the . crowd . and . me

ONE LESS STUDENT LOAN

2008-04-09T10:07:00.000-07:00

++ ONE LESS STUDENT loan! One to go! Almost there... ++

28 THINGS FOR 28 YEARS

2008-02-07T16:45:00.000-08:00

++ I'M OFFICIALLY IN the heart of my late 20's. A list of 28 things I never thought I'd be doing right now. One for every year I've been alive.

01. Living in Seattle.
02. Working full-time for four years at various architecture offices.
03. Have a place that I own.
04. Commute daily to work by walking.
05. Have a cadre of Persian friends.
06. Play flag football literally under the Space Needle.
07. Referee indoor soccer.
08. Use an umbrella instead of rain jacket.
09. Own a Blackberry.
10. Have a vast majority of my male old school friends be married.
11. Have none of my female old school friends be married.
12. Be tired of road trips and pick flying instead any day.
13. Be in not one, but two curling leagues.
14. Have a Washington driver's license.
15. Have Washington license plates.
16. Be registered to vote in the State of Washington.
17. Know someone who has bought and donated an art installation at the Seattle Art Museum.
18. Be the the 'old guy' on any soccer team, let alone two of them.
19. Be the only person in the office with ties to Ohio.
20. Have other native Asians work in the same office.
21. Be in a relationship with a girl from Washington.
22. Consider myself a left coaster.
23. Not be disappointed, not necessarily happy, but not disappointed when it rains.
24. Only monetarily able to visit my family a few times a year.
25. Think 85 degrees outside is hot.
26. Think 35 degrees outside is cold.
27. Find solace in a tall drip.
28. Know I'm headed down the 'right' path to wherever I'm headed. ++

WASHINGTON DRIVER'S LICENSE

2008-02-06T13:18:00.000-08:00

++ FINALLY GOT MY Washington driver's license today. Finally. Getting to the DMV wasn't a problem. However, waiting for an hour and eighteen minutes was a bit cumbersome. Well, that and the fourty-five dollars it cost me. I'm slowly switching out old Ohio stuff for new Washington stuff. Last year was the license plates. This year is the driver's license. Oh, also last year was the new condo, well, not new new, but new for me. Oh yeah and last year was switching my voter's registration from Greene County, Ohio to King County, Washington. Who knows, next year I may even finally switch my telephone number from a 937 number to a 206 number. No, that's crazy talk. ++

SEATTLE WAS OHIO FOR A WEEKEND

2007-12-04T16:19:00.000-08:00

++ THIS PAST WEEKEND Seattle had an identity crisis and temporarily thought it was Ohio. Friday brought cold, but not cold cold, just a little below average Seattle beginning of December cold. However after Friday was when she thought it was a Midwestern state. Saturday morning was cold, upper 30's. Then around noon it started snowing. And not just Seattle snowing, which is minimal, but huge huge flakes snowing. Sideways and heavy. This lasted all day and finally sticking, leaving behind maybe a quarter inch of slushy snow. The evening temperature warmed and the snow turned into a cold rain, eventually melting the rest of the snow. Sunday morning was a brief spell of snow, quickly dispelled into an outright rain, Ohio style, but not warm. Blah blah blah.

Monday was the second highest recorded rainfall in a day in the history of recorded rainfalls for Seattle. Oh, but it warmed to 59 degrees. Snow one day. Almost 60 degrees the next day. I heart Seattle weather!

"The rain was tapering off in Seattle this evening, according to the National Weather Service. And that meant the one-day rainfall record in Seattle, last set four years ago, would probably stand. The last record was 5.02 inches at Seattle-Tacoma International Airport, set Oct. 20, 2003. The weather service today said 3.46 inches of rain fell at Sea-Tac between midnight and 3 p.m. today. Even so, Seattle city officials noted that more than 5.8 billion gallons of water have fallen from the sky locally in the past 24 hours, enough to fill Green Lake six times." ++

MY STOLEN CAR UPDATE

2007-11-29T10:13:00.000-08:00

++ SHE'S BACK! AND I've decided to name her Old Steady, which I know isn't a very feminine name and isn't particularly flattering, but that's what she is. Always there (except when I'm taking her in for maintenance) (and except when she gets a little antsy and decides to take herself for a spin.) Welcome home Old Steady, welcome home. ++

MY STOLEN CAR

2007-11-20T08:58:00.000-08:00

++ MY DEAREST CAR. Please come home. Our relationship together is a long history, full of first experiences and ups and downs. First, let me apologize for never giving you a name. After 175,000 miles and 11 years, I feel terrible that I’ve only ever referred to you as ‘she’ or ‘her’. You must feel slighted. My sincerest apologies for more often than not neglecting you your oil change every 3500 miles or 3 months. Also, please accept my deepest apologies for never giving you a bath or a wash in well over two years. I’d throw out an excuse but there is none which is acceptable. With the lack of an oil change and lack of a bath, it’s no wonder you always felt dirty and never sexy. Words escape me. We’ve been through so much.

Remember when we first drove ‘across country’. And by ‘across country’ we really only went halfway, stopping in Denver. There and back. Twice. We were as carefree as birds. You, a young svelt car, not even 100,000 miles and me a young buck, eager to shed the young naïve view on life. The first experience of an extended road trip is something you and I can share only with each other. It was quite a time. We played in the mountains both in the summer, hiking every weekend, and in the winter, making our weekly weekend trips up to Vail and Beavercreek and Breckenridge to snowboard. We made many more trips ‘across country’, the others being actual trips across country, to San Francisco, Portland, and Seattle. You were a trooper, a real trooper. I pushed on your pedal for 40 hours straight for at least two trips, you humming the entire time, asking me to stop only to refuel. We made a few marathon trips: one from Seattle down to San Diego in 23 hours, through the southwest desert, up to Denver and fast tracked home. Another, a whirlwind from San Francisco up through Portland and an afternoon stop in Seattle, and then east through Yellowstone and the Badlands and Devils Tower, stopping to get gas in Gary, Indiana. And another from San Francisco, stopping in Yosemite for our first time ever, on to the Grand Canyon, down through Texas and pit stopping in New Orleans, before trekking back to Ohio. On every trip I packed my stuff in your backside until you almost couldn’t move and you never complained. You never asked for any rubbers, but I tried to provide you with new tires as your old ones wore down.

We went through tough times as well. I dropped railroad ties on your back left side and then never took you to the body doctor to get cosmetically repaired. I ran you into a guardrail once. (I’m sorry.) Numerous random strangers penetrated your back right side, groping you for anything they could, usually only taking your voicebox. You’ll remember I always replaced it with another radio, but after the 4^th or 5^th time, I knew you couldn’t take it much more, so I did us both a favor and gave you back your original factory radio. It wasn’t that you were old, you were just getting seasoned and looked better au natural. You didn’t need anything to help push-up your volume. Steady and even-tempered were always your best traits.

I hear it’s still possible that you’ll come back. It’s what ‘they’ tell me. They even say it’s possible within a week or two, but if it’s longer than three weeks and you still haven’t come home, they’ll take your name off the milk carton and put another tick on the old bed post. I promise, I’ll give you a name you deserve. I’ll take you in for routine check-ups. After we frolic anywhere, I’ll lather you silly and tickle your tires with brushes so full and soap so bubbly, that the cars next to you and me will blush and look away.

I miss you. Please come home.

(PS. I’m sorry I got pissed that one time and permanently blinded you. We’ll have to do something about your windshield.)

PSS. You know the SUV which sleeps next to your bed? We’ll he looks like he’s been crying.) (But that may also be the rain. I’m still up in the air about it.)

PPSS. (I think I’m going to chalk it up as crying.) ++

IT'S JEFF'S DAY

2007-11-16T09:01:00.000-08:00

++ HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO my younger brother Jeff! He's a squirrelly 25 now. Primed and ready for lower car insurance rates. Twenty-five and still alive! Twenty-five without a wife! Twenty-five and ready to jive! Twenty-five and ready for life! Twenty-five and going to a dive! Twenty-five and going to to give...wait...oh, you tricked me English with your funny pronunciation rules, you tricked me. ++

NOVEMBER FAMILY AND COHORTS

2007-10-31T09:49:00.000-07:00

++ IT'S GOING TO be a busy month at Hotel Blackburn.
Mom and Dad are coming to visit November 1-11.
Jeff is coming the week after from November 15-28.
Steve and Beth are coming to visit Seattle November 30-December 3.

Somehow I still have all of the weekly and daily events to do and luckily everyone are big boys and big girls and don't need to be constantly entertained. Not that I wouldn't enjoy constantly entertaining family and friends, but I know I can't even stand myself 24 hours a day which is why I go to sleep for 8 hours a day, so I can get away and have a little break from myself. Ha. It should be an active month. I've twenty hours left to clean in preparation...++

NOTES FROM THE CENTERLINE

2007-10-30T14:34:00.001-07:00

++ NOBODY LIKES A REFEREE. There is one call that a referee can make in any sport to make everyone happy. No matter what is called, someone is going to complain and whoever gets the foul called on them is going to second guess you, pretty much without fail. It takes a much more patience and focus than most jobs, because everyone is watching and everyone is going to catch all of the referee's mistakes. The second the referee loses focus and zones out is the (only) time when something is going to happen and they're going to miss it. Once a call is missed, it's all downhill from there. There is a fine line between calling fouls and stopping the game every five seconds and letting the game play. Too many whistles and the game lacks continuity, too few whistles and the game gets rough and people start to get injured. Being fair and calling a fair game shouldn't be an issue. Overaggressive teams make for hard games to referee, because they'll always get the fouls called on them and never think it's a foul. So when every whistle goes against them, they start to complain that it's not fair. It's probably one of the most thankless jobs I've ever worked. ++

KEYWORD ANALYSIS

2007-10-25T09:09:00.002-07:00

++ HERE ARE THE various words and phrases people have used in different search engines which led them to somehow find a link to this website.

