (as discussed in last week’s post, we are working on a bit more balance :) On the other hand, it's something that she really loves and it's helped her to grow and mature.  It's also helped her learn what her passion is.  Jenni is an amazing photographer and really has an eye for turning everyday things into art. 

Any advice for other blogger husbands/boyfriends?  Dude.  I have no idea.  Perhaps we should come together and create our own blog and start a battle of the sexes.  We could talk about fun stuff...like guns, sports, preparing for the end of the world, guns, and guns. It would probably fail though.   Our blogging time would be seriously interrupted by having to take outfit pictures for our wives' blog.  (good point.)

What are some good gift ideas for the guy who doesn't want much?
I'm hard to shop for. If I want something, I just go get it.  I like thoughtful gifts.  I've been asking Jenni for a photo album of my favorite pictures of her!  I like coupon books that I get to use at any time; none of that 24 hour notice crap (hint hint wifey).  Make him his favorite dinner.  Stuff like that. 

What are some things you like to do?
I like to shoot guns, hunt, spend time at the ranch, dinner and a movie with Jenni, spend time with our dogs, prepare for the end of the world, camping (which Jenni and I need to do), etc.

Would you rather be superhumanly smart, or superhumanly strong and athletic?  Probably superhumanly smart.  Being strong and athletic only gets you so far.  Sure, you can make a ton of money, but that does nothing to help humanity.  I'd rather give gifts to the world, like curing cancer or AIDS.  I just don't want being so smart to give me a big head.   Not talking about my ego.  I literally mean I don't want my super awesome brain to make my head huge ...that would just be weird.

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Ha ha, indeed.  Thanks so much for taking the time to do this for us Matthew!!  And if anyone missed his first Q&A session, check it out here.  Happy Monday!

Ask Matthew: Questions answered! (pt 1)

It’s here, you guys. The first installment of answered questions from last week’s “Ask Matthew” post.  I tried to get him to do a vlog, but we’re not quite there yet.  I will continue to nag attempt to convince him to do one for some of the rest of the questions!

This was a very interesting exercise, and I loved reading his answers!  FYI, some of the law school answers are pretty lengthy, but of course you don’t have to read those unless you’re interested. Also FYI, I inserted a few comments in red here and there. :) And now, over to Matthew!

(another favorite picture of mine)

Emergency Preparedness

Q: Let’s say zombies DO take over the world, and let’s say one of the zombies confronts you with your emergency preparedness bag and says he will spare your life (and Jenni’s), but you are only allowed to bring ONE item from your bag: which will it be and why?!
A: Please, you don’t think I haven’t prepared for this exact situation do you?  This would never happen; I have more than one emergency bag placed in strategic locations.  Corporations call it redundancy and spend millions trying to get rid of it; I call it survival insurance. 

Q: Please give us a true 1st person testimony of your so called view on the Zombie Apocalypse that Jenni has told us about. 
A: I didn’t actually think zombies were going to take over the world until I saw “I am Legend” and was like “oh shit…that could actually happen!”  With all the cloning and gene testing crap that we don’t even know about, I definitely think one of those lab experiments gone wrong could escape and try to populate the world through cross breeding. 

In reality, it’s just good to have stuff on hand.  We live in the most powerful country in the world and our own government couldn’t (or just didn’t) make it to the victims of Katrina for 3 days.  If you remember, some people were forced to loot from grocery stores, broke into people’s homes, and at a time when one would hope the community would come together, hysteria set in and women were raped, a few people were murdered, and people went without food and water for almost a week. That will not happen at my house…you try to break in or touch my wife, you’re gonna get a bullet in your ass (awww… that’s sweet?). 

Q: We are pretty stocked up in our emergency/disaster preparedness kit… but what, in your opinion, is the most important item to have on hand? 
A: There isn’t one specific item…it’s like saying what kid you love the most (maybe some of you can say that, I don’t know).  If I could choose only two things it would be food and water to last at least 7 days.  Get this: the average American household has less than a 2 day supply of food and water on hand.  If you have nothing right now, you should at least buy a 72 hour preparedness kit and supplement it with extra canned food and water to get you to last a week.  Also, add something that can give you something to do.  Boredom is one of the greatest things overlooked in an emergency.  For example, I put a pack of playing cards and a card game pamphlet in every one of my bags. 

