My typical day begins with an alarm at 5:30am. I stopped using an actual alarm clock years ago and instead settle for the mostly reliable alarms on my cell phone. At 5:30am I walk/stumble out to the living room, turn off my first alarm and then typically fall back asleep on the couch. Heather often has trouble falling asleep so she watches TV at night until she falls asleep and then at some point she comes to bed. So when I get up in the morning the pillow and blanket are all ready for me to just crawl onto the couch and catch another 30 minutes of Zs until my second alarm goes off.
After the second alarm goes off I attempt to wake myself up by turning on the TV. Through the magical gift of TiVo, SportsCenter is recorded every morning at 5am, so it's ready for my viewing pleasure at six. This time of the year SportsCenter is mostly full of baseball highlights which nearly put me back to sleep but the occasional piece on college football, tennis, or almost anything other than baseball is enough to keep my attention. I should clarify that I don't hate baseball, it's just one of those sports for me where I need to be there in order to actually enjoy it. I do stop fast-forwarding whenever a recap of a Diamondbacks or Reds game is shown though.
After some breakfast and a quick shower I get all ready for work and then make my way onto the Arizona Loop 101, AKA "the rolling parking lot." The 101 is horrible with traffic. Honestly all the major highways and interstates running through and around Phoenix are horrible but for some reason the Loop 101 gets pegged with being the worst and most dangerous stretch of freeway in the valley. But in the summer the snowbirds have all gone back to their homes and the construction crews are already hard at work before the sun comes up, making my drive just a little less hectic. If I drive fast and manage to avoid the slow spots I can typically get to work (just over 25 miles from home) in around 30 minutes.
I arrive at work, the corporate headquarters for Allied Waste. I've been doing contract work at Allied Waste since December 2006 but just recently started getting actual work to do. It's amazing how much faster time flies when you have work to do. Today I'm adding some new functionality to a pricing application that I've been working on. Not to get too technical but this new piece of the app is going to generate a report, display it in a PDF format and also email the report in an Excel Spreadsheet to the user. Today I spent my time writing code to dynamically create an excel file and write data into the file. I know, it's pretty geeky and hopefully explains why I didn't take more pictures during my work day. 
The best part about working at Allied Waste is lunch. EVERYDAY we are treated to catered meals from a local catering company. With every entree there is always a salad bar, Texas Chili, Soup of the Day, fruit, chips, sandwiches and desserts (cookies, brownies and rice krispie treats). It's all free and available to not just the Allied Waste employees but also contractors like myself. Of all the clients I have worked for, this is by far the greatest perk ever offered.
After lunch it's a few more hours of coding and other boring geeky things. Finally, around 4:30pm I escape! It's 110 degrees or so outside so I head straight to my truck to crank up the A/C and head home. Now comes one of my most favorite parts of the day. As often as I can I call and talk to my parents while driving home. Now I know what most of you are thinking, "Are you crazy? Talking on your cell phone while driving down a dangerous freeway?" Well, maybe so but I do what I can to be safe and I always use a hands free headset while driving. There's just something about talking on the phone that helps me control my road rage. So what if some guy just cut me off or if some moron on a motorcycle (not wearing a helmet) is weaving between me and another car, I'm on the phone with my parents enjoying a little time with them. There isn't always a lot to talk about but hearing their voices and knowing they are doing okay just makes me feel good. The drive back to my side of town takes nearly 45 minutes in the afternoon but eventually I make it.
The next stop, at least once or twice a week, is the gym. On Tuesdays my friend, Kyle, and I do a lifting circuit that primarily focuses on the lower back, shoulders and chest. We both have had a lot going on at work (we are both consultants) so it's been difficult to meet up, but today it worked out. After about one and a half hours the workout is over and I finally get to go home!
I walk in the door to our apartment and am instantly greeted by the wonderful aroma of a home-cooked meal. Shortly thereafter Sera comes sprinting over to greet me with doggy kisses. Heather is fixing up a really nice dinner, trying out a new recipe from her Kraft Food & Family magazine. Dinner is delicious as always and Heather and I talk a little about our days while watching some TV. While Sera normally spends the evening running around and barking at us to play with her we eventually manage to wear her out and she'll sit and relax with us.
So that's pretty much it, a day in my life. It's nothing too spectacular but I get a lot of enjoyment out of my daily routine. Speaking of which, I'm about two hours late getting to bed. Guess this will probably throw off my schedule for tomorrow. Oh the excitement! :)