Number	Percentage	Search Term
4	6.35%	jessicalee67
4	6.35%	coors light, i love football on tv
4	6.35%	designsnob.com
3	4.76%	kiera kippins
3	4.76%	jay c blackburn
3	4.76%	grete bigert
2	3.17%	heide archietcture
2	3.17%	chronic lymphocytic leukemia
2	3.17%	designsnob
1	1.59%	adam purath
1	1.59%	why does skyline chili smell funny?
1	1.59%	geo chaching
1	1.59%	jay mitchell-lighthouse
1	1.59%	i love burritos at 4am
1	1.59%	the veils the leavers dance
1	1.59%	beauty in its various forms appeals to you - meaning
1	1.59%	bigert, grete
1	1.59%	alyson ianitti
1	1.59%	soccer phenom
1	1.59%	hoa items stored on balconies
1	1.59%	bouldering in greenwich, ct
1	1.59%	traveling by plane(pros cons)
1	1.59%	passionate people
1	1.59%	disposable heroes of hiphocrisy song
1	1.59%	windmill tokyo moon
1	1.59%	bubble tea in greenwich, ct
1	1.59%	apx house cincinnati
1	1.59%	rappel without a harness
1	1.59%	recent proverbs
1	1.59%	cincinnati homecoming bearcat run 2006 results 5k
1	1.59%	toilet seat up weird laws
1	1.59%	jaycblackburn
1	1.59%	blast o' butter light points
1	1.59%	jon kippins
1	1.59%	letter from the dog
1	1.59%	kayak side floating barge
1	1.59%	i love burritos at four am parties that never end dogs that love c
1	1.59%	3000 word paperhow longto write
1	1.59%	maps to the sky we can create
1	1.59%	i love pizza at 4am dogs that love cats, and twins
1	1.59%	jay blackburn seattle
1	1.59%	heathrow loudspeaker joke
1	1.59%	budget trucks, duct tape, hernia
1	1.59%	copper wire theft puts you in jail
1	1.59%	jason emily aj

TWO JOB PERSON

2007-10-24T08:38:00.000-07:00

++ I OFFICIALLY HAVE two jobs now. Well, the second job isn't so much a job as it is fun and really, it doesn't pay anything, minimum wage maybe? Can't be much more than that I don't think. I'm reffing Indoor Soccer down at Arena Sports for three to four hours a night, one night a week. I should make about enough money to pay for playing there, which is actually just dandy. I had to fill out a W-9 and take a test and everything and they told me when I file my taxes I have to take out my own taxes on the money I make there as I'm officially an independent contractor for them.

My first night of reffing was this past Tuesday. I've reffed before, but that was 15 years ago and it was outdoor and I was a linesman and I was reffing 7 and 8 year olds. A totally different beast. The first game I just shadowed and sat behind the scoreboard and basically learned to use the scoreboard. The second and third games I worked half of the field with another ref and the fourth game I worked the whole game on my own. No one got hurt. No one got in a fight. I consider it a good first game reffing indoor.

Wow, what a lame post. ++

CURLING SEASON

2007-10-19T14:54:00.000-07:00

++ THAT'S RIGHT, CURLING season is back in session, with the addition of a second league (Men's Thursday Night Skip's Choice League) to the ever popular Friday Night Social League. Men's Thursday Night Skip's Choice is quite a bit more competitive than the FNL and full of dudes. (What did you expect, it's a Men's League.) Thursday's team is a reprise of last year's team, The Prodigal Son, Jeff, Mark, and myself. Friday has been altered slightly to accomodate the UC'ers. Mark, myself, The Rog, and Megan for the first half of the season with Zac substituting for the second half of the season. The old usuals are back for Friday night including Cisqo, Wick, Number One, Number Two, the arguing kids, the kilt guy, Caveman, Betty, and Jakie, however an absence can be felt with Sev, Shane, and Wandasiewicz. Good curling! ++

LINKED IN A FRIEND'S BLOG

2007-10-12T16:36:00.000-07:00

++ LOOK AT ME! Look at me! I've been linked in Jeanne's blog. I've also added her to my sidebar under links. Jeanne's blog, Life in Cleveland. Jeanne and I lived on the same floor Freshman year of college and graduated together twice. She is now married to Matt Stevenson, who also lived on the same floor Freshman year of college and graduated with us, twice. They now live in Cleveland. ++

USE OF BALCONY FOR STORAGE

2007-10-09T16:11:00.000-07:00

++ Re: Written warning—Use of Balcony for Storage

October, 2007
Dear Resident,

It has been observed that various items are being stored on your balcony. I regret to inform you that this is considered a violation of the rules and Regulations.

Section 5 Common Areas

I.(1) The balconies are decks of units are limited common areas that affect the outside appearance of the building, and thus the value of the building and it’s units.

(6) Balconies and decks shall not be used for storage of things not reasonably intended or expected for balcony use. Upon written notice, any items deemed by the Board in violation of this rules shall be removed within seven days.

You have until October 15^th to remove these items from your deck. Any further evidence of items left on your deck after this date will result in a $100 fine. If you need more information regarding this issue please contact me. If you feel this information is not accurate, please address your concerns in writing and either give them to myself or our property manager and they will be passed on to the Board.

Thank you in advance for your cooperation.

On behalf of the Board of Directors,
Resident Manager

.
.
.
Fantastic. So, the item which probably set it off was the big light grey, non-offending coffin-box storage box for the rooftop of my car which when stood straight up on end, is ten feet tall and gray. To be fair, there were a few bags, but not a huge pile. Regardless, the rooftop storage box was tucked back in a corner of the deck where only the two people who park at the very end of the dead end lot can see it. Well, those two people and the people who live in the condominium across the way. No one can see it from the street. One of those two people who park at the very end of that dead end lot is on the Board of Directors. Fine. I'll move it. So, I moved it into my unit, directly in front of the glass wall, about two feet away from where it stood and still in full plain view of the two people who park at the very end of that dead end lot. I hope their happy.

It's a tennis match now. Your serve Board of Director(s). ++

WHICH WAY?

2007-10-04T11:14:00.000-07:00

++ WHICH WAY should he go? To the right is a path. To the left is another path. Maybe he'll just sit there for a little bit and see which one shakes itself out to be the 'right' path. Patience my friend. Rome wasn't built in a day. But then again the empire was pretty much dismantled quite quickly. Be sure you're there waiting for a reason. Try not to linger there for too long. The day is coming to an end and the light is fading. Tomorrow is another day but it may bring about a different light. Save tonight, but look to the future. ++

CONDO PROJECT #1

2007-10-02T14:26:00.001-07:00

++ I MADE MY first condo improvement purchase. I bought paint stripper to take off the brown paint off of the mahogony treads. Turns out there is a layer of brown and a layer of bright baby blue which I can only assume is a layer of primer. The paint stripper is pretty toxic, so the work is being done outside on the deck. Not a hard process. Pour it on. Spread it out. Wait 30 seconds. Scrape. Repeat. However it doesn't take it off completely and it's hard to do toward the edges and on the bullnosed front edge and on any small edge. I haven't got to the end grain yet, but I have a feeling it's going to be even harder. It seems it would almost be easier to just fashion up some new treads out of some new wood.++

ONE STEP FORWARD...

2007-10-01T09:55:00.001-07:00

++ ONE STEP BACK. Little shaky, but I suppose it's even keel. Try not to lean too far one way or another. That water can be icy cold or it could be quite warm. Maybe you'll never know unless you jump in. Or maybe it's best to stay dry.++