Love/Relationship/Jenni

Q: How do we find a find a romantic guy like you who will propose so quickly? 
A: Russia.  Definitely Russia.  Mail order husband is the next wave; I suggest investing in it. 

I think sometimes it just works out that way.  I wasn’t planning on proposing so soon, it just happened to work out that way and felt right when I was doing it. 

Q: When I read your love story, it said that your parents talked about you and Jenni meeting.  I assume they talked to you about it too, so I’d love to know, what was it that they used to say to you about Jenni? 
A: My Mom told me about Jenni for two years before I met her.  My Mom would always say that she just knew I would fall in love with her.  She would always talk about how beautiful she was, how gorgeous her eyes were, how she could tell that Jenni carried herself well, was educated, and the perfect girl for me (aww, shucks…). 

Q: When did you know know Jenni was “the one?”
A: It didn’t take a full second for me to fall in love with her…the first time I saw her I knew she would be my wife (he has stuck to this story since the beginning). 

Q: What are Jenni’s quirks? (for example, I tend to have OCD when cooking/cleaning, I sing sentences, like to snuggle my feet under his butt because I hate socks…) 
A: Jenni thinks she’s the animal whisperer and can actually speak dog. (not thinks… KNOWS.) She’s constantly talking for Gracie and Cooper…notice I said “for” and not “to.”  What’s crazy is that if you spend enough time with Jenni, you’ll find yourself actually having “conversations” with our dogs.  Jenni will talk in her dog voice and a few minutes will go by before you realize that you’re not actually talking to a dog.  It’s now transferring to other dogs; dogs we see when driving around, at the store, or wherever…..it’s getting bad, I think I need to stage an intervention. 

Q: What are Jenni’s best and worst domestic attributes? 
A: This is dangerous territory. 

I’m like a wolf that use to hunt for my food, but has been brought indoors and forgot how to feed myself.  So, if I want to avoid cereal and Top Ramen every night for dinner, I must be very cautious.  So, she can’t bake to save her life…seriously…it’s bad.  I don’t know how or why, but she’s got serious issues with yeast.  She does a great job decorating and has made our house feel like a home; she’s done a beautiful job.  If it were up to me, we’d have animal heads in every room, including the bathrooms.  So I guess it’s good she has an eye for design and decorating. 

Law School

Q: What type of law do you like best so far and why? Can you please say environmental so I can compare you to Marshall on How I Met Your Mother?! 
A: I love that show!  No, not environmental law.  I definitely care about our environment, but also think people take it way too far.  I say drill away and put American families back to work.  Law is hard to explain unless you’re studying it too.  You quickly learn that just because it’s legal doesn’t make it right and just because it’s legal doesn’t make it fair.  The law is all about preventing an injustice of one party and sometimes creates an injustice for someone else by trying to prevent the original one. 

Q: Is law school as hard/easier/harder than you expected? 
A: Way harder…like brutally harder.  I met with quite a few recently graduated attorneys who unanimously said that it would be the hardest thing I’ve ever done.  I kind of shrugged it off because I know what it means to go to work.  I built my life insurance practice from scratch, put in consistent 80 hour weeks, and became the youngest associate partner of my firm.  It’s harder than I thought because law school is unlike any other academic environment I had been exposed to.  For one, everyone is smart…everyone.  Just being accepted into law school is no easy feat.  Law school is nothing like undergraduate courses.  In undergrad you can just memorize class notes, regurgitate them onto the exam, and get a good grade; you do that in law school you’ll fail out.  The amount of material covered is almost insurmountable….I have a much better understanding of why post office people go crazy because right when you’re caught up, you have just as much to get through the day after (sounds EXACTLY like my email inbox).  You have about 3 hours of class prep for each hour of class; that comes out to roughly 54 hours of case work in addition to the 18 hours of actual in class time.  The other thing that I didn’t expect was how much we would cover in a single semester.  Law students will cover an entire 700 page case book in a single semester and have an 80 page outline to memorize before going into a final exam.  Oh yeah, the other thing that surprised me is that there isn’t a single graded assignment and no midterms; you get one shot to make your grade and that’s the 4 hour final.   

