The Seventy-Two Hour Day

Yes. It felt like one long, never ending day. This weekend's three city triangle started in Chicago and ends back in Chicago. Somehow Madison and Milwaukee (twice) got in the way. There were too many lessons to be learned, so I'm going to fire off a lot of random thoughts. Grab yourself a cup of something...light up a cigarette...and stretch your legs. Stuff happens.

- So I'm sitting at lunch with the bossmen. Here I sit, trying to enjoy myself considering that I have to make small talk outside of the office. Nervous stock brokers dined all around us. They were unwinding after another stressful week earning dollars for wealthier people. Between harassing the female servers, and screaming at the Golden Tee Machine...the gentlemen managed to get scolded by a male server...and it wasn't for harassment. They were throwing spitballs. I don't think I've seen a spitball in ten years. Seeing a bunch of dudes in their thirties get scolded for tossing spitballs was the last thing I expected to see that day. I had to laugh and shake my head.

- Another good time was had by all at Live Band Karoke. I had to play it low-key so I decided to drive my car. What's that you say? You're wondering how I could get around, get home, and still have good time without getting drunk? I managed to pull it off. It's possible to have a good time at the bar without touching more liquor than necessary. Ain't that something?

- Saturday was reunion time for an old group of friends. Out of all the different close-knit "crews" I've had over the years, this was always the most entertaining. Over the years, I've watched the dramas unfold without ever getting involved. As a result, the bonds grew pretty tight while I've remained at an arms-length distance. From this vantage point, I'm glad to see that everything is going well. The rich history has lead to many hilarious situations. This week was no exception. Let the good times roll.

- The previous paragraph was intentionally aimed at this hometown crew of mine. I didn't know that they represented a growing segment of my "audience." Confidential to yous guys: Hi.

- Have you ever worn a sport coat to a social function because you knew that you weren't going to know anybody there and knew that you wouldn't remember any names or faces? It's kind of fun. Everybody thinks you're some kind of classy guy when in reality...you're still wearing fat pants and the shirt came from the back of your dad's closet. I'm not sure what I fooled these people to think...but it's probably hilarious.

- Moving sucks. I don't look forward to moving all of my shit at all. I'm not going to ask my brother for help this time around. He's a pro at it...but despises the process. I don't blame him.

- Attention baseball fans: Larkin, Casey, and Griffey represent the best 2-3-4 combination in baseball. Take notice.

- Driftless Pony Club played a great set a the new rock club in Madison. They got us to dance with shoes on our heads while screaming for the band to plug the new Garfield movie. Well...the band didn't make us do that...but they set up the mood perfectly for us to act like idiots.

- I drove from Madison to Brookfield after the show. I left town a little before 1 am and was asleep by 2:30 am. I was tired as hell, but I needed to sleep on a bed. A second consecutive night of fighting gut-rot while sleeping on a random couch didn't appeal to me. As long as there are cars around you...Driving while sleepy is indeed possible.

- Driving through the parking lot of Stein's Garden and Gifts, I saw a license plate tagged "THA-644." That was the first time I ever thought to myself: "damn...I wish I had a camera phone." Hopefully that will be the only time I desire a camera phone. About three people will completely get this paragraph. The rest will just wonder why a license plate like that gets me to think about camera phones.

- The apartment perpendicular to mine is now occupied. Now some dude can look right into my apartment. *sigh* I now have to go back to leaving one set of blinds drawn 24 hours a day. Oh well...just three more weeks.


I give this joke one more week before STV and I get annoyed.

Well...I've spent too much time on this post. That's all I have. Enjoy the shortened week.

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Seven P.M. Central Daylight Time

Actually...let's officially call it just before seven of the clock. As you can see, the sun is even higher at the same point. Five months ago, I came home to darkness...now, I arrive to bright, bright sunshine.


