So, I’ve already recieved a couple emails/Facebook messages of, “We see what others like, but what were your favorite photos of 2005?”

Awww. I feel special.

It’s hard to rank them… but:

1 – ‘timber‘ – I don’t know what the big deal was about this picture, but I almost ran myself into a ravine in order to snap this shot at Mount St. Helens.

2 – ‘tribute‘ – This “statue” made of over 240 guitars sits in the “Experience Music Project” in Seattle. By far my most “print an 8×10 free copy for me” photo. Which I sometimes do.

3 – ‘suspense-sion‘ - The cost of admission just to take this shot and walk across this suspension bridge was well worth the costs. Yes, it’s as scary as it looks to walk across this thing. There are actually 2 “lifeguards” who sit at each end in big chairs to make sure you don’t “rock too much.”

4 – ‘face it‘ – This one has actually won me a couple of awards… but nothing major. The interesting thing is that if it hadn’t been so overcast and rainy that day in Chicago… this one wouldn’t have the effect it did.

5 – ‘blu sky‘ – While taking-in a Seattle Mariners/Boston Red Sox game in SafeCo Field in Seattle, Washington, the sunset was just right when a plane(you see it?) headed for Sea-Tac came into the shot for a nice semetric moment.

6 – ‘night star‘ – I was headed to a CD recording at Pinelake Baptist Church in Brandon Mississippi when I round the parking lot to find this scene. I think it speaks for itself.

7 – ‘waiting‘ – This was taken around 6:30 AM in Chicago. I was waiting on the “El Train” to O’Hare.

8 – ‘allegiance‘ - I was only planning on taking a picture of the giant flag… these two soldiers wandered into the picture just as I was taking the shot, making for quite a nice moment.

9 – ‘post alley‘ – My bedroom at the hostel actually overlooked this cobble-stone street underneath Pike Place Market in Seattle. To the left in the picture is the famous “gum wall” picture.

10 – ‘blue lake‘ - One of the most quiet moments I’ve ever experienced in life. Freaky quiet… but incredible as I stood at the base of Mount St Helens beside a lake that was actually created by the massive blast.

A Christmas Story – Where do I begin. I actually own a ‘Red Ryder B-B-Gun‘ as well as a ‘Leg Lamp.’ I don’t know what it is about this movie that captivates me every year. I can (but try not to) quote every line of this movie 10 minutes before it happens. I’m even on the fan email list of the individual who purchased the house used in the movie.

I love this movie… plain-and-simple. Random fact… I don’t own it, refuse to. It’s always a surprise to catch it running on TBS, TMC, or TNT.

It’s a Wonderful Life – What most people don’t know about this movie is that when it was first released on Christmas Day in 1946. It did such a horrible job at the box office that the studio who produced the film went bankrupt. Therefore, any television station who wanted to show the movie could do so without having to pay large royalties. That’s why it ended up showing up on television every five minutes until its popularity swelled, and NBC bought the rights.

“This is a very interesting situation!“

Miracle on 34th Street – “Which one?” you might say (if you know your Christmas movies). I like the Santa Claus of the 1947 movie better, but I like the ending of the 1994 movie better. However, they are both classics… you can’t go wrong on either one of them.

Home Alone – In my opinion, this is the Christmas movie that defines my generation. You remember those ads? “How many times have you seen Home Alone?” I still can’t get enough of this movie. The second one is great, but the first will always be a Christmas classic.

Elf – Take one part Christmas, and two parts Will Ferrell… and you’ve got yourself a new Christmas favorite. Too many one-liners to quote here. Just go see it, again and again.

“The yellow ones don’t stop.”

The 2005 Edition of Making Fun of Letters to Santa are here.

Sorry it took so long to get them released this year, things have been crazy ’round here. I just had a conversation with someone last night about how it never fails that Christmas always sneaks up on me.

Enjoy.

The beginning of the end of the year. The following are the “most popular” photos taken by yours truly over the last year. They were voted-on and viewed by more than 22,000 people from all around the world via Flickr.

The number one spot: Ironic 2, a picture I first took while (stupidly) driving around while Hurricane Katrina hit Central Mississippi.

Top Ten “Most Favorited”
1 – ‘ironic 2‘
2 – ‘monk‘
3 – ‘rows‘
4 – ‘mount porthole‘
5 – ‘sunset over bama‘
6 – ‘face it‘
7 – ‘post alley‘
8 – ‘fight‘
9 – ‘night in chicago‘
10 – ‘blue lake‘

Rudolph, the Red-Nosed Reindeer – A Claymation classic. Rudolph, Hermey, Yukon Cornelius and the whole gang get together to get Santa through the worst Christmas weather ever. I cry a tear of joy just thinking about this movie…

Anybody else not excited about responding to how you know someone on Facebook?

“I traveled with Landon.”
“I went to college with Landon.”
“I don’t even know Landon.”

If it’s not a friend request or a party invite… just don’t do it.

Sorry…

A season which held such promise was finally brought to a glorious end last night.

Thank God.

There are a handful of things in life which I take way too sriously… Southern Miss football is one of them. I’m a season ticket holder.

Random, I know.

If you ask me, the season ended when my former high school team-mate and stand-out wide reciever Antwon Courington was lost for the the year.

Southern Miss lost five games this season. In four of those games Southern Miss was up by double digits… only to end up losing.

Alright. I’m done. I’m ready for next year to see what the big fuss is all about.

I told you I’ve been busy… now’s my chance to prove some of it.

It’s still in its testing phase… so I’ve got a little more work to do.

Take a peek at the new format of JND, come back here and lemme know what you think.

I know many of you won’t like it, but remember, you said the same thing when I changed the format one year ago.

It’s late, I’m tired, I’m trying to get unsick… so I’ll telly you more about it later.

