Get To Know SIRRONSTUFF

Thanks for the honor of kicking this off. I remember thinking this was a great thread idea, and a great way to get to know people a little better.


I foresee being able to work on this tomorrow.

 

John3:16, post: For those of you who don't know SirronStuff, he's the resident practical joker (I LOL just typing that thinking of some of the old CL pranks he got in trouble for. I bet Punk-101 still has nightmares). Sirronstuff also makes the animated emoticons that I love and I'm sure most others do to. Anyway, I wanted to revisit an old CL thread where we get to know a member by asking questions for a week. At the end of the week, Sirron will pass the baton on to another member.

Ground rules: Ask questions to get to know the member. Not limited to the Lakers, basketball, or sports, but those are to be included. If you ask something he deems too personal for whatever reason, he can simply choose not to answer.

I saw this list of chain questions on FaceBook and thought it'd be a good starting point.

Have you ever fired a Gun: Yes, was Army for awhile as a combat medic. Since then only a few times. Still shocked anyone lives through ground war.
Been Married. Yes, for nearly 25 years, and it ended about 3 years ago. Would like to be again.
Fell in love. Yes! And will do it again I'm sure.
Swam in an ocean. Yes, was a SoCal native from Riverside, so resident requirement.
Gone on blind date. Nope, and not sure that holds any interest.
Skipped school. Of course.
Watched someone give birth. Had 4 daughters, and was there for each one.
Been to Canada. Nope, but sounds like a great place to visit.
Been to Hawaii. Yes, but when I was really young. Still remember having a lai put on me by the pretty hula girl at the airport and getting a kiss. *blush*
Been to Alaska. Nope, but need to go and see the bears and the salmon run before I'm gone. Looks amazing.
Been to Europe. UK in several spots, and over to Paris for a brief excursion from a cruise. Definitely want to go back. Lots of things I'd like to see over there.
Been to Las Vegas. Yes, no crazy stories though. Or if there were, I couldn't tell you about them.
Been to Washington D.C. 8th grade trip for school to see museums, and just passing through for work.
Been to Nashville. Possibly passing through on work, but nothing sticks on memory unfortunately. I'm wondering if they have cute ladies with accents
Visited Florida. Yes, a couple of times. Have a time share out there, and for work several times.
Visited Mexico. Yes, a couple of times.
Seen the Grand Canyon in person Yes, couple of times, but still need to hike it and raft that bad boy.
Flown in a HELICOPTER. Not yet.
Been on a cruise. Yes, but just one. Will do again once I have the right person to do it with.
Served on a jury. Nope, somehow always avoided that curse/honor.
Been in a movie. Yes as an extra. It was in CA for a movie called Body Slam. I tried to watch it to see if I appeared in the actual footage, but thinking I was left on the cutting room floor.
Been to Los Angeles. Yes, used to work out of downtown.
Been to New York City. Yes, a couple of times. Great place to visit, but could not imagine living there.
Played in a band. Not my gift.
Sang karaoke. Also not my gift!
Made prank phone calls (the answer to this one is obvious) Of course! My favorite was on a friend I was trying to get hired on at my company, and had my "recruiter" tell him about the conversation with his current employer. About wet his pants.
Laughed so much you cried. Yes, need some of that soon. That should be a regular occurrence in life.
Caught a snowflake on your tongue. Yes.
Have children. 4 daughters 22, 21, 16, and 13.
Have a pet. Not currently. In an apt at the moment, and always felt like pets need buddies. No way I'm doing two in my place. Prefer a yard too.
Been sledding on big hill. Yes, good times.
Been downhill skiing. Yes, also good times. I learned what black diamond was the hard way after successfully navigating a bunny slope 3 times. Wowsers.
Been water skiing. Yes, been quite awhile. Never did figure out slalom when I did though....
Rode on a motorcycle. Yes.
Rode a motorcycle. Yes.
Jumped out of a plane. Not yet, but it will happen! I will however have a parachute.
Been to a drive-in movie. Yes, and looking to do again soon actually. Just been brutally hot here in TX lately.
Rode an elephant. No lol, but would.
Been on TV. Been interviewed on the street, but don't think so.
Been in newspaper. Yes! Mostly from scores as a competitive athlete though.
Stayed in Hospital. Yes, herniated disks L5S1 many years ago. 10 day visit that changed my life.
Donated blood. Yes, but not any longer. Dr. says low blood pressure makes it a bad idea.
Gotten a piercing. Nope, not on my list.
Gotten a tattoo. Nope, not on my list.
Driven a stick shift vehicle. Yes.
Driven over 100 mph. Yes. Shhh.
Been scuba diving. Yes, and must do again!
snorkeling. Yes!
Lived on your own. Yes.
Rode in the back of police car. Yes. "I can explain"
Got a speeding ticket. Um, yes.