30 January


12 February


26 February


11 March


25 March


08 April


23 April


11 May


24 May

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Quick Thought

Credible as the threats may be, the terror alert is still at yellow. Perhaps the new and improved homeland security team will thwart any attempt at stateside terrorism. I think I understand why they're being vague about the threat. That's a good move. At the same time, the public will still develop fear and paranoia. Keep in mind that the election season has six months to go. A presidential campaign preying on that fear can be very, very convincing. I'm not going any further with this. You can take it from here. It's merely food for thought.

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Baseball and Violence

Miller and I took advantage of the half-price ticket deal and got ourselves fourteen dollar seats on the 6th row towards the end of the first base line. The Sox lost the game. They had serious issues with leaving runners on scoring position.

That's not the interesting part for you readers. The sensationalized rumors about Sox park being a "rough place" were true in some part today. We were close to the bleacher section and got a good view of some action. From the second inning on, a fight broke out in the almost every inning. For the record, there were probably seven in left field and about six in right. We had a very good view of two of them. I got the sense that these guys would scrap because they knew security would break up the fight eventually. It almost seems like they look for fights. It's like a fight club. For the price of a disturbance ticket, you can take your issues out with other meat-heads. There were kids sitting near us. They were cheering the brawls. Classic.

Win, lose, or punched out...A good time was had by all.

Some visuals:

Okay. They really need to give this thing a rest. A Blues Brothers revival is not what we need. Also...I'm getting really, really sick of hearing "Sweet Home Chicago" played at every public event.


Magglio O. patrolled right field. Being close the the players, everybody patrolling right field could hear us. A former Cub was playing right for the Rangers and people were hollering plenty of comments at him. During one at-bat, a father and his little girl (wearing a Magglio O. camp shirt) got Magglio's attention. He looked over at us. I checked the diamond and saw that the pitcher got his signs from the catcher and was set to pitch. The first thing that came out of my mouth: "HEY! DON'T LOOK AT US. PAY ATTENTION TO THE GAME!" Yes.


Although Big Frank pisses the fans off with his primadonna whims to the media, the fans still love to see him hit. Frank hit a homerun and drove three other balls to the warning track. I guess he was "dialed in" today. Whatever. Sox still lost.

Other scattered thoughts:
- For some reason, I think a woman who likes to watch baseball (whether on TV or in person) and roots for the Sox would totally attract me. A woman with that to offer would win me over. So it's come to this, huh?

- Why are people scared of the south side of town? It's like every area in the city: some places are really nice and some places are complete shit. What's the fuss about?

- One of these days, I'm going to publish my baseball image gallery up. My collection of baseball-related photography is starting to grow presentable.

- Never eat Arby's and Taco bell for your two meals of the day. You'll regret it. Seriously...

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The day I ran Three Miles in Less than Twenty Five Minutes
(this post has nothing to do with running or bragging about being in shape)

So I'm watching UHF for probably the fifteenth time in my life (the first being in the theatres when it first ran). I thought I had caught every gag in the book. I was wrong. Do you remember the action scene where the thugs open the closet door with the sign "supplies" on it? Do you remember a bunch of Japanese dudes screaming "SUPPLIES!!"? It took me fifteen years to get this joke. Wow.

Does anybody know why the "we don't need no stinking badgers!" guy disappears halfway through the movie? The credits roll and they dedicate the movie in memory of that guy. I wonder what that's about.



(P.S. - I just killed a post talking about a "Weird" Al Yankovic vehicle. This is either a peak or a valley for this blog. I'll let you decide.)

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The Confused Weatherman

I was back in Wisco this afternoon. The weather was the usual: cloudy then sunny then stormy. Just before I left town, the civil defense siren went off. The damn thing was about 200 yards away from my brother's house. Those things are loud. Although it was sunny out there, I looked across the street and saw a father and his two kids. When the siren started, they looked at each other...then took of running. So we checked the TV for the special reports. The weatherman seemed really confused. He paused before every word and couldn't forecast which direction the storm was going. Either he was called into work from a cookout (drunk), or he was actually confused by the storm (scared).

Other items of note this lovely spring weekend.