ADAM AND GRETE'S WEDDING DAY

2007-09-24T10:57:00.000-07:00

++ TO THE AIRPORT. Yeah, I’m 3 hours early.
Side trip with Jeff to Wendy’s for a last supper.
The obligatory Peach Rings. I don’t even really want them.
3 hours of catch up sleep.
Rain? In Orange County? Really Orange County? Really?
Hertz Mazda 3.
Gulfstream as Ryan, Megan, Doug, Laurie, and Adam are leaving.
Ok then, 7 steps back to the car and follow Adam to the hotel.
Rain. Not just rain, but downpour rain. As in they gave us another room so we wouldn’t have to go out in the rain, rain.
Hotel bar. Key Lime Martinis and Gin and Tonics.
Ordered room service for the first time ever. Tasty 2:00am room service pizza.
Moving two cars from the Valet Parking Lot to the Self-Park Parking Lot.
How the .. do you start Adam’s fancy fancy car. Oh, you have to press down on the brake? Ok, I’m clearly not fancy enough to drive this thing.
Stop by the front desk on the way back in. Pay for half of the room. Shh. Finger to the lips.
In bed. Wake up at 4:30. Turn off the television.
It’s really 10am already? “You can change the station. I couldn’t find a football game I cared about.”
Still looks cloudy outside.
Check out. “Wow, that’s a lot cheaper than I thought it’d be. About half. Weird.” “Yeah Adam. Weird.” (Shh. Hehe.)
Back to his place to pick up the suit he forgot. (Texting Grete to make sure she’s out of the apartment.)
French Dip with au jus which needs more salt at Oceans 33.
Pick up Ryan and Megan at their hotel.
It’s the Purath family. They all still look the same. .. with the addition of Andy and Kelly’s two kids.
To the Surf and Sand Resort.
Ooo. Valet parking. Down the line, Lamborghini, Lotus, H2, Lexus, the ‘cheap car’ BMW, …and my Mazda 3. How out of place am I?
9^th floor Top of the Surf with an amazing ocean view. My it’s loud. Are those earplugs on the night stand?
Back to the car to move the beer from the trunk to the room for the ‘Bigert/Purath After Party.’
Jason shows up in the two seater Inifiniti. Move the $5000 speakers to the reception room. One of them is DOA. Ha.
3:30 and Adam is still in shorts and a T-shirt trying to get the speaker to work. Wedding starts at 4:00…
To the room. 3:40. Adam starts to get dressed.
3:50 we’re supposed to be downstairs. Adam is almost done getting dressed. They can’t start without him, right?
“Is it hot in here or is it just me? I feel like I could puke from my toes down.” Silence. Laughter. “It’s Go-time Adam.”
To the beach. An aisle made from flower petals. 20 feet from the ocean. Ryan’s acoustical guitar Canon in D.
Sunny. The sound of the ocean.
30 bare feet friends and family gather around closer. ‘Somewhere over the Rainbow’ drowned out by the crashing waves.
Adam handsome in his linen suit. Grete beautiful in her wedding dress. The minister in her white robe. The ocean in the background.
Everyone takes four steps closer to the hotel as high tide makes it’s debut.
“I do.”
“I do.”
“You may now kiss the bride.”
Photos. With the Bride and Groom. With the Bride and Groom and the baby. With the family. With the other family. With both families. With friends. With Everyone.
Back upstairs to change from sandals to actual shoes.
To the reception. Appetizers and more gin and tonics. Less Key Lime Martinis. Phase 1 music
The dinner table. A UCLA Professor. A computer programmer for a condom manufacturer/distributor to the UN. A theatrical makeup artist. A carpenter for the (Lincoln’s) Ford Theater. An airline pilot. An industrial engineer for Elmer’s Glue. The token architect. A regional manager for a Top 100 company. A fireman. How cool is that table? (Phase 2 music.)
Dinner talk over anti-pasta, seafood ravioli, and beef tenderloin. Did you know there are 95 different sizes of condoms? I didn’t either. Nor do I care.
Shots of Patrón. More gin and tonics.
Enter phase 3 music. Wait, it sounds just like phase 1 and 2.
Cigars and Patrón margaritinas. Yeah, that’s spelled right. It’s a shaken margarita by John the bartender.
10:30 PM. ~~Bigert~~ Purath/Purath After Party in room 298. Rose petals on the floor and bed with sultry music. Good thing all their friends are here.
Ryan and Drew are talking about babies and marriage. I think I’m in the wrong conversation. Wait, they are the only people here I know. Guess I’ll stay and contribute nothing to the conversation. Water. Water. Water. Water.
1:00 AM. Yeah, it’s time to leave. Wait for the valet guy. Wait some more. 15 minute drive to my hotel.
2:00 AM check in. 2:03 AM bedtime.
Lunch and margaritas at Las Brisas in Laguna Beach with Ryan, Megan, Jason, Adam, and Grete..
Need to feed the meter more money. Congratulations. See you hopefully sooner than later.
Walk the shops at Laguna Beach for 5 hours. Looking for a present. Feed the meter again. Postcards.
Oh, I forgot to give Adam and Grete their wedding card. Guess I’ll have to mail it when I get back home.
To the airport. I vaguely know my way around Orange County now. Map? I don’t need no stinkin’ map. Wait, yes I do.
Check-in. “Is this flight full?” “Yes.” “Ok, thanks.” McDonalds and sitting and waiting. Reading the news on my phone.
“Alaska flight 497 to Seattle leaving at 8:20 has been changed from gate 10 to gate 8.” Shuffle shuffle shuffle.
8:17 PM. Board plane. Window seat 27a. 8:20 PM. Zzzz. Zzzzzz.
Seattle! “Jeff, we landed.” “Ok, I’ll head out now and meet you outside in a bit.” “Thank you.”
Home sweet home. Yes, it feels like home now.
Unexpected house-warming present from Jeff and Betsy on the couch. It’s perfect.
What a beautiful wedding. What a perfect weekend.
Thank you for letting me be a part of your special day.
Congratulations Adam and Grete! ++

LEAVING ON A JET PLANE

2007-09-21T17:01:00.000-07:00

++ OFF TO GRETE'S and Adam's (and Rainn's) wedding in the OC for the weekend! Sunny sunny CA.
Wait, the weather this weekend is to be just as cold there as it is in Seattle. ++

BEARCATS

2007-09-20T10:21:00.000-07:00

++ YES, BEARCATS ARE more than just the University of Cincinnati's Mascot, they're also real animals. Yes, I'm talking to you. ++

MUSIC ON MY MIND

2007-09-14T10:53:00.000-07:00

++ A LIST OF recent songs which makes me click the mouse button just a little faster:
Artist - Song - Album

Bews - Uniroyal - Cassidy
Blue Scholars - Bayani - Bayani
Blue Scholars - 50K Deep - Bayani
Cloudcult - Chain Reaction - The Meaning of 8
Cloudcult - Take Your Medicine - The Meaning of 8
Deerhunter - Fluorescent Grey
Feist - My Moon My Man - The Remainder
Gotye - A Distinctive Sound
Gus Gus - Polyesterday - Polydistortion
Iron and Wine - Boy with a Coin - Boy with a Coin
Jamie T - So Lonely was the Ballad - Panic Prevention
Jamie T - Sheila - Panic Prevention
Jason Isbel - In Arazor Town - Sirens of the Ditch
Kings of Leon - Knocked Up - Because of the Times
Maps - To the Sky - We can Create
Modest Mouse - Missed the Boat - We were Dead before the Ship even Sank
Pantha Du Prince - Moonstruck - The Bliss
Peter Bjorn and John - The Chills - Writer’s Block
Plan B - Latchkey Kig - (V/A) Butter
Shout Out Louds - Tonight I have to leave it - Our Ill Wills
Shout Out Louds - Very Loud - Howl Howl Gaff Gaff
Tegan & Sara - The Con - The Con
The Album Leaf - Always for You - Into the Blue Again
The Cinematic Orchestra - To Build a Home - Ma Fleur
The Disposable Heroes of Hiphocrisy - Television The Drug of the Nation - Hypocrisy is the Greatest Luxery
The National - Fake Empire - Boxer
The National - Green Gloves - Boxer
The National - Start a War - Boxer
The Sun - We Tried - Blame it on the Youth
The Veils - The Leavers Dance - The Runaway Found
Tranquility Bass - They Come in Peace - (V/A) This Aint Trip Hop?
Tricky - Black Steel - Maxinquaye
Walker Kong - We are the Falling Stars - Deliver us from People
Wax Tailor - The Tune - Hope & Sorrow
Wild Sweet Orange - Ten Dead Dogs - We Have Come to be Uneasy
Windmill - Tokyo Moon - Puddle City Racing Lights

I'M ANGRY TODAY

2007-09-04T12:38:00.001-07:00

++ AND I DON'T know why. (Well, actually I probably do.)++

LAST CALL AT ALLEY 24

2007-08-31T09:51:00.000-07:00

++ I MOVED THE last of my stuff out of the old apartment last night. With Zac and his friend Tommy there, it went quite smoothly and quickly.
Sweep the upstairs carpet.
Clean the upstairs bathroom.
Clean the oven.
Dust everything.
Sweep the downstairs floor.
Pile load number one into the car. Drive to the new place. Unpile load number one into the new place. Rinse and repeat three more times. And then on load number four, with one more load to go, at 2AM, parked in the 30 minute loading tow zone, I opened the trunk, turned the key, pulled the key and it broke...in half.
Spare key you say? Yup, I wish I had one.
Call AAA.
A visit from the locksmith.
3AM.
Yay! (Maybe not as enthusiastic as I might read that, because it’s 3AM.)
Go get load number five.
Drop off load number five and Zac and Tommy.
Go to friends’ house to help them clean and paint.
4AM
Prime the red wall, white.
5AM
Wipe down the walls.
6AM
Paint the wall white.
Dawn is breaking. (What a funny saying. I’m thinking birds chirping, yellow dishsoap, eggs being cracked open on a skillet, the smell of bacon. Pigs. A farm. Corn. An annual festival in my childhood hometown at the park just around the corner. Bikes. An old childhood friend. Fire in origami balls. Ping Pong. An endless tournament of three people. Brian Saunders. Two hand touch football. A stolen bike retrieved…)
(Where am I again?)
Goodnight all, er, Good Morning all.
Back to my new place.
Don’t wake the boys.
Upstairs to bed. Jeans still on.
“Hey, you going to work?”
“Yeah. What time is it?”
“7:50.”
“Yeah.”
“OK”
“Yeah.”
++

HALF-SIZED WATER HEATER

2007-08-28T15:24:00.000-07:00

++ I CANNOT FILL the bath tub up full with hot water. It turns luke cold about one third of the way and ice cold by two thirds of the way. ++

SKYLINE CHILI

2007-08-27T12:15:00.000-07:00

++ I MUST MAKE a better effort at remembering to not wear anything white on the days I bring Skyline Chili for lunch. Grr. ++

HOME OWNERS ASSOCIATION MEETING

2007-08-14T06:19:00.000-07:00

++ I WENT TO my first Home Owners Association meeting. It's quite weird. Introductions go something like this: "Hi, I'm Laurie, #309." "Hi, Mike, #109, one floor below and to the right." "Hi there, #209, Lisa." "Hi, I'm Jay, #213, just moved in a week and a half ago."

Six random observations from the two hour eighteen minute meeting of a one side single sheet agenda.

We have all been reduced to a first name and a three digit number.
Everyone has issues about noise.
My building is full of architects. Of the nine people that were at the meeting, three on the Board of Directors, there were four architects there. One worked for Mithun, one worked for NBBJ, one for some other office, and me.
Everyone has issues about other units smoking wafting into their open windows.
No one in the building has a backyard, but they somehow still have a NIMBY syndrome.
Every building has at least one of each stereotypical tenant. It's fantastic. ++

FRANCIS AND WENDY

2007-08-13T10:42:00.002-07:00

++ HAVE BEEN IN town since last Wednesday and sleeping downstairs on an air mattress. It's been actually quite nice to have visitors in town that don't need to be babysat. I gave them a key and told them to make themselves at home. I need to go to work, but we'll meet up afterwards for a bite to eat and a drink and maybe a little bit of video games. It's too bad they're leaving tomorrow morning. ++

PSST. PART FOUR

2007-08-01T09:15:00.000-07:00

++ I SLEPT AT the new place for the first time last night. I must have been either fantastically tired or fantastically comfortable there.