Best movie you saw this year (so far) Probably Captain American Civil War
Last book you read: Bible
What was the last practical joke you played? I do little things here and there, but can't actually remember for some reason. I feel kinda retired actually.
Favorite memory from CL? Many good memories, but probably threads on "giving up sex forever" and "Kurt Rambis and Chicano/Juancanyo" Some of those were pretty epic to read. I laughed so hard my stomach hurt on some of our old stuff. And of course, the Big Confession where Punk 101 was a good sport and played a role.
How difficult is it to create those emoticons? At first, pretty darn hard. Barns was good with feedback, and it challenged me to get better. With repetition it gets faster. Now I find myself seeing still Laker photos and imagining what I can do with them.
Example from last night: I saw this photo, and couldn't sleep until a sample was done.

Spoiler: Photos and GIF

= 10 frames of motion to make this.

Favorite Laker moment? Comeback again Portland Game 7 WCF
NBA player you hate: I root against Lebron.
Nba player you think is overrated: LMA
Nba player that youi think is underrated: Jordan Clarkson
Nba player that you love: Kobe, nobody else has had a chance yet
Nba player you secretly love: not feelin it
Favorite Nba player of all time: Kobe
Nba G.O.A.T is: So many ways to go on that one depending what areas you focus on, but I would tend to go with either Kareem or Jordan for overall.

I'll be back to ask more questions.

Everyone else, please feel free to fire away.

Next Sunday SirronStuff will pick someone else and start off the questions.

 

I haven't.

 

Dammit. These are pretty tame.

Spill it out!

 

Can't see s*** with that blue font

 

"John3:16,

What do you do for a living? I remember you had a light installation company, but thought you changed careers awhile ago. Yes, when going through the divorce, shut my company down and ran lighting divisions for a couple national players for about 2 years, and then joined a friends electrical company that needed some help. I run operations with a focus mostly on backup generators. I do lighting as it comes in, but it's not often now. I've had some opportunities to get back into National Account Lighting, but it's a huge stress and time commitment, and I have found myself at a crossroads in life, and really don't find that as important as I used to.

Favorite meal? For some reason that has always been a tough question for me. When I was young? Easy, PBJ. As I was in my 20's, probably sub sandwiches. Now, at the ripe old age of 44, I find myself liking more healthy meals of fresh vegetables and chicken/fish. I still mix in everything else, but if I had to ask for something, that's probably what I go for.

Favorite TV show? (right now and all time) I don't do cable, so my current Netflix binges are "Lie to Me", "White Collar", and "Criminal Minds" Favorite all time? Man that one is tough.....Also tend to associate that with different times of life, but in reality I watched very little TV most of my life. I've watched more Netflix TV in the last two years than total tV in my whole life before that. Just hasn't been a major role.

Your Top 5 prettiest women list? I'm not really into celebrity lists, but my type seems to be curvy/busty, and I favor long dark hair. Sample women I would find attractive. However, what's on the inside matters so much more. For anyone who finds their soulmate wrapped in an irresistible package...? You win.

Spoiler: samples

On a scale of 1 - 10, how much do you hate Kanye West? He is irrelevant to me, and I can't tell you one of his songs. I saw an interview on a daytime show, and he came across kind of looney to me.

Texas or California? Scenery CA. People TX.

Biggest regret in life? Divorce that I did not want. Not sure you ever get over 25 years of being with someone.

Proudest moment? Watching your own kids do things and excel at them. Hard to pick just one.

Cheeseburger or pizza? YES!

If you could have a meal with 5 people thoughout history, who would be there and why? Jesus, closest to talking to God and him talking back you can get. Lots of questions there. Tesla, Benjamin Franklin, inventors with great minds to see how they operated. John Muir to hear tales of trekking across America and what it was like to explore and survive on previously unexplored land. George Washington, to see what the first President was really like, and how far the office has fallen.

If you could spend the day with 3 people from LakersBall (those you have not personally met) who would it be and what would you do ? (I've met 3 in person. Kingsama, John3:16, and Punk-101) LTLakerFan and KareemtheGreat33 cracks me up, and wisdom from TIME and opinions of Weezy would keep me busy for a day for sure. I know that's 4, but just the FIRST 4. I don't play by rules.

Favorite place you've been? Probably Ireland, Yosemite, or Tom Sawyers Island at Disneyland.

Place you'd like to visit but haven't yet? The Holy Land, Egypt, and locations of oldest known civilizations with building structures to see.