- The Bachelor had his party. This was just another night out on the town. Close friends came into town and we sent him off in a purple blaze of glory. Based on what we knew about his lifestyle, a few guests of the party predicted an early exit. Bets were placed and a pot was formed. I had the correct call and bagged myself twenty five bucks. I just realized that I probably should have bought a round with that money....ooops.

- The map room showcases expensive beer, but free pool. While waiting to the play my first bar game of pool in almost two years, I watched a guy open up his own cue. He flashed his Cue cube, shaprened his cue, and carefully chalked the tip. On his first shot he stepped up to the table and looked ready to roll. He missed his first shot...badly. I was not surprised. His team lost before we could challenge them. We would have kicked their asses. Bar players like that are chumps.

- Last night's Carne Asada dinner may or may not have been the reason I didn't get sick after sipping two margaritas, a few vodka drinks, and the following shots: Wild Turkey, Planet Jager (twice), and Goldschlager. This all in a five hour span.

- New blog friends can be found on the list of blog links. I discovered that two of my friends named Peter and Pete do the online journal thing. Does my social life revolve around the internet, or does the internet revolve around my social life?

This coming week is sponsered by nobody.

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Sun. Rain. Sun. Rain. Sun and Rain. Sun. Rain.

The past week has featured the same basic weather pattern. Humid days and stormy nights. The nice mornings trick you into thinking the weather will be nice for a few days. Before you know it, the sun goes away and it's eerily dark at 10 am. This pattern is fun and annoying at the same time. My attempts to capture the cool ligtning strikes from my view sucked. I'll try this again if the opportunity arises.


On this shot, a building got in the way.


On this shot, I jerked the camera slightly...and a cloud got in my way.

I'll get this down eventually. Digital cameras don't have the nice feature of manually leaving the aperture open. With that luxury, I could wait for a few strikes before ending the exposure. As of now, I'm guessing the shots.

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The Machine Strikes

Client A seems hot under the collar to get something done. Business B has a bunch of offices around the world. Within that business B we have Office C and Office D. Client A hires business B to use all of its resources to help out Client A; thereby earning Client A and Business B a lot of money. Employee E works for Office C and is currently working with Employee F in Hong Kong. Client A requires that Employee F contact Office C Friday morning. Client A knows that Employee F will have to call Office C after work hours. Employee E realizes that Employee F will have to contact Office C at 22:00 hours on a Friday night. Employee E had to make this request of Employee F. Employee E feels bad about this. It appears that Employee F is a British lad living the dream in Hong Kong. Employee E has become the tool of Business B to exact punishment on unsuspecting Employee F. Should Employee E show up early to work the next day in hopes of taking care of business early so Employee F can get on with his life?

Sorry...I felt like I wanted to present a post like a logic problem. I expect answers on this. HA!

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Gettin' Greedy

I'd like to commend myself for getting greedy with the parking spots. Last night, I drove up to the park a little north of my place and found a spot as close to my house as possible. I checked the 'no parking' signs and didn't find myself at fault. It turns out I volunteered a fifty dollar donation to the city of Chicago. It was bound to happen eventually. I can tell that they're hurting for the money. Now I'm glad I'll have my own parking spot in a few weeks. Wait...parking spot?

Day five of sports participation (kickball) is complete. I feel the need to give myself a break. I have a feeling that the bike will call my name when I get home tomorrow. I'm turning back into "an athlete." This could be a good thing, no?

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The Day That Should have been Bad

I woke up to the following:

- My typical 'sleep-in.'
- The classic 40 degree day that followed an 80 degree day.
- Getting to work later than usual.
- Four voicemail messages (I average four every two days).
- Voicemail message #1 was five minutes long.
- Voicemail message #3 told me that the 9 o'clock meeting was cancelled.
- During voicemail message #4, I realized that I flaked out on a scheduled meeting.

As luck would have it, a suit called the meeting off before calling it back on. I missed nothing. As luck would also have it, there's a convention in town and the people I deal with on a daily basis had other things to do. What looked to be a rough day dissolved into me going home relatively early.