Tired theories:

I played a soccer game last night.
It was 12:42 AM by the time I turned off all of the lights and hopped in bed.
I just finished playing 5 games of soccer in four days.
The whole process has been fun, seemless, but tiring.

Comfortable theories:

First time in two years since I've slept with open windows. Fresh air is great.
No one was downstairs sleeping on the couch.
It was a bit cool because of the open windows which always makes me sleep well.
It's my place! I'm still giddy! ++

PSST. PART THREE

2007-07-31T12:13:00.000-07:00

++ I PICKED UP the keys today! It's a little dirty from the furniture staging people moving their stuff out of the condo and not cleaning up after themselves. Nothing a once over with the vacuum can't solve though. I technically can't move anything in until I set up a moving date with the resident manager, but I can get a few things in just so I can stay there tonight. Hopefully it's not a hassle. The condo has more rules than any of the apartments I've ever lived in. It must be because everyone has a stake in the common areas and want to make sure they aren't responsible for paying for anything they shouldn't have to pay for. The 'House Rules' are possible a bit 40 pages too overwhelming. ++

PSST. PART TWO

2007-07-27T16:01:00.000-07:00

++ I JUST SIGNED the closing documents and wired a ridiculous amount of money to the escrow company's bank.

Giddy? yeah.
Anxious? a little.
Heartburn? like no other. ++

PSST. PART ONE

2007-07-17T17:38:00.000-07:00

++ (I THINK I just bought a condo.) I'm going giddy!++

ALL NATION'S CUP

2007-07-13T16:39:00.000-07:00

++ ALL NATION'S CUP
I'm playing for the Iranian team. Here's the nitty gritty:

Full tournament schedule here.
07/14 - 12:30 PM - Field 3 - Iran vs. El Salvador
07/14 - 8:00 PM - Field 4 - Iran vs. Brasil (Quarterfinal Team last year)
07/15 - 4:00 PM - Stadium - Iran vs. Vietnam

Championship Game : 07/29 - 5:30 PM - Memorial Stadium (Seattle Center)
Games are at Starfire Sports Complex in Tukwila. Tickets are $5/day.

There is also a bunch of other world festivities going on besides soccer throughout the two week tournament. ++

THOUGHTS AND PRAYERS

2007-07-11T22:36:00.000-07:00

++ ARE WITH YOU. I've had to to do research on leukemia as I know nothing about it. Some facts I've found:

There doesn't seem to be a complete and whole cure for Leukemia.
There are four types of leukemia. I think (hope) he has the 'mildest' case (is there such a thing) which is Chronic Lymphocytic Leukemia (CLL). CLL is a type of cancer where the bone marrow makes too many lymphocytes, which is a type of white blood cell. Basically, as the unhealthy white blood cells divide, they make less room for healthy white and red blood cells as well as platelets, which results in the body's inability or decreased ability to fight infection. This also can bring on anemia and easy bleeding.
Life expectancy is 3-20 years, depending on how far it has progressed.
There are five stages of progression. The doctors think it's only in it's first stage, which I suppose is the best as far as options and treatments.
At least five different kinds of treatment are options: 1. Watch and wait. 2. Radiation. 3. Chemotherapy. 4. Surgery. 5. Monoclonal antibody therapy. For some reason I always thought chemotherapy involved being exposed to some sort x-ray or radiation, but turns out that's Radiation Therapy. Chemotherapy, as it turns out, involves drugs to stop the growth of cancer cells either by killing the cells or stopping the cells from dividing. There seem to be clinical trials of alternative treatments out in the field, but they are clinical in nature, so there is no assurance the treatment will have any affect, let alone a positive affect as each person is likely to react differently. They've sent away for pills, so I guess the treatments they are using are a combination of watch and wait and chemotherapy.

How does one tell someone else that they may have a disease which could be fatal?
How would I respond to someone telling me I had an 'incurable' disease?
What a sad thought. ++

PS AND THE OC

2007-06-26T01:28:00.000-07:00

++ FIRST TIME STAYING in a hotel by myself. There are so many stations with cable TV!
103 degrees at 11 AM.
"Copper wire theft puts you in jail!"
"I'm paying." "FU." "TFB."
El Pollo Loco fastfood.
MJ followed by Devo over the speakers in Denny's.
First sit-down meal in a restaurant by myself.
Guy driving golf cart down the sidewalk.
Rocky Theme Song as a ringtone for the 65 year old guy.
"I can't wait for all of this to be over."
"Is that a name?"
Overbearing wedding co-ordinator who likes to make fun of the wedding party.
9.14 PM and it's 99 degrees outside right now.
"Hi Jay. It's Roger Thomas, Jay..."
"Are you nervous?"
"Congratulations Cheryl and Todd. I mean Mark! Cheryl and Mark!"
"I'm mad at you for breaking girls' hearts."
"You're one button and one clasp away from a good night."
"Is he alright to drive home?" "Probably not, but I've seen him worse and still drive home?"
"No, Top Pot Doughnuts ships them every morning fresh from LA."
"So BW3 is about 40 minutes out of the way each way." "Perfect, let's go."
"Wow! Rainn is so small!"
Crowded Laguna Beach.
Cranky baby.
Grete with a fever of 101 degrees.
Agora Churrascaria. Tasty skewered meat.
Old photos and childhood stories.
Oh the cot.
A walk around the lake at the park with Grete and Rainn.
Laguna Niguel Bakery and Cafe. California Panini.
Rainn likes riding in the car.
A refreshing afternoon nap.
"(Are you) John Wayne Airport?"
"Any more seats left on this flight?"
First time (and second time) flying in Economy Plus. Extra leg room. How spacious!
Delayed flight at SFO. Does anyone else sit and people watch while waiting for their flight?
The classic Boudin's Bakery clam chowder in a bread bowl. How could I resist?
First game of Sudoku. It's much harder than I thought it would be.
Flight delayed even longer.
3 hours late, but all in one piece.
Shuttle bus. Car.
Home! ++

PALM DESERT MADNESS

2007-06-19T23:04:00.000-07:00

++ HOLY SCHMOLY, THE next couple of days is going to be a far cry from the weather I've grown accustomed to.

Thursday - high 112 degrees . low 76
Friday - high 113 . low 79
Saturday - high 111 . low 73

Orange County is much better.

Sunday - high 79 . low 56
Monday - high 76 . low 56

I think I only own one pair of shorts, but I'm going to have to go digging for it. ++

FRIED CHICKEN

2007-06-07T10:57:00.000-07:00

++ I COOKED FRIED chicken for the first time ever. It's actually kind of ridiculously not healthy at all. The chicken is basically breaded with spices and deep fried. I'm not sure why I thought it would be something different. It's so much easier (and cheaper) (and just as unhealthy) to just go to KFC even if you have to dodge the taunt's of the local animal rights protesters and their signs. ++

OLD FRIENDS AND FAMILY

2007-06-01T14:57:00.000-07:00

++ MY WEEKEND WAS stellar. A little plane ride back to Ohio for a friend’s wedding and a whirlwind tour of old friends could cure the world’s problems. Seriously, no matter how down in the dumps you get or whatever zinger, life has waiting around the corner for you, a weekend full of laughter with old friends and family is quite a refreshing little slice of life. It gets me going. ++

TRAVELING BY PLANE - PROS AND CONS

2007-05-28T19:08:00.001-07:00

++ SECRET INDULGENCES:
1. No driving.
2. Just sit there and be scooted around.
3. Catching up on sleep.
4. One side of the country to the other in a day.
5. One side of the world to the other in a day.
6. The view from the window seat.
7. No one knows who you are. Make up a story about yourself. Reinvent yourself.
8. Heck, you're travelling, I might as well get that Cinnabon at the airport.
9. I get to have laughs with family and old friends.
10. People-watching.

Nuissances:
1. The baby in the seat in front of you crying for the entire plane ride .
2. The guy behind you who hits the back of your seat every couple of minutes.
3. The guy to your right that smells funny.
4. Layovers.
5. Costs more than splitting the cost of gas with a friend.
6. Sitting on the tarmac for hours on ed before you take-off.
7. Missed connecting flight because you sat on the tarmac for hours on end.
8. Disappointment in the Chinese food in the airport, even though it looked and smelled great.
9. Time-changes.
10. Rude shuttle-bus drivers. ++

LEAVING WORK EARLY

2007-05-24T13:47:00.000-07:00

++ IF I LEFT work for my apartment right now, would anyone notice? Would anyone care? Once I got there, who would I call? What would I do?

It's a big world out there. I'm having trouble finding my voice. Slowly I retreat into the depths of of the echoes my mind conjures. Silence.

My eyes close for just a moment and I find myself lost in the rigors of life. ++

INSERT PESSIMISM HERE

2007-05-23T14:28:00.000-07:00

++ THAT'S RIGHT. (insert pessimism here.) ++

THE DAY IS MINE!

