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Steve

I am here for Friends

About Me

I'm 36, happily married to the love of my life, Trina, and we have three beautiful, yet exhausting, daugthers.I'm an avid, forever fan of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. (January 26, 2003 was a good day indeed!) I am also a huge fan of the Portland Trailblazers.I'm a middle school teacher (no, I am not kidding--besides the money's great!). I also love to write and do so whenever possible.

My Interests

My family, writing, sports (mainly football and basketball), enjoying the simple life...

I'd like to meet:

Stephen King (one twisted imagination--I'm jealous--but one hell of a writer), Dean Koontz (ditto from King), Harlan Coben (ditto again), Derrick Brooks, Mike Alstott, Clyde Drexler, Steve Taylor (that would be an ode to sarcasm...gives me chills), Eric Bazilian and Rob Hyman (bring back The Hooters!), the 77s/Mike Roe, Ellen DeGeneres & John Stewart (funniest people on TV--that would be one hell of a night, wouldn't it?), Chris Berman, ...to be continued...

Music:

Ooh boy, let's see, the 77s, the Hooters, Phil Collins, nothing country, Coldplay, 80's music (yes, I know, I'm old, bite me), death to country music, Steve Taylor, the Choir, Newsboys, Switchfoot, Goo Goo Dolls, U2, Swirling Eddies, Mae, Audio Adrenaline, the Fray, Lifehouse, Nickleback, Collective Soul, never country, never, never, never

Movies:

This is tough, Shawshank Redemption (best last lines of a movie--and book, though slightly different--ever), Big Fish, So I Married an Axe Murderer, Pirates of the Caribbean, Lord of the Rings (especially the Fellowship...), Say Anything, Midnight in the Gardern of Good and Evil, most John Cusack movies, ditto for Nic Cage, Night at the Roxbury, The Whole Nine Yards, The Shipping News, Pitch Black, Stranger Than Fiction, Primary Colors, Die Hard, that's enough for now...

Television:

Seinfeld, Friends, Law and Order, ESPN, classic 80's & 90's such as Miami Vice (who needs socks and a razor when you're that freaking cool?), Night Court, Married With Children (stupid I know, but damn funny), Moonlighting, Wings, the Simpsons, Medium, Becker (my brother directed three episodes!), Monk

Books:

Most stories of Stephen King (especially The Stand, Four Past Midnight, Shawshank, Bag of Bones, Green Mile), Odd Thomas (Dean Koontz), If I Never Get Back (Darryl Brock), Gone for Good (Harlan Coben), Tell No One (Harlan Coben), early Grisham books (A Time to Kill, The Firm--that movie pissed me off), Watch For Me on the Mountain (Forrest Carter), This Present Darkness and Piercing the Darkness, The Oath (Frank Peretti)...

Heroes:

my parents, my grandpa (If I am half the man he was, I will be beyond blessed, as will those around me), my brother, any successful and happy writer (I am beyond envious), anyone who has the strength to do the right thing daily and still live a happy, spiritual life.

My Blog

No Such Thing by Steve Uppendahl

Teaching is like any job, I suppose. I don't know that for a fact, since teaching is the only thing I've ever really done. But, I'm going out on a limb here. I imagine that no matter what you may d...
Posted by Steve on Sun, 04 May 2008 09:24:00 PST

Game Over by Steve Uppendahl

I walk tentatively in the door ninety minutes late, expecting to be yelled at again. Instead, I'm greeted by an intense feeling that something is wrong; there's an uneasy silence in the apart...
Posted by Steve on Sun, 04 May 2008 09:18:00 PST

Understood by Steve Uppendahl

I look at the haggard face of my wife. She's as scared as I am. Travis has been gone for three days. No phone calls, no messages, he doesn't answer his cell. Nothing. "He'll come back, Stacy." Sha...
Posted by Steve on Sun, 19 Aug 2007 12:27:00 PST

It's Harder To Believe Than Not To By Steve Uppendahl

I sit in my squad car and stare out the window, oblivious to the droplets of water streaming down the pane. I glance at my watch, mass will be over in six minutes. A smile pulls at the corners of my...
Posted by Steve on Sun, 29 Jul 2007 12:01:00 PST

An Eye For An Eye? By Steve Uppendahl

We probably look like something out of a romance novel, man and woman walking down a white sand beach, foamy water lapping at our feet. Both of us carrying our shoes, my khakis rolled up, but drippin...
Posted by Steve on Thu, 26 Jul 2007 12:02:00 PST

The Reason For My Blog

I've never actually blogged before, but better late than never. At least, I hope so. I'll be posting some of my short stories on this blog from time to time. I'm a teacher, husband, and father with...
Posted by Steve on Thu, 26 Jul 2007 11:43:00 PST