After work I played baseball.

Then Randy Johnson threw a perfect game.

Then I played Galaga.

Then I helped my mother over the phone with programming the VCR (again)...from a bar.

Good things are abound. Good things are abound.

(Applications now being accepted for : 'Shoulder Massage Girl.' I shall compensate with cookies. Save me the pain of a sore throwing shoulder. Apply now. You know how I do.)

I'm not sure if I'm serious about that last item...let's call it at half.

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Sports!

Before
Saturday : Tennis
Sunday : Attended Baseball Game
Monday : 10 mile bikeride before work. After work, I tossed the baseball around and turned down an invitation to play tennis.

After
Tuesday: Plan is to toss the baseball around and possibly hit things with bats.
Wednesday: Kickball
Thursday : Bikeride?
Friday : ???

That's a lot of sports participation in one week. I feel like a kid again save for the fact that my shoulder feels like it wants to fall off.

Before typing this nonsense, I walked my mom through the process of programming her VCR. I was able to tell her the exact location of certain buttons on the remote. Perhaps somewhere in my mind...I have a photographic memory. It was a 20 minute phone call and I didn't even get frustrated. Deed of the day = done.

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Glass : Half-full

Another weekend of consumption. It all started at 3:00 on Friday when my boss decided that we were to sneak out and throw a few games of darts. It all ends tonight where I try to make up for getting only five hours of sleep this morning. Fun things happened in between.

- Speaking of "half-full," I got on my homeward bus with nature wanting to call. That ride turned into a most uncomfortable ride home. The pain was enough for me to plot out the 'accident' scenarios. Luckily, it never came to that. Number one is just a state of mind.

- Three bands on Friday: May or May Not; This Moment in Black History; and New Black. While my afternoon hangover took the wind out of my sails (see opening paragraph), I managed to have a good time. May or May Not showed their continuing growth and cohesiveness on stage. This Moment in Black History played enjoyable hardcore shit. That and they were funny. New Black seemed to have a lot of fun during their set. After a tour in Europe, I bet they were happy to be playing in front of friends again.

- Tennis was played this weekend. Mikey is a smoker and lost his breath. I realized that my footwork needs quite a bit of work. We have quite a way to go if we're going to take over the tennis world. You heard me. We're taking over.

- Much Meat was consumed at the BBQ hosted by friends in New Black. I was only there for two hours. I hear they fired up that grill three more times. Great American cook-out : complete.

- Coming home (alone) at 4:10 this morning = necessary. I paced myself and had a can of ravioli before going to sleep. Not the healthiest way to unwind on a weekend...but that's the way it goes when you're a dude like me.

- Today was baseball day. Sox beat the Twins and a Brewer did something cool. Out of the eleven runs scored by the Sox, Steve and I missed the first six. We were standing in line for over twenty minutes while the other lines closed shop. I'm not sure what we were thinking, but it was a good day to be at the ballpark.

My new baseball glove is still in break-in mode. Hopefully it will be ready in time for this summer's spontaneous throwdowns. Having neighbors will increase chances to throw the ball. Wait...Neighbors?

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Scattered

Just like the weather. I give you scattered thoughts.

- In 8th grade, I lost my baseball glove. I couldn't ask for another one so I just kept it on the 'things to buy' list. In high school I found a glove in the gym locker room. I think it belonged to a guy in my gym class. I kept it and used it until yesterday. I needed a mitt of my own. Everybody should have a baseball glove. You never know when it might come in handy.

- My third DMV visit in six months was finally a success. I paid my dues and am a registered Illinois driver. That means I am "one of them." If you grew up in Wisconsin, you probably know what I mean. To the folks back home, Illinois tags on a car mean that person is automatically an asshole on the road. Now that is me!

- Last night, I surprised the family on Niece Ruby's 1st birthday. Niece Ruby is a cute ball of fun.