Give a quick story about the best prank you've ever pulled off. I coached High School Track and Cross Country for 4 years in CA. Most of the seniors worked for me in the Summer of year 4, and one of the seniors along with myself secretly started a toilet paper war between the boys and girls teams. It culminated in my house/car getting wiped out, and in a fair warning to them, me giving them a copy of their car keys back to them as a sign of peace. While they were working with me, I would borrow their cars and trade off instead of driving my dump truck to home depot. While there, I made copies of their car keys. Their faces were priceless.

 

I'm on a dark theme using purple, and it probably only looks visible on Road Purple or Laker Nights themes. The problem with choosing any color besides default is that it will look like crap on one or more themes. Sorry about that, but if you temporarily change to Road Purple it's not so bad.

 

Tame questions get tame answers. Plus I'm an innocent wholesome all american boy who never got in trouble a day in his life.

 

My first impulse to answer is no.

But if you gave me a loaded gun, and I was sitting next to my Mom as she was dying of cancer on one side, and Obama was on the other giving another one of his "speeches", I don't like his chances.

 

that font color...


you have something against my eyeballs or normal vision in general?

 

I went back and changed color to "next to white" so you could still see where question ended and answer started. Sorry about that.

 

a fellow sandwich lover...i always liked this Sirron guy

 

This is going to be fun. I always imagine everyone here to be around my age and similar interests but thats clearly wrong (like I can totally be Sirron's oldest child) lol. Also a nice way to build a sense of community here even more.

 

Best and worst quality about each of your parents?
Best and worst memory with each of your parents?
Your biggest regret/mistake you made as a parent?
Why did you get divorced?

 

Punk-101,
Best and worst quality about each of your parents?
Dad: Strong dude, protector, hard worker, honorable, great provider. Also a bit physically abusive a few times, kind of an ahole intolerant personality if you don't fit withint his life goal map, and hugging the guy is like hugging an awkward rock. I think it's a generational thing.
Mom: Lost Mom several years ago to cancer, but super loving, caring, literally supermom, and nothing I wouldn't do for her. Worst quality.....not a lot to complain about, but it would have been good for her to have gotten fed up with my Dad's crap about 20 years earlier. They would have been happier lol.

Best and worst memory with each of your parents?
Dad: Best memories of him are of time spent together doing things as a kid. Wish there were more of those memories, and most importantly, how well he walked with my Mom during her last years fighting cancer. He made all kinds of treatments available to her approved by insurance or not, including out of the country. Really made up for being an ahole most of his life IMHO.
Worst memories probably come by decade. The younger years when he got a little out of control on discipline. The disapproving looks in the 20's and 30's irritated the crap out of me for some reason. Very judgmental. Currently? He has visited TX five times in the last two years to see my ailing daughter with a very life threatening condition on short notice. Not one time has he called ahead to let me know he was coming or set aside time to see me while here, including after I requested he do so. But he'll send gifts for holidays.....that I would prefer to send back if it weren't so rude. I recently changed my phone number and email addresses, and he has received neither. Unfortunately, after a rough couple of years dealing with divorce and the ex making it difficult to see my kids, I don't need the negativity in my life. No time or energy for that. I'm not certain I'm in a frame of mind to have a productive conversation with him right now, so for now there is none.
Mom: Favorite memory for some reason was he holding me on her rocking chair when I was WAY too big to be in her lap being rocked. Thinking about it makes me tear up every time. Love my Momma. Worst memory? I honestly can't think of any right now. I really have only positive memories of her.

Your biggest regret/mistake you made as a parent?
Not fighting the divorce harder, giving the ex full custody, among many other things assuming we'd always find a way to work things out and get back together. That has affected the time I now spend with them, and how they felt "fought for". Working on rectifying some of that now. I expect it to take some time unfortunately, but I'm not sure I'll ever recover from it personally. Just absolutely devastating. The greatest gift is being a parent, and I miss my girls like I can't even tell you.

Why did you get divorced?

Dr Nate is in session! Not my choice. I will be extremely real here. Probably even long winded. Unfortunately I went through a period of time where I dealt with a pornography addiction that led to some embarrassing and unattractive behavior, and she felt she had to based on some bad advice (IMHO). I really had a pretty amazing marriage overall, and it's by far my biggest regret in life. The sex might have been vanilla, but I have an amazing family I loved with all my heart, a willing if uncreative partner, and I was all in in all the ways I knew how to be. As far as I was concerned, life was not lacking in any way, got along with families on both sides, and we just had regular couple challenges. She was the only person I was ever with physically, and I got married at the ripe old age of 18. It has absolutely devastated me in more ways than I could have comprehended.

