As of this past Sunday, it has now been nine months since I got married. This time last year, I was still a bachelor living in West Allis, WI -- with my long-time best friend as my roommate. I was preparing to move to Brillion in three months; and gearing up for my wedding in July. I was also rehearsing the male lead in a stage show that would perform in May. It was a busy time of year.

Now, as I sit here in Brillion, married, a full year later, I thought it might be interesting to live-blog a day in the life of married Jon. In other words, I'll record my day as it happens (via short time-dated comments), and address the questions of "What is life like, now that my bachelor days are behind me?" Or, "What keeps me busy on a random day?"

Whatever happens today (aside from mundane tasks), will be recorded here in this blog post. I'll start at 12:01am (CST) this morning, and live-blog through 11:59pm (CST) tonight.

Sound like fun? Bookmark this page, and stick around.

Live-blogging starts -- right here -- at 12:01am!

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12:09 AM
I've been spending the last few hours organizing my home office, as well as going through some old files. My work space has gotten a bit cluttered over the past nine months, and I don't like it. I want the space back. So... organizing it is.

My wife, Kelli, has already gone to bed. Around 9:30pm actually. She gets up at 5am to prepare for school. She teaches kindergarten. I, however, am self-employed, and work overnight. That's when my mind is most productive, and, when I get the most done. Usually I'm at my computer. Tonight the office, a couple empty shelves, and four cardboard boxes are my playground.

12:24 AM
I have the office window open; it was warm in here earlier. It's cool now, and rather peaceful listening to the soft hum of the nearby Brillion Iron Works.

12:44 AM
I love strategy map-based board games. The Avalon Hill/ Victory Games kind. At present, I own six. One deals with the Republic of Rome, four pertain to the American Civil War, and one is a Star Trek starship tactical combat simulator. I also own complete deck plans to Captain Kirk's Starship Enterprise.

12:59 AM
I almost forgot. No self-respecting strategy board-gamer should be without Axis and Allies. That's a classic. I've got that one too. Just saw it on the shelf.

1:22 AM
I was just reorganizing my books on my bookshelf. Most of them have to do with the American Civil War, Star Trek, art, theatre, history, and small business topics. I seem to have very well developed passions.

1:55 AM
I'm re-discovering some fascinating things in these four cardboard boxes. There are academic semester grade sheets from college, report cards and childhood artwork going back to when I was in kindergarten, and a significant collection of old letters. Some of these letters are from family members, old friends, even a few from from girl friends as I was growing up whom I had a shy crush on, or who had a crush on me. Lots of letters. Some go back almost twenty years!

I'm going to have set aside a day sometime soon, and read all of these letters. I think it would be a fascinating glimpse into my past!

2:03 AM
Ok, now it's cold in the office. 38F degrees outside. Time to close the window.

2:45 AM
Time for a break from the office work. I think a glass of red wine and either the early morning news (ABC World News Now) -- or a DVD episode of Star Trek: Deep Space Nine -- is in order.

2:52 AM
I settled on the news.

3:40 AM
You know, I think I'm just going to call it a day, and draw my "Monday" to a close. I got a lot done in the office these past few hours. Today as a whole even. I'm happy. Sleep is starting to creep in, and after that wonderful-tasting wine, I'm more inclined to sleep then resume my office work. It's been a good day. I'll pick up where I left off when I awake. Maybe even work on some other projects as well.

My self-imposed bedtime is usually no later than 5am. I try to be in bed before Kelli wakes up. This morning, though, I think I'll hit the sack a little early.

Have a great Tuesday everyone! I'll resume live-blogging in a few hours.

12:57 PM
I'm up; I'm awake. I slept a bit longer than I intended, though -- nine hours. Usually I start my day before noon. I guess I really was tired when I went to bed this morning. Oh well. 'Tis better to be rested than falling asleep on the job. Time to go find me some "lunch".

1:18 PM
I'm in the other room eating lunch and watching my usual mid-afternoon news program -- HLN News (Cable news station). Did you know, today is supposedly "National Equal Pay Day"? It's designed to bring awareness to that fact that women still make less money than men in the workplace.

Kelli is on salary at work. At the moment, SHE makes more income than I do. And to be honest, in the grand scheme of things, it's not that big of a deal.

1:56 PM
Alright, I am sufficiently fed. My lunch: toasted pastrami and swiss onion bagel sandwich. Very tasty. I'll have to share the recipe sometime.

2:20 PM
Every afternoon, my wife sends me an email from school. In it she asks me to do a variety of household chores. Today's task is mopping the kitchen and bathroom floors. I'm happy to help. But I think I'll go grab a shower first.

3:28 PM
Shower done. Floors swept and mopped. Trash and recycling taken out. Mail obtained. I'm on a roll! Time to do some blogging and check up on the blogosphere.

4:11 PM
Kelli just returned home from school. Her first words to me: "It's gawgeous out there!" She's right. 58F and sunny is pretty darn awesome!

4:50 PM
Fascinating: According to Facebook Insights, 63% of the fans on my Facebook page are female.

5:01 PM
I have an awesome, beautiful wife. Just sayin'.

5:28 PM
Kelli just called me to dinner. Time to set aside the website work and follow my nose to the table. It smells great. Probably tastes just as great too!

6:01 PM
My wife loves to cook. I love to eat what she cooks. Point of fact, she made goulash for dinner tonight. Goulash and cheesy bread. It was delicious!

6:09 PM
Whoohooo! Going for a walk with the wife! Be back soon.

7:58 PM
Beautiful evening for a walk! Gorgeous out. A little crisp, but perfect get-out-and-about weather. We stopped in at a friend's house, chatted for a while, and then walked back home. Now, I think we'll sit down and watch last night's episode of "Castle" (on OnDemand). We missed it yesterday.

9:06 PM
Tucking my wife into bed. Laying with her until she falls asleep.

9:47 PM
Kelli is sleeping. Since I stay up later than she does, I usually lay with her until she's asleep on my chest. Then I carefully get up, kiss her on her forehead, and head back into my office. She says it's her favorite time of the day.

10:41 PM
Working on some marketing projects. It's a necessity when you're self-employed.

11:35 PM
There don't seem to be many people blogging here in Brillion. And if they are, their blogs aren't very well publicized. Mine is. I wonder if that makes me a local internet celebrity?

11:59 PM
Well, that's the end of my Tuesday. 11:59pm. Granted, I'll still be up working on things for a few hours yet; my bedtime isn't until later in the morning. But, for now, it's been fun live-blogging. If there's interest, I may have to do it again sometime!

If YOU enjoyed this post, leave me a comment. I'd love to hear your input.

In the meantime, have a great Wednesday everyone! Thanks for reading, following along, and checking in throughout your Tuesday. I've enjoyed sharing. Until the next blog post,

Your happily blogging friend,
-Jon
posted by Jon at 12:08 AM  I   I  1 comments