- ESPN's baseball tonight just dissected a hitter's batting stance. This batter happened to be a Milwaukee Brewer. I bet that hasn't happened in years. Woah.

- Hot and humid is not fun in the spring. Save that shit for summer!

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Spring is Here...and stuff

A few days ago, I was at my parents house and something caught my eye as I walked into the garage. My peripheral vision told me that something wasn't quite right. There was something in the bushes just outside of the garage. Usually that bush houses sporting goods. This time around, I saw this.



That's a nest. Those aren't candy eggs. A robin has cleverly built a nest low to the ground and out of sight from above. I hope a cat doesn't find its way over there. This weekend, there were two eggs. Tonight I took a closer look.



Two more eggs in three days. I haven't done the research yet, but I bet that will be it. I don't know if I'll see the hatchlings...but I wish them eggs well.



The mother is nestled comfortably atop her treasure. For some reason, she lets us get pretty close. I could get about five feet away before she scrambled off. Something tells me the bird knows humans.

Back in '97, a family of ducks built a home at our house. The pair would waddle around the yard all day long and chill. One day I came home from school and noticed that there were egg shells and splatter marks on the driveway. The ducks were nowhere to be seen. My mom told me that she heard a bunch of crows making a lot of noise in the front yard but didn't know why. The crows found a feast at the expense of other animals trying to live a normal life. I hope history doesn't repeat itself here. Bird, bird, bird...the bird is the word.

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Just a Little Higher and a Tad Bit to the North

Let's start way back in January and make our way to Today. Welcome to Week 13:


30 January


12 February


26 February


11 March


25 March


08 April


23 April


11 May

Addendum to yesterday's post: I saw the same guy asleep on the street corner this morning. Half of his body was off the sidewalk. As I walked by, a police officer was shining his light in the guy's face. Then the cop drove off. I guess showing a sign of life is good enough for the cops.

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Just Give Him a Hand

I spent today's solo lunch trip looking out the restaurant (okay...McDonald's) window. Among the endless parade of people walking by was the corner homeless guy. I usually see him at the same corner every afternoon grabbing change from passing cabs. Today I noticed him getting assistance from the local firecrew. They stood him up and pulled him out of my view. Two minutes later the truck drove off and he was standing there. I thought the episode was over. Not quite. On my way out I saw the guy struggling to stand himself up on the sidewalk. I felt compelled to help him out, but lingered across the street long enough to see two other people come to his aid. I'm not sure what was wrong if the firemen already left him be. I hope it wasn't because he was homeless. I'm hoping he gets through this episode. As for me, I'm not sure if seeing a problem and not acting on it was wrong on my part. But if that guy asks me for some change...I might drop him a buck. I'm not a fan of suffering...but too weak to physically help. I should work on that.

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The Weekend I Got Writers Block

Um, yeah. Nothing too profound this time around. Stuff happens and I drop a few random thoughts in your direction. I haven't posted here in four days. That's an unusual interval. Let's make that up with a big fat non-sensical post.

- The visit back home for the mothers day thing was fun as usual. My mom is happiest when any of her children are at the house. Conversations fly and I do nothing but say very cynical things. I always seem to point out flaws in their logic every time I open my mouth. I don't know what it is. Am I subconsciously trying to prove that I'm a smart person or am I just being an ass? Hmm....

- I shall return the favor and give a little holler to a fellow blogger. He happens to be father of my buddy Jon. Mister Shugart's musings take a cerebral approach to the things jogging his mind. Take a look!

- Yes...it does seem that my image galleries feature only festive occasions. I've been meaning to do something about that. Don't worry. One of these days, I'm going to take my camera out and not photograph someone holding a beer. I guarantee.

- Depending on how bored I get this week, the "blog roll" on the left will increase. It's time to creep out more strangers via web tracking stats. Hilarity may ensue.

- As luck would have it, I spaced out on my progression picture on the only nice day last week. Nothing but clouds hid the afternoon sun for most of the week. I will keep this thing up and post the latest entry to my window progression as soon as I can.