Q: How long, roughly, did you study for the LSAT test? Any tips? 
A: I can’t remember how much time, but it was pretty extensive.  The LSAT itself is about as indicative of your law school success as that ferret thing that predicts how long winter will last (it’s a groundhog, babe).  I took an LSAT prep course in October and took the December LSAT (if you’re in Austin email my wife and I’ll give you the name of the best LSAT instructor in the state).  I studied about 6 hours a day M-F and must have taken 35 practice exams.  I had to do well because my undergraduate performance wasn’t that great.  I wish I had done better, but it was good enough to make up for my comparatively low GPA.  Law schools are inundated with applications because the economy sucks and everyone is going back to school.  They’re being very selective, so if you’re thinking of going to law school, take the LSAT seriously.  Tips?  Take a prep course, learn logic games like your life depended on it, and don’t go to public places or eat out the week before the exam to prevent getting sick.  The biggest thing to prepare for is your stamina; take enough practice exams from start to finish to get used to how long and demanding the exam really is.  A lot of people will short change themselves by taking half of a practice exam and then reach burnout on the actual exam way before they’re done.  

Q: What type of law are you interested in studying?
A: Securities, insurance, and financial services law.

Miscellaneous

Q: I’ve seen you like hunting.  How did you get started? Is it like a family tradition? Has this caused trouble in your relationships with people who might be against it? 
A: I grew up hunting.  I think people just do things that their parents do.  If my dad was into football, I’d probably be into football.  I could care less about football.  Sports are boring to me unless I’m playing them.  Hunting can sometimes be a sensitive subject with people who are against it.  I ask them why and they usually respond with some uneducated statement like “I could never hurt an innocent creature” and I take a quick look at them and see their leather purse, leather belt, leather shoes, ask them if they eat meat, etc. and they quickly realize how many animal products they are using.  I will often then reply that I think it’s more ethical and humane to be the one doing it versus letting some else do it for you.  What most people don’t realize is that the hunting industry is necessary to keep animal populations in healthy control and adds billions of dollars or revenue and hundreds of thousands of jobs to our economy.  (I’m definitely still not a fan of hunting for sport, but it came with the package (i.e. my husband) so I have learned to accept it to an extent. The animals we have in our home are beautiful and I have actually grown fond of them.)

Q: When are you guys gonna make some babies?! 
A: Ummmmm…..not so much.  Jenni really wants kids, and I’m torn on it.  I don’t want to deprive her of it, but I am so far from being ready that it hasn’t even reached my radar yet.  I always say if they can pop out at 4 years old, potty trained, talking, and can help pay the mortgage then I’ll consider it (I think in order to have a child any time soon, it’s going to have to be an “accident”). 

* * * * *

THANKS MATTHEW!!! Hopefully I can get him back to answer the rest of your questions.  :)  Happy Monday!

Ask Matthew

 favorite picture of him to date, just before going skydiving.

I have persuaded my beloved husband to make a guest appearance here on this blog of mine (either in vlog form or otherwise), but I am relying on YOU to provide topics for his post.  No pressure. 

You may ask him anything, from questions on the zombie apocalypse we are so very prepared for (i.e. his emergency bag and/or man satchel), to questions on law school, to questions on ME, or whatever else you may be dying to know.  Keep it appropriate, people... but make it good. 

This. will. be. awesome. 

PS - Questions will be kept private until Matthew's post. :)

You Can Call Me Shaggy. (I vlogged)

Happiest of Fridays to you!  What will I be doing this weekend?  More like what will I NOT be doing.  I will not be cooking. I will not be cleaning.  I will not be going to bed early. I will not be getting up early.  I will not be masking the fact that I have an unhealthy Internet and social media addiction. 

A.K.A. Matthew is going back out to the ranch, so I get to revert back to my pre-married self for a couple days.  Don’t worry, pre-married Jenni was even more boring than married Jenni.

By the way, the vlog is super short today.  I cut out a little bit of the rambling, so it shouldn’t be so painful to watch.  You’re welcome.  

Also, I won’t be vlogging again until after I get a haircut. And who knows when that will be.  Haircuts scare me, and I’m always coerced into buying expensive products that I don’t need. But watching this video kind of makes me want to take a really sharp set of shears to those shaggy bangs of mine.  Just sayin’.