2007-02-07T08:50:00.000-08:00

++ IT'S MY DAY. ++

I'M TORN BETWEEN

2007-01-19T14:14:00.000-08:00

++I'M TORN BETWEEN whether i should be wanting to grow up and buy a house and get all settled and and put money away for my future retirement and save money and 'grow up' or if i should be sticking with the "i'm still young and free" thing and do whatever i want and turn my head from the responsibilities of being an adult. some days i lean to the i'm 26, almost 27 and its time to think further ahead in terms of years and other days i can plan for no further than what i'm going to wear when i finally drag myself out from underneath the covers. i don't know what to do. and then to top it all off, i think of how ridiculously all of it is. i was listening to the news the other day and they were talking about moving the nuclear clock to '5 minutes til midnight' for the symbolic time we blow ourselves up. i heard china is blowing up satellites just for fun at 500+ miles above earth. it seems like the white house is playing this game of Risk, you know with the dice and the little men. i don't know. i just all of sudden feel so small and insignificant. i know i'm never going to be einstein or edison or franklin or anybody who will make a "significant" move to change the course of human history. so what's the point in anything i do? yeah, i know there is this whole idealized butterfly effect where one thing i do alters the events of others which alters the effects of others and so on and so forth, but if everyone is making all of these minute butterfly decisions, does it really matter if one butterfly doesn't flap their wings? i mean it's all changing anyway. what's one to the other? it's all the same anyway.

then again i digress, life's too short to think about stuff like this right? just go live your life and everything will be alright. enjoy it. live it. and whatever happens, happens, right? in the end none of it ever really matters in the whole realm of things, so just do whatever you do and don't worry about it. so what if i'm not edison or einstein or franklin. i wouldn't want to be them anyway. i'd have too much to think about...++

NEW BAT LOOK

2007-01-12T12:21:00.000-08:00

++ NEW BAT LOOK, old bat content. Added link to ~ Citizen Plain ~, Just your average blog about your average girl. ++

TURN THE PAGE

2007-01-03T23:05:00.000-08:00

++ TURN THE PAGE...it's almost midnight and sleep approaches. what just happenned? did that really happen? don't go. don't fall asleep. wait, what if i do? will it mean it didn't happen and that all will be the same tomorrow? i doubt it. it's real, right? that. that event. it happenned. it's double digits. my mind is weary. it's late. i don't want to go to sleep. but i don't know what to type. i sit staring at the keyboard. fingers on keys, but unable to to come up with words to say. receipts in front of me of purchases made from previous days. they mean nothing. their past events with recorded histories. the screen shows proof of things i've just typed. i don't look at the screen. only glancing to make sure i spell correctly. it's lonely here. the cliche deafening silence, except for the whirl of the computer. a constant. one of the few in my life right now. that is until the power goes out. death and taxes. i suppose those are the other two constants. a pause. speechless, but no one to talk to anyway, so it doesn't much matter. i'd be talking to the screen which only recites back to me what i've told it. nothing really. just the past. a recorded history. ++

WHY DOES LIFE...

2006-12-18T00:08:00.000-08:00

++ WHY DOES LIFE throw such obstacles and hurdles at us? Is it not enough to have to try to live your own life? It would seem that everything we do affects someone else whether mean for it to or not. Actions and words speak louder than we even know...sometimes it hurts...more than we even know.++

HAS IT REALLY BEEN THIS LONG?

2006-06-07T21:07:00.000-07:00

++ HAS IT REALLY been this long since I last posted? hm. yeah i guess that sounds about right. and what did i post about last time? that's right. another year ... and another move. this one is however a move of a larger capacity, a larger magnitude if you will. i'll give you the whole story of the past eight months in one long run on sentance / paragraph. i moved from the cannery to the hawthorne school apartments where i reside with the same roommate that i had at the cannery however it was cheaper to live here and just as great (if not better) of a place so we moved here where i still ride my bike to work every morning and only drive my car to play soccer which has since moved from indoor three times a week to outdoor just one time a week which is a nice break from work which has been ridiculously fun, but at the same time consuming as we have a lot of work but not enough qualified people, not to say they aren't qualified to do what they do, because they do do what they do very well its just that they don't have as much experience as they would need to do what they do better or to do more than what they do now which is fine because that creates more work for me which is also fine except that i've been involved with several professional organizations which take up the rest of my time after work but thats fine also because its nice to be busy, however it looks like, no wait, i'm positive i'm going to have a mini vacation in the form of driving across country (yet again) because as of yesterday i put in my notice to leave my present job because the day before that i accepted a job in seattle, washington, so as of june 22 i will be temporarily collecting no money for a week and a half and will be instead spending gobs of money to relocate cities and resume my paid endeavors on july 3 in said new city which is great because i love it there and i've worked at this firm before so i know (and really like) the people and the work they do which will be great because this chapter of my life has been getting quite full recently and its time to turn the page and let the creative lines flow once again.
.
an open invitation to anyone who wants to come visit. you'll have a place to stay (of course) and someone to show you around (of course).
.
goodbye dayton. it's been quite a journey hasn't it? we're still friends and i'll still come and visit. you are my childhood hometown.
.
hello seattle. i think we've met before. what's new in the past three years since we last talked? don't worry about writing, we'll talk in person in three weeks. ++

ANOTHER YEAR ANOTHER MOVE

2005-10-25T17:14:00.000-07:00

++ ANOTHER YEAR ANOTHER MOVE
it's almost as though i haven't left the college life. (except of course i have. thank goodness.) (well wait, i liked college. after six years i think i finally got it my sixth year. maybe becau....wait, that's not what this post was supposed to be about. i'm out of college. it should be left at that.) (thank goodness.) (sort of.)

i'm packing up. moving on. .. across the river .. not the big river .. just the miami river. not out of ohio yet. hell, not even out of dayton yet.
.
yet.
.
just waiting for the right time.
.
'temporarily' and by temporarily i mean at least for another year until my new lease runs out i'm at the hawthorne school apartments. it's this old 1886 school, which got renovated 8 years (ironically by my office) into apartment units. still have the wood floors. still have the old school hanging lights. still have the stamped tin ceiling. still doesn't have an elevator. grr. in a historic neighborhood. the second oldest in dayton. i'm no further (or closer) to work than when i lived in the cannery. i get to cross a river and a bridge everyday on my way to work. i'll get to see the sun rise over the river. that's sort of exciting. it's a two bedroom. my unemployed roommate gets to play 'couch guy' for a while .. except in his own bedroom and not on a couch. it's just 'temporary'. i swear. cross my fingers.
.
just waiting for the right time....... ++

OVERWHELMING

2005-10-24T12:51:00.000-07:00

++ OVERWHELMING
i am officially the project manager of the largest project we have in the office.* it's by square foot the largest project in the office.
it's also by revenue the largest project in the office.
(it's also the most convoluted in regard to scope of work and contracts.)
.
.
.

* = (this project is essentially completed. there are two and a half months left until project completion. the project is in construction administration. all major decisions have been made. in all reality, everything that is left would work itself out regardless of whether i made any additional decisions or not. essentially i have to make an effort to screw it up. however, i've messed things up before, so it's not copmletely out of the question.) (but still, i'm the 'point man' for the project.)
.
.
.
how scary is that?

THE WORLD IS SPINNING

2005-10-23T18:41:00.000-07:00

++ THE WORLD IS SPINNING

so much has happenned in just the past couple of months, even more so in the past couple of weeks.
.
do you ever get that sense that things are going to fast and you don't have enough time to process it all?
.
you start to make sense of what's going on, then you have to go to sleep or you have to go to work or time just moves and all of a sudden it's time. time to do something. whatever. it's just time and there is no time to think about it anymore. the things that aren't happenning to you will somehow in some aspect influence you or have some sort of affect on you. it's overwhelming. make you feel small again. not insecure. just unstable. like going on one of those playground spinny things that everyone did when they were small and holding onto the end while your friends spin it around as fast as they possibly can. you hold on. at first you focus on just one thing and try to hold that focus for as long as possible until you have to turn your head. you whip your head around to the right and immediately try to refocus on that one object. a tree. a car. your friend's face. some in the distance. anything to prolong the inevitable unstableness you know will occur when you get off. your friends tire of running or pushing the hunk of metal. or you jump off, not being able to take any more. you lie in the grass. look up. the white cloud posted just to the left of the midday sun. it starts to turn arond clockwise. you close your eyes momentarily hoping for it to stop. open eyes. turning. long blink. open eyes. it's back where it should be, but starting to turn again. eyes closed. you feel your body turn to the right. except you're laying on the ground. wait then, the ground must be moving to the left. impossible. you stand. open your eyes. everything feels as though it's leaning to the right. focus. 30 seonds go by. everything starts to slow down. you can think about anything .. again .. now that the world has stopped spinning. your head is a little hazy. as if you've just been the witness of the spaceship exploding. did you just see that? did that really happen? are you serious? dumbstruck. but not dumbstruck, you know what just happened. you saw it with your own eyes. they instantaneously replayed it over and over and over and over. its real. are you serious? now what? what happens next? your mind blanks. deep breath. grass. summer heat. friends talking. spinny thing behind you. thirsty. queesy stomach.
.
now what?
.
.
.
++

SAN FRANCISCO TRIP

2005-09-09T13:35:00.000-07:00

++ SAN FRANCISCO TRIP

The left coast was great!

I left Friday morning from Dayton at 5.30am and flew in at 11.30am. We pretty much just went to outdoor stores (REI and AnyMountain) and went to Bay Street over in Berkeley.

Saturday we went bouldering down at Castle Rock State Park (about an hour and a half south), then went to Palo Alto (Stanford is there) and walked around downtown and ate. Palo Alto is filled with smart and rich people. I wouldn’t say beautiful people. but well dressed and they hold themselves well. Saturday night we met up with most of the college people out there, 8 or 9 of them. It was good to see all of them, briefly, but just the right amount of time.

Sunday one of our friends took us down to the Lin De Mar, down in Pacifica (about 45 minutes south), Pacifica is just south of Daly City which is just south of San Francisco. We went surfing out there for pretty much the entire morning and half of the afternoon. It was awesome! A little cold at first (even with the wetsuit), but you warm up, and the sun even came out! I’d have to say that was the most all body just exhausted I’ve been in a really long time. I’d equate it to maybe the first time I’d ever gone snowboarding. Later that evening we went up to Tiburon (just north of Sausalito, which is just north of san Francisco, across the golden gate, up in marin county) we ate at this little place called Guaymas. We met up with two other friends for dinner who I hadn’t seen yet. so we’re standing in line waiting to be seated and all three of them turn to me and say, ‘that’s george lucas!’ but with a quiet exclamation point. so I turn and blankly, rudely, (blatantly) just stare at this guy standing no more than 5 feet away from me. graying hair. beard. no taller than me. wife. daughter. little kid with a star wars t-shirt running around. I look back to my friends, ‘that’s not him. there’s no way that could be george lucas.’ he continues to wait in line. we go get seated. seafood dinner was amazing. sure enough I get back to heather’s place, do a google image search for george lucas and there are 10,000 hits of george lucas staring me in the face. it was him! ghiradelli ice cream after dinner topped it off.