If you missed Saturday Night Live this week, you missed a good one.

Quite possibly one of the funniest segments I’ve ever seen on the show was the ‘Chronicles of Narnia Rap‘, which you have to watch here.

Thanks to my Civitan big brother Ernest Myers [facebook] for helping me track it down.

JND will be releasing its annual ‘Letters to Santa‘ tomorrow.

For those of you not aware of this tradition… it’s pretty funny, and pretty wrong.

- I print an original letter to Santa that I find on al.com.
- I pretend to be Santa Claus, responding to the letter as if I were Santa. But please understand: The child never actually recieves the letter I send.
- Oh, yeah. I might make fun of some people… but it’s all in good fun. Truth is, Christmas is my favorite time of year, and I am very jealous of these children who are building their Christmas memories right this very minute.

Here are some letters from years past: (Please note the vintage JND artwork and webpage design… ouch!)

- Letters to Santa, Part One
- Letters to Santa, Part Two
- Letters to Santa, Part Three
- Letters to Santa, Part Four
- Letters to Santa, Part Five

Turns out my trip to Europe during the winter months is a pretty darn good idea.

Having Europe all to yourself via Gadling

Let me preface this by stating that I am currently engaged in what I like to call a “nerd night.” An evening (usually on a weekend night or nights) where I forego any social activity [ie -Christmas party in Mississippi] in order to fulfill entrepreneural obligations.

In short: I’ve spent the entire day revamping JND.

So, it doesn’t take a genius to figure out that I was overjoyed when I stumbled across TBS to find that Home Alone was on.

At the end of the movie when the family returns on Christmas day to find Kevin safe-and-sound in front of his Christmas tree, they engage in a short, yet still confusing conversation for me.

Right after Kevin tells his family that he’s bought groceries, his dad says…

Dad: Well, what else did you do while we were gone?
Kevin: Oh, just… hung around.
[laughter]

I didn’t get this when I was 10… I don’t get it now.

What was so funny about that… wow, I’m must be really tired if I’m blogging about this.

And you thought I was just sitting around on my butt…

Among the many miscellaneous activities and responsibilites that have kept me busy over the last 2 1/2 months, plotting a possible trip to Europe has been one of them.

I’ll be backpacking through Western Europe starting January 17 through Febraury 28.

I ‘ve hinted to many of you that I might be headed somewhere. I’ve had my plane tickets reserved for quite some time, and I’ve been doing research and collecting data for the last month.

Some ‘Frequently Asked Questions‘ about my trip:

Q: Why?
A: Why not? I’m 25, single, and I can run my business from anywhere in the world with an Internet connection. Wouldn’t you?

Q: What countries are you going to?
A: Right now, I’m not quite sure. While I want to see as much as I possibly can, I don’t want to simply run around the whole time without being able to relax and enjoy the view. SO, I’ve got three different trip possibilities. One of which include 6 countries, another includes 9, another includes 12. So who knows?

Q: Do you have a job yet?
A: Yes… and no. I can’t really go into details, but I’m in the process of working on a business plan for a possible start-up company. But I’m not really concerned about a “stable” job at the moment. It might sound ignorant… but I have a peace about it. Seriously.

Q: Who will you be traveling with?
A: Nobody, just me. After my Seattle/Oregon/Vancouver trip earlier this year, I learned a lot of things. One of them is: It’s pretty dang fun to travel by yourself. YES, there are times when the sun is setting over the English Bay of Vancouver, or when I’m eating salmon in a rotating restaurant in the Space Needle, and I think, “This would be fun to share with someone.” And it would be fun to share with someone… like my family or a wife. But my family can’t make the trip, and, well… last time I checked I didn’t have a wife. SO, it’s just me… and I love it like that.

Q: Will you be meeting up with anybody while you are there?
A: Absolutely. Right now, I’m aware of friends in 3 countries I will be visiting. Not to mention that the MC London Semester group will be around as well. If you’re reading this and you’re “accross the pond,” drop me an email.

Q: Will you be naming your trip?
A: Yes. I will hold a press conference to release a name and logo early next month.

More to come…

Prancer – When this little girl finds Santa’s lost ‘Prancer’, she also finds herself. You think I’m being cheesey, but just wait ’til you see this Christmas tear-jerker. There’s a ‘Prancer 2‘, but I’ve never seen it… and don’t plan to, as this Christmas classic can’t be beat.

Santa Claus, The Movie – This oh-so-cheesey 80′s movie is one of my favorites from my childhood. However, it loses it’s entertainment value as I grow older and simply serves as a nostalgic piece of my Christmas viewing.

Two of MC’s finest are back in Jackson.

Scott Tuminello and his wife of 10 months 11 months (as of today), Casey (Youngblood) Tuminello are headed back to the Capitol City. Miss Olive Branch High School 1999 and her Hillcrest Christian basketball stand-out
missed their friends… awww.

I don’t know what their new jobs are… so I’m just going to make some up.

Scott will be Marketing Manager at “Pooper Super“, a company which turns dog feces into plaster, and then takes that plaster to hold together frames of houses being rebuilt for Hurricane Katrina victims.

Casey will be working “Twist It, Turn It“, a company which manufactures scrapbook pipe cleaners. Casey will be serving as VP for Business Development where she will help develop a new “Neat-o Neon” line of fluorescent pipe cleaners.

I had the privilege of singing a couple songs in this couples wedding (which, I might add was one of the most fun/geniune weddings I’ve ever been a part of). A wedding in which a former American Idol contestant accidentally picked up my keys, leaving me stranded, forcing me to borrow my cousins car to drive to Pinelake at 6:45 AM to make it to praise team practice. Oh, while en route to church… I got a speeding ticket.

So… Scott, thank your “didn’t make it to the final round” friend for me.