Some background on me:

• Grew up in conservative church and home with strong discipline
• Dated very little before marriage
• Married at 18, engaged at 17 to youth group sweetheart
• Didn't speed, didn't cuss, didn't have a beer til I was over 40 years old, no joke
• Never tried smoking or drugs
• White, clean cut, no broken bones, no cavities, athlete
• Kind of sickeningly nice, you get the picture
• Had one vice after being exposed to nudie mags around 10. Sex.

In spite of my best efforts, going through several versions of 12 step programs modified for sexual addiction of all types to be thorough, going to counseling to deal with the deeper issues being medicated by sex, spending $3500 on a weekend "intensive" with a specialist, and nearly a year of sobriety, the smallest thing set her down a path we just could not recover from. Confessing watching an R rated show in a hotel on the road for work that had flashes of toplessness..... American Pie Reunion. I used to lie in shame about watching porn, but after doing "full disclosure" at her insistence, I was an open book to a fault most likely. I wasn't willing to holding anything back any longer because I was free of shame and guilt and had no interest in going back. Unfortunately she felt she needed to be the thought police and my accountability partner too, and that is never recommended except for some very controlled circumstances. No joke, I even took regular polygraphs for her by a local expert recommended by one of the foremost sexual therapists in the country. The problem was when you get good at lying, they wonder if you can even beat a polygraph. I offered to pay an additional $200 for a test just so I could see if I could beat it, and the administrator said I'd be wasting my money, that she could tell I couldn't beat it. My ex needed my "recovery" to be perfect, but that is typically not the way that works. I failed to give her what she needed.

After having been through sexual abuse as a child from a family member, her biggest fear on earth with us having daughters was that it could exist in our home. She really locked up as a person, and I had no idea how bad she was suffering psychologically. I was too busy trying to run a 50 man company doing contracting work across the country, fix a house destroyed by flood and screwed by our contractor to the tune of $100k, 6 person family with active kids living in 3 extended stay hotel rooms and then a rental house for a year during repairs, dealing with a Mom passing of cancer, kids going off to college, one on Mission work in Africa, etc to truly understand where she was at. We had a lot of life stressors at the same time, and she probably needed me to become celibate for a year or two and let her just deal with processing life. Unfortunately I'm not that guy, and she didn't use sex for medicating, or that might have been a magnificent year! Also Unfortunately, even though she was communicating to me what she needed from me at the time, I was probably dismissive or didn't hear it well because it wasn't what I knew I needed. Well dammit, it wasn't about me, it was about my wife who was responsible for 4 additional young ladies, setting standards, having peace of mind, etc. I also took her seriously when she was more animated....like raising a voice, crying, y'know, girl stuff. She's not like that, so she suffered quietly until she broke inside, and I was a clueless duphas.(sp?) I think she had become done and just needed a final reason to pull the plug. She moved to CA for a year with my kids and stayed with my family. I wasn't invited. Not cool. She also decided to unload all the baggage on my older kids, my family, her family, and apparently anyone who would listen. Also not cool. No counselor I've talked to agrees with her telling our kids, but they were Daddy's girls, and my ex was afraid they'd side with me I think. She had to prevent that in her mind. Insecurity and Fear can be incredibly damaging even when well intended. It's always been her biggest challenge in life from what I saw, and it used to be I was the one who protected her and consoled her from those fears. That doesn't work when you become part of the fear.

It rips your insides out to find out you've contributed to emotionally devastating your spouse. I actually don't think she's ok. She extremely paranoid, and the latest version of divorce drama involved me being accused of hacking into her computer and stealing files related to taxes for her. Somehow she convinced her family of it too, and that was sad. LOL, I paid a tax attorney for our business stuff when shutting down years ago, and she was covered by the power of attorney if she just filled out a form. She decided not to, so the IRS calls her directly, vs I never hear from them. Why would I care about her files, much less I don't have the ability to hack. If it was a desire I'm sure I could learn eventually, but it's of no interest to me. She deals with irrational fear against an unknown enemy and her past, and a fear of what could be, and I've seen it be debilitating. I also gave her sole custody because I felt guilty, supported her heavily financially, gave her the house with a LOT of equity, bought her a car, and more. What I have received in return is limited/almost no access to my kids, ridiculous accusations or silliness she can create in her mind, and it about sent me to the funny farm in the last six months. I wish I was joking.