Monday we went down to fort funston (far southwest side of SF, about a 3 minute drive from daly city) and watched hang-gliders go jump off a 150 foot cliff over a beach. that sport seems nuts to me. I want to try it! we watched them zip back and forth for a while. a walk on the beach. we watched people flying radio controlled airplanes around for a while. (that also seems like something that would be fun to do.) then it over to the beach chalet for lunch/dinner. seafood was good there as well, not quite as good as guaymas though. view was just as nice though. back to the city to walk around downtown one last time. a stroll through the newly renovated ferry building and then we met up with samee for another go at ghiradelli ice cream on the go. (about 5 minutes before I had to leave for the airport he arrive in the city. he had just gotten back from LA.) literally he came running across the street. we said hi and walked straight into the ice cream shop. ordered. then the three of us started walking (ice cream cone in hand) to heather’s to pick up her car. dropped samee off at his place, then to the airport. flight left at 10pm. red-eye. atalanta at 5am. 3 hours of waiting. never seems so long as it does at 5 in the morning. 8am flight. Dayton at 9.30am. and in to work at 10.30am.

it’s weird. every time I go back to SF it feels like home. sort of. you know, after you’ve lived someplace for 6 months, you are used to it. I already know the area. I don’t need to be entertained. I’m just there doing the local stuff. falling back into a routine. or checking out all the odd-off the beaten path (non-touristy) stuff. (That doesn't mean I'm going to move there. Don't get the wrong idea. You know who you are that I'm directing that comment to. I've just been there a lot times and so I feel comfortable.)

next trip, Taiwan in the beginning of December…++

POISON IVY

2005-08-11T08:58:00.000-07:00

++ I HAVE POISON ivy and it sucks. no, no. not that poison ivy. the actual poison ivy. i went geo-chaching with hesse and cornell and thielman and got it while searching for an ammo box. after we went geo-caching, we went to the beach and everyone waded into the water except for me, so i assume if they did have it, they got it all washed off. not me. i get poison ivy (well i assume it's poison ivy. it's poison something) fairly easily. i swear i just see poison whatever and i get it. haven't found a good way to get rid of it, except go to the doctor and get some medicine (which is what i'm doing today). ++

GOD BLESS PASSIONATE PEOPLE

2005-06-23T10:01:00.000-07:00

++ GOD BLESS THE people who are passionate about the things they do and surround themselves with. these are the people who push others beyond their limits of understanding and comprehension and compel them to strive and expand beyond the realm of habitual and customary limits. ++

THE HARDEST THING

2005-06-14T09:09:00.000-07:00

++ BY FAR THE hardest thing i've done (or tried to do) today.

http://www.sheppardsoftware.com/states_experiment_drag-drop_Intermed_State15s_500.html
know your united states of america? ++

I'M HERE I'M HERE!

2005-04-21T19:42:00.000-07:00

++ I'M HERE I'M HERE
just ridiculously busy lately (which is no excuse to not post i know, but an excuse none the less.)
work is well.
(breckenrdige was better.) icy, but colorado still.
soccer soccer soccer.
a golf league.
cards with friends.
sleep every now and then. (never enough)
more soccer.
building a table (out of a used bowling alley lane and railroad ties.)
never leaving work after 8 hours of work (man salary is not as great as everyone makes it out to be.)
i'll get back in shape here soon.
soon.
soon soon soon.
(hi lisa.)
(hi mike. it's your fault that i felt like i should write something again.)
++

BRECKENRIDGE ROAD TRIP

2005-03-02T09:29:00.000-08:00

++ WILL BE BACK 03/08/2005. little weekend of snowboarding in colorado. ++

PRETENTIOUS?

2005-02-17T07:32:00.000-08:00

++ I FIND NEW YORKERS, as a clear blanket statement, to be brash, pretentious, self-righteous, and for the most part look down at every other city. yeah i know this doesn't apply to all new yorkers. i'd even go so far as to say this doesn't apply to all new york city people. i even have friends in new york. i'll give them the benefit of the doubt. it's a great city. don't get me wrong. i like it. its exciting. it's one of the bigger cities in north america. but seriously, the world's second home? give me a break. pretentious a-holes. ++

RECENTLY HEARD AT WORK . 05

2005-02-11T09:39:00.000-08:00

++ FIFTH INSTALLMENT OF things recently heard at work..
.
"wouldn't it be a great valentine's day present to get the cd's (construction documents) done by the 14th?"

"m.u. (miami university) - have contract. will travel."

"how can we have a permit if we don't even have a p.o. (purchase order)?"
"how can we have a p.o. if we don't even have a project nunmber?"
"how can we already be done if we don't even have any of that?"
"it's done already?"
"yeah."

"i assume there is a reason why we are redesigning the site and jay is making pretty pictures."
"no. i just like to make pretty pictures."
"they're not that pretty."

"can we get jay to just go out there and hold it while it dries?"
"can i get ncarb (national council of architectural registration board) credits for it?"
"hey, its for a church. you can count it as community service."

"any lessons learned this week?"
"you can't have shit go into a smaller tube."
"smaller than what?"
"smaller than the tube it came from."
"if you do, you'll get constipated."

"god, and i've been hit by lightening twice today."

"and i'm having dinner with my wife tonight. that'll be another religious experience."

"creepy. no, super creepy. were you following me?"
"no, i was following rick."
"he's just trying to make sure we weren't drinking out lunch."

"why doeshe keep switching who he talks to."
"he's just happy to get things moving. he's just a happy guy."

"what scheme are we on now? e? f?"
"well jay called the last scheme, 'landscape blah'."

"if we don't have anything else better to do than play around on the internet, then we can clean out the flat files under the plotters."
.
and on that note, this fifth installment of recently heard at work will un-commence, until the the sixth installment of recently heard at work recommences.

FOR ALL YOU LONDONERS

2005-02-10T08:18:00.000-08:00

++ NO, I'VE NEVER been to london. yes, i want to go sometime. right now? eh. but in time.
this one is for all you londoners and especially for the ones i know. how many do i know, thats right, just one. you know who you are. ++

FUTURE SOCCER PHENOM

2005-02-08T04:58:00.000-08:00

++ FUTURE SOCCER PHENOM
this kid has more amazing goals in one season than i have had in my entire 20 years of playing soccer. absolutely incredible. ++

IT'S MY DAY.

2005-02-07T10:48:00.000-08:00

++ "THE DAY IS mine! ..." ++

:)

SURPRISINGLY HARD GAME

2005-02-04T05:28:00.000-08:00

++ IT'S A SNOWMAN running or rather rolling and jumping into a mini and getting style points for doing it. and its surprisingly hard. ++

GROUNDHOG DAY..

2005-02-02T07:55:00.000-08:00

++ PUNXSUTAWNEY PHIL
.
aw poop. he saw his shadow.
.
aw poop. he saw his shadow.
.
aw poop. he saw his shadow.
.
aw poop. he saw his shadow.
.
aw poop. he saw his shadow.
.
aw poop. he saw his shadow.
.
aw poo..wait. this has to stop.
aw poo..wait. this has to stop.
aw poo..wait. this has to stop.
aw poo..wait. this has to stop.
aw poo..wait. this has to stop.
.
no seriously.++

RECENTLY HEARD AT WORK . 04

2005-02-01T12:56:00.000-08:00

++ RECENTLY HEARD AT WORK the 4th installation.
.
“what happens when the contractor starts asking you to substitute what you’ve specified for something cheaper?”
"that’s where you stand up on your two feet and be glad you put starch in your pants.”

“if you aren’t here in 30 seconds, then you don’t get life insurance. i have the power to do it.”

“we don’t get president’s day off do we?
“no, We aren’t sure this democracy is going to last.”

“can you eliminate everything before where its says ‘start specs’? ok, now can you eliminate everything after where if says, ‘start specs’.”
“why didn’t you just tell me to type, ‘start specs’.”

“725 kingsridge retail Development, also known as britney spears.”

“so we’ve go to nudge him to move on the project. see, chad has him worried about fried chicken.”

“i think it is a misapplication of my talent. whatever that may be.”

“when you are at the site and you look around, the only thing you see is a sea of asphalt and wooden utility poles.”
“we spent about a million and a half dollars to get it to look like that. and now it looks better than when we started.”

“..imperfect symmetry.”

“they’ll probably hate it, but hey we own the property. they’ll get over it.” ++

SHERLOCK HOLMES

2005-01-27T06:42:00.000-08:00

++ SHERLOCK HOLMES BABY
.
no wait, sherlock holmes, baby.
.
1. can you beat the number of times it took me to complete it?
2. can you beat the time?
.
5 times to complete it.
27 seconds on the 5th try.
(no cheating by trying to look at all the photos before you start the time.) ++

ANOTHER TIME WASTER

2005-01-20T05:30:00.000-08:00

++ MY BEST TIME so far 15 seconds. ++

WHAT TIME IS IT

2005-01-19T03:47:00.000-08:00

++ WHAT TIME IS IT?
.
'its tool time!'.
.
uh .. no.
.
but this clever little flash pogram does know what time it is at all times of the day.

ONLINE POKER

2005-01-18T08:45:00.000-08:00

++ DO YOU PLAY poker online?
do you want to know how to cheat?
well, i can't tell you, because i don't know how to. honestly, even i did know how to cheat, i'm not sure i'd want to. why? it's easy free money you say? yeah, but besides raking in money at will, what fun would it be? i can think of plenty of other ways to acquire large sums of money, those of which i'm pretty sure i wouldn't do either.
.
read about the different ways people cheat at online poker .. here. ++

LED LIT HOME

2005-01-17T10:07:00.000-08:00

++ A HOME COMPLETELY lit by light emitting diodes (LED) is supposedly the future of our built environment. i'm not so sure the light quality is the same. (not to saythat it is worse, just different.) yes, it cuts on energy consumption and cost and expenditure, but the effects on human productivity and efficiency and even how it affects the human psyche is both unproven and unstudied on such a macro scale. ++

IS SOCCER NEXT..