- Conversation got pretty political at the dinner table this weekend. I don't think that has ever happened before. I suppose these are heady times and people need to vent their frustrations. Discussions got intense at times. I guess that is what happens when you take my family and hold back the daughters-in-laws, package engineers and chiropractors from the dinner table. All that was left at the dinner table: (1) the political science major, (2) the mother; (3) a very conservative father and; (4) a cynical kid who likes to give his parents a hard time when he doesn't agree with them. Good times.

- While I don't agree with what my father had to say...I'm happy that I got a close look at the mentality that will cause this country to subject us to four more years of this administration.

- For the second time in the last three weeks, my weekend began when I looked around my empty pod and said to myself: "okay...It's 3:30 and no one is here. I give myself permission to leave." I'm starting to get used to this and I'm not sure if that's a good thing.

- Last Thursday it was eighty-five degrees at 4 p.m. I made up my mind to invite a few folks up to the roof that night. By the time we made our way to the roof, it was fifty-six degrees with a stiff and chill wind. Just my luck.

- Watching parts of two Brewers games on TV was the personal highlight of this weekend. They're fun to watch these days. I'm still proud to say I never gave up on them. Wow...I need a life.

- I was on a conference call with two friends on Friday. We were planning an upcoming event in honor giving up life as a bachelor. Halfway through the conversation, somebody said: "It's 10:30 on a Friday night and I'm talking to two guys." Earlier in the night, I had decided to stay in, but after that comment it didn't take much to get me to go out.

- Yes...I did go out Friday night.

- One of my female guppies is enormously pregnant. Soon, twenty to fifty organisms will be subjected to a Darwinian race to survive. Let us all wish them the best of luck. I'll be happy with one survivor. Hopefully having no predatory shark will increase that estimate.

- In case you're wondering, breeding nets never worked for me.

- I have a gut feeling this will be a very interesting week. Something is going to snap me out of this mental rut. I can feel it.

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So That's What They Do

The age old mystery of the "Meetup" was finally solved last night. Before tonight, I assumed that meetups for politically liberal causes would feature a bunch of liberals bitching about Republicans. I was sort of right. At our table there was a grumpy gus with nothing but spiteful comments about Republicans. All the others just asked simple questions of each other. No matter the question, everybody seemed to weigh in a political opinion with every answer (but not in a pretentious manner). Most of us at the table were there for the first time and just wanted to see how one could get involved.

The presentation started and the host said that since this state always votes democrat, his group would get involved at the local level. I respect the logic behind that. These were former Dean people and they probably won't sell out to Kerry just yet. However, K-co warned that this attitude probably got us in this mess back on 2000. I agree.

Anyway...we were treated to a visit from The Democratic Candidate for Congress in Illinois 6th District. She was a nice lady with good intentions. She mentioned that she used to be a computer programmer and it showed. Most of her talk was focused on where exactly she was going to campaign based on data she took on past elections. I mean it was very statistically based...the nerd inside of me could only smile. I send the Good Luck Hen in her direction.

The opportunity to affect change came in the form of a cold-call list (and a chance to be a voter Registrar). You would call people up and remind them who they should be voting for. I tend to ignore calls like these that come my way. I didn't volunteer. At the same time, I should learn how to cold-call if I'm going to take the next-step at my job. As for the meet-up, I'm not sure if I would ever go to another one, but I count this experience as worthwhile.

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The Day I Left a Really Dark Post

On yet another windy day, I found myself fighting the wind to take care of some business. Walking down the sidewalk, I noticed a piece of newspaper floating around in the wind. It was folded carefully and what faced me was an article with the headline: "Body found in Suitcase Prompts Investigation." The first thing that entered my mind: "Wouldn't any body found in a suitcase prompt an investigation? Does that headline mean to imply that on a normal day a body found in a suitcase is not investigated?" The second thought that entered my mind: "Who would clip this article?" After my haircut, I was walking past the same area and the same news clipping was on the ground. The first thought that came to my mind: "Who would clip this article?" I bet you can guess what thought followed the first one...If you guessed "pork chops for dinner"...you were correct.