Sometimes I feel like fighting back, but I think it would be even more damaging for the kids right now. My ex is not ok in the head IMO, and being a single Mom is a tough gig. She home schooled our kids, so she spent time investing in them vs a career, so she doesn't have the earning capacity outside the home that she might if she instead invested time in a career. I need her to be at her best for my girls, and although I know it's best for me to be in their life, I've allowed this for a season to allow for her healing I could not previously provide to her. I am working on getting back to court to adjust support to be in line with current economic conditions since I've had to cut back on work/stress/etc while healing myself, so unfortunately her own fears/actions will end up costing her financially. Everyone has consequences for their actions. I'm no longer able/willing to continue to cover all her bad decisions any longer either. Did I mention she put her attorney fees on my credit card and made me pay for it? Turd.

There are days I haven't wanted to be here any more on this earth honestly. I love being a Dad, and I tried to be a really good one. I miss my girls the most out of everything involved in having a family, and not seeing them and being with them has been the most damaging to me personally. I actually don't miss my ex any longer after having gone through this mess with her. I have a daughter that has a pretty extreme illness that lives on a feeding tube at the age of 21, and I have been able to visit her regularly. The oldest is upset and a lot like her Mom, upset about the divorce, not convinced I've taken all the steps I need to take, etc. ( I confessed to having a physical dating relationship(s) **gasp**, so I'm the wayward Christian now, and unfit for human consumption.) I haven't seen the younger ones in about 9 months besides Facebook creeping, sending messages through their sister, sending gifts, getting reactions, etc. Now that the youngest is 13, I may choose to change that since I don't feel like I'm dealing with a rational person any longer, and my tolerance is just about gone for what has affected my health so dramatically. And since we don't communicate at all currently, how exactly is she supposed to come to a conclusion on her own that I've now done what is necessary to deal with her level of irrational fear to be "better". It's such an absurd situation that there is no solution to besides conflict, and I absolutely hate that. Worst case is that my kids are only home for a few more years, and the proof in how I choose to live the rest of my life and how miserable their Mom ends up being will be the real indicator down the road. It might suck now, but it's far better than thinking of being in that situation any longer. Sometimes you need to move on. There is forgiveness, but sometimes the last person to forgive you can be yourself.

Summary:

• Stay away from porn. Lots of research on the way showing how damaging it is to relationships, the human brain, and people's ability to interact in relationships and marriage. I practically have a phd in porn addiction material now, but I'm also kind of sick of the topic.
• Divorce is devastating financially, emotionally, psychologically, and will lead you to making poop gifs. Do anything you can to avoid it. The role a man plays in his family is so vital for so many reasons. To not have been able to hold my family together will be a regret I'll always have. Make no mistake I know I can be happy again, and probably happier since what I'm looking for as an adult is so much different than as a kid, but life will never be the same without my adorable and adoring girls around me whose image of me is shattered. Holidays are the worst.
• If you are a guy, there's a good chance you aren't as good at communication as you think you are. I recommend getting occasional marriage counseling proactively so you have an "interpreter" present. Maybe it's just a friend to play that role. Sometimes hearing someone else say it besides your partner helps that little light come on.
• This place has been a great community to participate in during a very tough time in life. I appreciate all of you immensely,and it's been an absolute kick to make/share the gifs. I appreciate your understanding when I get carried away from time to time with them.
• The stress from this last year literally has affected me like I could never explain. I misspell constantly. When I proofread I find fragments, wrong words, WTF's, and more. It's pretty scary what prolonged heavy stress can do to the human mind, and to experience first hand. Please forgive stuff that I write that makes no sense and just try to interpret the meaning. My egg is cracked right now, but healing. Part of my therapy is gifs lol.
• I've been judgmental in the past of people dealing with depression. I would have fallen into the category of those who would be likely to say, " Suck it up". Not very encouraging. I hit such lows in the last year, I didn't even care that I didn't care any more. I literally could have become homeless and wouldn't have cared because the emotional capacity was gone. The physical capacity followed. Dark places, dark thoughts, isolation, and brokenness can turn what you thought was a fairy-tale existence into pure hell in a relatively short period of time people don't know how to recover from. If you know anyone going through depression, please be slow to judge, and possibly force your way into their world whether they want you there or not. People dealing with depression often don't want people around them because they know they are a downer and don't want to talk, but we are social creatures designed for community. Sometimes people need a nudge in the right direction if they want it or not. I know I've had to tell people I'm coming to get them, don't tell me no, I'm on my way - before, and they were thankful for it. I've been a recipient of that treatment a few times, and it might have saved my life.
• Can you imagine what I've been going through on top of having to watch bYRON on the sidelines? It just hasn't been right.
• I am so ready for 2016-17 season, and to help this site become the fastest growing Lakers Community around. This is a great place for a fan to call home.

TLDR lol