2005-01-14T10:21:00.000-08:00

++ WILL SOCCER SUCCUMB to the same kind of crap that has engulfed the NFL, NBA and the NHL?
.
the NFL has resorted to using television in its quest to capture the most audience and effort to steal the 'national pastime' away from baseball. instant replays and challenges and referee reviews are now the norm for professional football. its a rare sight to see a game pass without these new fandangled red flags being thrown one after another (usually by joe gibbs at his most inopportune time and undeniably in err every time.) everyone (including the players and coaches) sit down and take a '2 minute' free time-out to rest their weary bones. in fact new rules have been instituted and whole sections have been added to the rulebook about when and where you can and cannot throw the red flag (and at who and how high and so on and so on.) fine.
.
the NBA has utilized the referee instant replay for quite some time now. the claim is that the human brain is not fast enough to make 'important' decisions and cannot process information fast enough. the eye must visually see what happenned, send a signal to the brain where it must be processed before a decision and subsequent action can be made. for this reason, instant replay must be used to help aid the referee in his decision. fine.
.
the NHL has similar rules and laws of the game to help aid the referee in his decision making. fine.
.
will soccer also make this transition? lets hope not. soccer (as well as football, basketball and hockey) is a game played by people, who are inherently flawed and inherently make mistakes. the game should be governed and decided by the same, humans ... you know what, i don't even feel like trying to make an argument against this whole thing. i guess i'm just irritated that 'in the fairness of the game' that something which is considered a game (regardless of the skill level or level of play) might be brought to such a level where microchips and televisions must be brought in to 'make the game better'. call me a purist. yeah, i know there are arguments such as, "the game should be fair. lets do our best to ensure fair play. lets utilize the current technology to bring this to fruition" or, "humans are inherently flawed and as such cannot be counted on to make game-deciding decisions." or, "how would a human be able to decide the winner for most 100 meter sprints or 'photo' finishes at a horse race." fine. i concede to those two arguments. yes, it would be mighty hard (if not a guess) to decide winners in those arenas of play, but seriously, a soccer game? a football game, a basketball game? there's only one ball people. its not like you are looking at 10 people running at you or 12 horses galloping at breakneck speed. no, its a ball. hell, its a game. let games be decided by the participant's peers. if robots are playing, then let robots decide the outcome of events. if humans play, let humans referee.

oh yeah, this is what prompted the rant.

let's just play soccer and leave the microchips to the internet and mobile phones.
we don't need them in a soccer ball.
what's next?
microchips in humans to control their movements from the sideline?
better yet, we'll all just sit in a room and look through 3-d glasses and not actually move at all, but play the World Cup 2006 in Germany all through computers.
it'll save everyone money. ++

TOP 25 INVENTIONS

2005-01-13T10:17:00.000-08:00

++ TOP 25 INNOVATIONS of the past 25 years
.
as listed by CNN.
.
most of these for the most part i can remember as always being around and available to use. ..for the most part. ++

IT'S BEEN BETTER

2005-01-12T05:20:00.000-08:00

++ IT'S BEEN BETTER..
.
1. going to a public restroom wearing sandals when its raining. is it water? is it pee? seriously. stop splashing.
2. you order an iced coffee. he takes some ice and puts it in a cup. he pours the coffee straight from the pot and doesn't shake it up. cool, not cold, on the top. warm in the middle. still scalding on the bottom. what's that? at least shake it up. jerk.
3. cold showers in the winter. you're the last person up. its 7.30am. you need a shower. no, you really need a shower. hair is here, there, and everywhere else. you smell. bad. and its 7.33am now that you're done looking in the mirror at yourself. you've been up for 3 minutes, but your eyes have only been open for 1 minute and the light has only been on for 45 seconds. tired. a little cold. water on. clothes off. ah. hot shower. 30 seconds. squirt. lather. shit. water's getting colder. more hot water. less cold water. clunk. shit. water's getting colder. hair is foamy. water's past luke warm to just luke cold. rinse. faster. FASTER. shit. cold. ice cold. ice.
4. no toilet paper after a sloppy poop. enough said.
5. going somewhere and you've just arrived only to find the thing you were supposed to bring was left at the place you just departed from.
6. dead batteries.
7. no coffee in the morning.
8.
..
someone else's most annoying list..
++

KNIFE IRONING.

2005-01-11T08:07:00.000-08:00

++ LAST NIGHT I watched my roommate iron his 8" cooking knife.
..
thats it. thats the wohle story.
.
here ironed one side. cleaned it. then turned it over and ironed the other side.
.
apparantly the knife was crooked.
.
gary's knife.++

PAPER FOOTBALL

2005-01-09T16:40:00.000-08:00

++ PAPER FOOTBALL.
.
remember that insanely addictive game you used to play in elementary and junior high school when you needed to waste a little bit of time. oh yeah.
.
electronically brought to you. now without the teacher telling you to stop, this time honored tradition once again presented so you can waste your time again.

"flickball" ++

BLIZZARD AT TAHOE

2005-01-04T13:51:00.000-08:00

++ IT WAS FUN. got into CA on tuesday. left wednesday morning for squaw. snowboarded all day. left for reno to stay at circus circus. it started snowing in reno about 8. woke up the next morning at 7.30. 18 inches on the ground! I-80 was closed at the border. so we waited at the gas station/casino for 6 hours at exit 1. waiting for the highway to open. it didn't. back to reno for a nigght at the sands casino. a whole day and a half at the casino. lost $15. boo on slots. next morning called the nevada road conditions hotline every 15 minutes for a few hours. finally. I-80 is open. jump out of bed. ready to go in 5 minutes. in the car in 8. get to the ca/nv border. yup. highway is open. then it took another 4 hours to go 20 miles to squaw. chains on the whole trip. one of them breaks. thats alright. we can still drive. just 10 mph slower. base of squaw got 36 inches of powder last night. the top had 48. squaw by noon. on the lifts by 1. last run at 4. night ski a few runs. its cold as crap at 6.30 on mountain when the sun isn't up and the wind is blowing 15 mph. to the car! chains still on. although now with two chain link replacements. ah yes. 35 mph again. still gotta get over donner pass. good thing we ate before we left. can't see a car in front of me. can't see a car behind me. actually, now that i'm looking, can't see anything more than 15 feet in front of me. why isn't this highway closed? 30 mph. 25 mph. 20 mph. i think thats the edge of the road. oh. wait. thats definately the side of the road. steer back the other way. ok. well now we've found out how wide the highway is going at 20 mph. just stay in the middle. hour and a half later. i've balls now. i'm going 30 mph. i'm like superman. except i can't keep the snow from melting on my windshield and then freezing on the wiper blades. gotta stop again to chip the ice off the wipers. 20 miles to sacramento. finally! its now longer tons of snow. its now freezing rain and snow. oh yeah. much better. chains off. no more. now its just rain. tick tock. five and a half hours after we left its 11.57pm 31 december 2004. tick tock. there's sf. boom! double boom! must be midnight. goodbye oakland. hello .. treasure island. triple boom. happy new year! and we're stopped. not quite treasure island. not quite sf. oh wow, thats close. many booms. ok, lets go. time to start the new year by sleeping.

OFF TO SAN FRANCISCO!!!

2004-12-28T01:15:00.000-08:00

++ OFF TO SAN FRANCISCO for a little vacation!
.
back on the 3 january 2005.. ++

I AM A

2004-12-27T13:25:00.000-08:00

++ I AM A cock-heavy sexy bitch who loves to infest crotches.
.
what are you again?++

MERRY CHRISTMAS!

2004-12-25T07:49:00.000-08:00

++ MERRY CHRISTMAS!!! ++

IT SEEMS AS THOUGH...

2004-12-23T04:21:00.000-08:00

++ IT SEEMS AS THOUGH urban living has its downfalls. even though we have 16-20 inches of snow here and going to work today is optional, meaning if you think you cannot reach work safely, then you are not expected to come. if it is possible for you to reach work safely in a timely manner, then you should do so. i live a 15 minute walk to work. there is no possible way i can justify not being able to make it to work. therefore i go. 16-20 inches! we haven't had that much snow cumulative since i was born. ok, maybe. but thats pushing it. guh. gotta shower. then spend the next hour digging my car out of this dumping. now if only we had just one mountain.. ++

HOLIDAY SEASON PARKING

2004-12-22T05:07:00.000-08:00

++ I WENT TO the mall just the other day and it took me longer to find a parking spot than it actually took me to roam the mall. granted to be fair, i already knew where i was going in the mall and i already knew what i was there to see and look at and get, however the mall is a big place and those three places i wanted to go were all on opposite sides of the mall. i hate, no i take that back, i don't hate holiday shopping. its fun. honestly it is. it just takes a whole lot of time and patience to get through it all without wanting to kill someone behind the wheel of another vehicle. i'm pretty sure they let all new drivers take the road at this time and send them off to the mall. no, in fact i'm pretty sure they tell them to seek out all green honda civics and drive in front of them, behind them, and at them one right after the other just for shits and giggles.
.
want to know how to find a parking spot at the mall..
++

SIMPLE PLEASURES IN LIFE

2004-12-21T12:48:00.000-08:00

++ SIMPLE PLEASURES IN LIFE
.
walking through the city in the daytime when the sun is out and you can see a blue sky on the first real snowfall of the winter, the snowflakes stick to your jacket, the wind blows them in every direction and you slyly open your mouth and stick your tongue out to catch any of them hoping that no one notices the guy in the all black business attire stealing this childish delight. ++

WHO THINKS CHRISTMAS..