Any big plans for the weekend?  Do tell. 

What Do Tigers, Chocolate Lava Cake, and Jesus Christ Have in Common?

No vlog today. 

I know this is devastating for you, but PLEASE.  Hold it together.  I’m still going to answer some of your questions from this post way back when, just not in vlog form – I record the vlogs on Thursday, and I didn’t get around to it yesterday.  But we should be back at it next Friday! ;) 

K?  Here are the questions for today:

Q: Holly asked: If you could have any animal in the world as a pet, what would you chose to have? 

A:  I would want a tiger.  Ever since watching Aladdin as a child, I have wanted my very own tiger, like Jasmine had.  That would be SO badass. 

photo © 2010 Tambako The Jaguar | more info (via: Wylio)

I just want to give it a big, squishy hug. Preferably with no danger of getting my face ripped off.

Q: Several people asked: What is your favorite food of all time?

A: This is impossible to answer, because I love SO MANY foods.  I’m not one of those people who can eat the same thing all the time; I need tons of variety because I get sick of things very easily.  But one thing that comes to mind is the Chocolate Lava Cake dessert at Fleming’s… it’s this round cake thing that comes to you fresh and hot from the oven, and when you sink your fork into it, a steaming hot lava-like RIVER of chocolate sauce comes POURING forth from the middle.  And it’s served with vanilla ice cream and homemade chantilly creme. 

Oh my GAWW.  I think I just drooled on myself. 

photo © 2005 OBiTRAN | more info (via: Wylio)

(this isn’t the exact one I’ve had, but it’s close!)

 

Q: Summer asked: If you could meet one influential person, past or present, who would it be and why?

A: I would want to meet Charlie Sheen.

JUST KIDDING!

Hmmm.  That’s a tough one. I have literally been staring blankly at my screen for about 5 minutes now. It’s been a while since I obsessed over an “influential person” (think Nick Carter of the Backstreet Boys, circa 1999).  But I’m going to go with the safe answer: I would like to meet Jesus Christ.  Because I have some questions for him.  Plus, he’d probably just be cool to hang out with. 

Ok,that’s all for now.  Happy weekend, pretty friends! 

PS – And in case you didn’t figure it out, tigers, chocolate lava cake, and Jesus Christ don’t really have anything in common besides all being awesome and the answers to my questions. ;) 

Help me out here, will ya? (Please?)

I sat down to tap out a blog post this morning and encountered this:

photo © 2010 Rhona | more info (via: Wylio)

That’s right folks.  It’s a brick wall.  And instead of brainstorming a new and delightful topic I could write about this fine morning, I ended up wasting 45 minutes going through my archives of photos and wondering why my face has consistently alternated between fat and thin over the years.  Perhaps it can be attributed to that female bloating which occurs once per month, and the fat face photos just happened to be snapped during “that time?”  It’s quite mysterious. 

Anyway.  Thanks to Stephany, I had a novel idea the other day.  I’ve been wanting to post a vlog (video log) for some time now, but the problem is that I have nothing to say.  The videos I’ve attempted went something like this:

“Hi guys, it’s me Jenni!  I thought it’d be fun to post a vlog, so you could meet me ‘in person.’ Ok, well, umm… that’s all.  Bye!”

Yeah, lame? 

So, here’s the deal. 

Ask me some questions.  Make ‘em good.  Make ‘em count.  Make ‘em funny, if you’d like.  And then, on Friday morning, I’ll pick a few of the best and answer them on a vlog.  And it’ll be epic.  And super fun.  For me.  And maybe for you?  And if it’s reeally awesome, maybe we’ll do it once a week.  But we all know how great I am at commitment (remember List of ten Tuesdays?).  Yeah.

Please ask me something, so I don’t feel like a complete weirdo/loser. What are your burning questions? (I know, you probably didn’t have any before this, but make something up!)  Mmmkaythanksbye!

PS – I won’t be publishing comments on this post.  It would take away from the element of surprise come Friday.  Plus, there’s always the possibility that no one will ask questions, so as long as I hide the comments, I can still make my own questions and pretend they came from you.  I know… genius.