It's my civic duty to post this article here. Don't read this if you're convinced the Armed Forces is comprised of America's finest citizens. It will only spoil that fantasy.

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That Hasn't Happened Before (Bonus Ethnic Version)

My buddy P.J. and I pulled up in his car in front of my building. Two seconds later, another car pulled up behind us. I stepped out of the car and five people got out of the car behind us. They were headed into my building. I turned around and two other people got out of another car parked across the street. We all stepped up to the front entrance together and entered through both doors. I looked at the entire group of people walking into the apartment building and I noticed something: we were all Asian. I'm pretty sure it would look pretty intimidating to an old lady standing in the lobby. I've never had that happen before...but does the mention of race matter?

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Eat, Drink and uh...Do Something

T'was the weekend of consumption. Call it the weekend for: Consumption of hot-dogs, consumption of Vodka, consumption of a Medium-Rare Steak, consumption of music, and a consumption of quality family time. I made a stranger laugh, a baby smile, and dropped a quarter for stale chicklets. Good times, I tell ya.

- I have purchased two tickets to see the re-formed VH show in June. My fellow Van halen enthusiasts all opted to spend more than $400 for their tickets. If it's not the original lineup, I'm going cheap. Now...all I have to do now is find someone willing enough to join me. Edward VH could die from cancer in the next ten years. I want to see this guy live every chance I get.

- Speaking of the previous paragraph, I have to borrow a post from the WWB:
Spinnah: I was at a record store in Mill Valley, when in walks Mr. Kabo Wabo himself: Sammy Hagar. He was chatting with the owner of the store about getting back together with the Van Halen boys for another go around:

Sammy said: "Yeah, even though I can't stand those guys, the songs are killer and the money is great...I couldn't say no."

He also said: "They're [Eddie and Alex] just clowns, but Michael is a great guy."

I knew it wasn't a reunion based on healing wounds...ha!

- The boss decided that we should sneak out early and grab a few beers. This was 3pm on Friday. The weekend of consumption began thanks to work. I got home and took a nap for an hour.

- Try the pork tenderloin at the Chicago Brauhaus. What is even better is the atmosphere on a weekend night. A two man band provides the music, while old ladies doing the chicken dance provide the entertainment. The singer with the mullet might even try to get you involved in a train running around the dining room...you can't say no to that.

- Having been fed enough beer for the night before 11pm on Friday, I switched to Vodka. The consumption of Vodka spanned two nights out on the town. Sometimes it's nice to not drink whiskey during weekend outings. My body feels cleaner, too. Hmmm.

- Take a look to the updated bar on the left. A few of the titles comprise made my donation to the recording artists. I do a lot of "sampling" from the internet...once in a while, I pick up what I feel worthy of the cash. Right now Sticky Fingers is on the player right now. The second half is currently blowing my mind right now. The Stones can sure do a number with the blues songs.

- In what is turning into a weekly event, I visited another niece. Baby Vivian looks exactly like her parents put together. She even has the same stare that my brother has. I love genetics. The baby loves to cry, but I managed to get a smile out of her. Smiling babies make the world go 'round.

- Today's spontaneous mealtime decision was made to go to the Filipino Buffet place. I stuffed myself with the eggrolls, pancit, an eggplant/beans dish, and sinigang. I could eat those three items every day. Wait...I sort of grew up on that stuff. I'm going to try to take all of my friends to this place. It's a good meal.

- Having bought my plane tickets for a June wedding, I finally have my first official plan of the summer. For the first time in my life, I had to make a calendar. I'm doing it on my computer, too. This is a big step considering I'm a guy who thinks planning puts a limit on possibilities. I'll get over myself and chart it all out. There's too much to do these days.

Speaking of which...it's time to take a shower and watch a DVD. The weekend ends soon.

. . [~] . 0 (Grumble) Grumbles .