2004-12-20T11:34:00.000-08:00

++ WHO THINKS CHRISTMAS is full of crap?
.
this guy does. ++

HOW TO BUILD A SNOWMAN

2004-12-19T10:42:00.000-08:00

++ HOW TO BUILD A SNOWMAN.
.
geesh.
.
finally.
.
someone explained how to build a snowman.
about freakin' time. ++

MY APARTMENT

2004-12-18T13:48:00.000-08:00

++ I JUST FOUND some lights in my apartment that i never even knew i had!
.
you must have no idea how incredibly enthralled i am to have found these! i've been living in this apartment for about a month and a half and looked up at the ceiling in my kitchen multiple multiple times. i've flipped the light switch to turn on the garbage disposer multiple times and even looked at the other switch next to it. never has it occurred to me to even flip the other switch or wonder what it goes to. today i looked up at the ceiling noticed a row of track lighting and it completely made me ecstatic to find them!
.
what a great day! ++

CHARLIE BROWN CHIRSTMAS

2004-12-17T12:47:00.000-08:00

++ LAST NIGHT MY DAD and i sat down and watched A Charlie Brown Christmas Special. neither of us said anything. we just sat there and watched cartoons. just like when i was younger. it was great. ++

I GUESS I WENT TO A GOOD SCHOOL

2004-12-16T08:35:00.000-08:00

++ GOOD SCHOOL? SO THEY TELL ME..

University of Cincinnati's Master of Architecture's Program ranked 6th. There is some pretty hefty schools in front of us though. If anyone leaves UC to go somewhere else, its always to Harvard's Graduate School of Design, Yale, MIT or Columbia. I'm not exactly sure how or where Penn falls in there. I mean I've heard a little bit about it, but I've never heard of anyone wanting to go to Penn. Not that they aren't a good school. I'm sure they are. But it just never seems to be on anyone's wish list of Graduate Architecture Schools.

Go Bearcats. ++

MEMO FROM THE DOG

2004-12-15T11:10:00.000-08:00

++ MEMO FROM THE DOG
.
Things I must remember (in order to keep my present living arrangements):

The garbage collector is not stealing our stuff.
I do not need to suddenly stand straight up when I'm lying under the
coffee table.
I will not roll my toys behind the fridge, behind the sofa or under the bed.
I must shake the rainwater out of my fur before entering the house.
I will not eat the cats' food before they eat it or after they throw it up.
I will stop trying to find the few remaining pieces of clean carpet in the
house when I am about to get sick.
I will not throw up in the car.
I will not roll on dead seagulls, fish, crabs, etc., just because I like
the way they smell.
I will not munch on "leftovers" in the kitty litter box; although they are
tasty, they are not food.
I will not eat any more Kleenex or napkins and then redeposit them in the
back yard after processing.
I will not chew my humans' toothbrushes and not tell them.
I will not chew crayons or pens, especially not the red ones, or my people
will think I am hemorrhaging.
When in the car, I will not insist on having the window rolled down when
it's raining outside.
We do not have a doorbell. I will not bark each time I hear one on television.
I will not steal my Mom's underwear and dance all over the backyard with them.
The sofa is not a face towel; neither are Mom and Dad's laps.
My head does not belong in the refrigerator.
I will not bite the officer's hand when he reaches in for Mom's driver's
license and registration.
I will not play tug-of-war with Dad's underwear when he's on the toilet.
I will not roll around in the dirt right after getting a bath.
Sticking my nose into someone's crotch is not an acceptable way of saying
'hello.'
I will not sit in the middle of the living room and lick my crotch when
company is over.
The cat is not a squeaky toy; so when I play with him and he makes that
noise, it's usually not a good thing. ++

LETTER FROM THE DOG..

2004-12-10T13:10:00.000-08:00

++ LETTER FROM THE DOG...

"Dear God,

Why do humans smell the flowers, but seldom, if ever, smell one
another? Where are their priorities?

When we get to heaven, can we sit on your couch? Or is it the same old story?

Why are cars named for the eagle, the cougar, the mustang, the colt, the
stingray, the rabbit, etc., but not ONE named for a dog? How often do you
see a cougar riding around? We dogs love a nice ride! Would it be so hard
to rename the 'Chrysler Eagle' the 'Chrysler Beagle'?

If a dog barks his head off in the forest and no human hears him, is he
still a bad dog?

If we come back as humans, is that good or bad?

More meatballs, less spaghetti, please.

When we get to the Pearly Gates, do we have to shake hands to get in?

Are there dogs on other planets or are we alone? I have been howling at
the moon and stars for a long time, but all I ever hear back is the
Schnauzer across the street.

Are there mailmen in Heaven? If there are, will I have to apologize?

We dogs can understand human verbal instructions, hand signals, whistles,
horns, clickers, beepers, scent IDs, electromagnetic energy fields and
Frisbee flight paths. What do humans understand?

May I have my testicles back?

Signed,
The Dog"
.
++

TIME'S A WASTING

2004-12-01T11:22:00.000-08:00

++ "TIME IS GOD'S way of keeping things from happenning all at once." ++

HAPPY THANKSGIVING

2004-11-25T19:54:00.000-08:00

++ HAPPY THANKSGIVING!! ++

ROLL CALL

2004-10-22T07:16:00.000-07:00

++ ROLL CALL.
tom?
gary?
joe?
steve?
samee?
mark?
cliff?
lisa?

who am i missing?
++

GO RED SOX!!!

2004-10-21T14:52:00.000-07:00

++ GO RED SOX!!! ++

CONGRATULATIONS JEANNE AND MATT

2004-10-09T14:10:00.000-07:00

++ CONGRATULATIONS JEANNE AND MATT!
the newest of the newlyweds! may your lives together be long and sweet! ++

RECENTLY HEARD AT WORK . 03

2004-10-07T06:50:00.000-07:00

++ RECENTLY HEARD AT WORK . 03

“you know what bothers me the most is the people typing. i don’t know if it’s the sound of the tapping keys or if its just that i know they are typing faster than me.”

“if engineers do engineering, then what do architects do?”

“christmas I think will happen this year.”

“hey the meter maid is ticketing your car.”
(sitting in front of the computer yelling at the meter maid outside.)
“go get life you witch. go watch poker on television. bite me.”
“did you put money in the meter?”
“no, there wasn’t any meter.”
..30 minutes later..
“they’re gonna tow your car. do you want me to move it for you?”
“no, the liscence is expired.”
“really?”
“yeah, its ok though. it’s my sister’s anyway.”
“so are you going to be needing a ride home?”
“yeah.”
..15 minutes later as the tow truck arrives..
“oh, i need to get software out of the trunk.”
(talks to the meter maid. gets software. comes back inside.)
“so what’s the verdict?”
(sitting down)
“oh, i have five minutes to move it.”
(thinks for a second.)
“oh, maybe i should go move it.”

“forget turner. he’s a republican. he doesn’t count anyway.”

“days off for christmas and new year’s will be 12/24, 12/27, and 12/31.”

“20,000 on a website. i’m going to make it work.”

“i think rick and norm are going to get together and have an epiphany.”
“and maybe a budweiser.”
++

SPOTTED AGAIN

2004-10-06T05:30:00.000-07:00

++ I'VE BEEN SPOTTED again, this time gracing the pages of (gasp) geeklogs computer news i'm not sure whether i should be embarrassed about that or flattered. ha.
++

GOD AND POWER

2004-10-04T22:00:00.000-07:00

++ GOD HAS ALL the power in the world (that is if you believe in god) and yet he didn't make eve eat the apple. he let her choose to eat the apple.
..
and yet we as the american people (or even we as a society) (or even we as a worldly population) feel we have the power to decide other people's fate. we feel it is up to us to tell people what is right for them. we believe it is our right and we believe we are doing 'them' (whoever it happens to be) a favor to tell them their way of living is wrong and the choices they make are wrong.
..
how arrogant are we?
++

KERMIT THE FROG!!

2004-09-14T05:38:00.000-07:00

++ THANK YOU TO the person who visited Cartwheels Down the Red Carpet and then came to my site. you have given me the pleasure of another website, Sarah Bright Eyes.
..
oh, so many links, which one should you click. you should for thank you sake visit their website, even if its just for a second. it may or may not be your cup of tea, but thats not the point. its a thank you from you for me to them for linking their website.
..
and now, the whole reason why i even cited their websites.
..
this one's for you Kermit The Frog and your ever so frogged up songs. The Rainbow Connection. ++

BACK FROM PITTSUBURGH

2004-09-13T11:19:00.001-07:00

++ From a weekend of celebrating a friend's diminishing bachelorhood..
..
listening to a friend talk to his girlfriend over the phone while in the car
"i spent $200 last night .. .. i know, but you aren't 7 guys .. .. i love you."

a friend referring to the name of a girl at the nudie bar
"you know what's in new york? brooklyn."

getting ready for 3 hours of paintball. referring to the male 'unit'
"i'm not wearing my unit socks. baker says when you play paintball, you have to wear unit socks. i know where i'm aiming."

two friends talking about women
"i go by time zone. i'm a faithful man."
"oh, really? i go by area code."

following tom to paintball. tom suddenly pulls off the road. we follow
"pull up next to him! pull up next to him! oh! oh! wait! he's puking! back away! back away! oh that's disgusting! i can see it from here! keep backing away!"
"hey matt, it's only the first night."

++

OFF TO PITTSBURGH

2004-09-10T17:22:00.000-07:00

++ For a weekend of celebrating a friend's diminishing bachelorhood..++

BACK FROM SAN FRANCISCO..

2004-09-09T20:58:00.000-07:00

++ From a week of helping a girl get settled in..
..
..
..
..
..
..
..
..
..
..
if you love her, let her go.
if she comes back, keep her and love her forever.
..
..
..
..
..
..
..
..
..
..
++

OFF TO SAN FRANCISCO..

2004-09-03T10:34:00.000-07:00

++ For a week to help a girl get settled in.. ++