Leftover Chinese Looks at the Calendar

Seven Months down, Five to go. If you set yourself some goals and haven't started yet, get moving. Fall is a mere eight weeks away.

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

Leftover Chinese and the Settling Dust

So what does any normal human being do after concluding a road trip out east? Why, he piles on the stress and moves apartments, of course. Starting the evening I got back into town and ending last night when I emptied all but one of the hastily packed boxes, I've made the big move. Across the hall.

The walls desperately need some color, but I'll worry about that when I have a long weekend to kill. Otherwise, everything is unpacked and the apartment looks clean save the CD boxes I don't look forward to sorting.

So...lessons learned:

- Although the easiest physical move I'll ever do, it was the most overwhelming since nothing was really packed. I must have gone back and forth between apartments way more times than necessary. There's a lot to be said about packing things up to make life easier.
- It will take some time to eradicate the smell of cats and replace it with...cat.
- Anybody recommend a decently priced CD shelf?
- If you know me well or have lived with me, you may have noticed I have a habit of emptying whatever change sits in my pocket in random places. I collected all the loose changed collected over the past four years and well...I filled half a goldfish bowl. I accept that I do have a problem with leaving change everywhere.
- What good is a glass chess set if you don't know where to put it?
- I spent a long time pondering how I could make the layout different than previous. With the walls and doors the way they area...I couldn't think too far outside the box.
- Where can I find a nice dinner table?
- Uneven floors = uneven aquarium = leak will spring in the next year or so.
- Finally...a porch.

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

Leftover Chinese Makes it Back in One Piece

For some reason my family is convinced I don't have a day job anymore. Not sure how/why they think that, but it's interesting.

So yeah, a few months ago I had left my brothers house in the middle of Dane county Wisconsin at 9:30pm and drove 90 miles east straight to a bar to meet up with some friends in Milwaukee. I thought that was a weird thing to do until last night when we left after the show in lower Manhattan and drove 13+ hours straight back to Chicago. I'm glad I have the extra 12-15 hours to recuperate.

Every few miles in the state of Indiana there were signs asking motorists to report unusual overpass behavior to the cops. We didn't really know why that was until we saw a newspaper (highway sniper) at an Arbys just across the border back in Illinois. Woah.

Anyway, the trip was good. Many pictures were taken, and NYC is still a-okay in my book.

Pictures? Stay tuned.

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

Leftover Chinese Sweats it Out

It's a classically humid day over here. Rain's been off and on and unlike last fall, roaming the streets is more of a chore than a treat at times. We saw some shoes, some tents, and people selling their crap on the street. Just the way I like it.

New York activites so far have been the usual reunion scene. I caught up with one person from the hometown last night and he asked us to explain to him all the fuss behind myspace dot com. For those familiar, it's a difficult thing to explain. Try it. For those unfamilair...um, it's complicated. First question answered.

I pulled myself off the air-mattress this morning to accomplish the laundry chore. An hour of people watching on the sidewalk teaches me that everybody is friendly on a sleepy morning...and that people you see at the bar the night before look drastically different without makeup or alcohol. Second question answered.

Tonight looks like a nice chiller to this 'day off' on tour. There are rumors abound about a bowling outing...

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

Leftover Chinese Goes Back on his Word

Greetings from Brooklyn, NY.

Yeah. Internet access has been limited and well...we're too busy making fun of things on the highway and cutting out pictures from Maxim. It's almost the halfway point of the vacation and it still feels like Tuesday night. Got some rain, mug, and we just sat through the I-95 parking lot for the past few hours. Good times. Lessons learned since we left town:

- The Happy Valley region in Pennsylvania is indeed happy.
- Washington DC is still pretty segregated.
- Indiana and Ohio are states best enjoyed at night.

So far so good.

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

Leftover Chinese is Set to Go

The bags are packed, earplugs stocked, batteries charged, new laptop power adapter secured, and loose ends are hopefully tied. Yes, tonight we hit the road for a Great American highway adventure that takes us out East. Six days and nights of driving, music, 'twenty questions', and suspect eating habits await us. Hopefully, a good story or two will be told.

Giving a 'blogosphere' nod to my friend Pete (who just got back from tour), I'll attempt to write something every day about the people, places, and things we encounter. Perhaps I'll find the answers to questions such as: How many wooden floors will I sleep on? Where exactly will I lose something important? Did I run into anybody from the hometown? Did I really need to buy that fancy laptop backpack last night? Was the crossword puzzle book really worth nine dollars? Are the Brewers going on a winning streak? Will I execute my plan to pack light with hopes of visiting a laundromat in Brooklyn on Saturday? and finally...did I wake up somewhere unfamiliar with no recollection of how I got there, or conversely, will I have to help a bandmate find their way back from a mysterious destination?

We'll see...

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

Leftover Chinese Visits the Aquarium


SUP LOL?

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

Leftover Chinese Gets Balloons

Two mysterious balloons adorned the cube today and I didn't notice their existence for the first few hours at the office. Eventually the light bulb went off and now I'm reminded of the main reason I wound up in this city.

Yep. Four years in Chicago. Four years at the same day job.

Cheery "Happy anniversary" greetings by the few passerby today creep me out. What am I supposed to celebrate today? The day I'm covered by a health plan? The day I showed up spiky haired and eager to earn that money? It's a superficial day at best.

Regardless, there are some observations about the day job worth noting:

- Since I have a 'Don't shit in your backyard' policy towards dating at the office, the "coulda/woulda/shoulda" list is in my estimation getting embarrassingly lengthy.
- The actual people who hired me couldn't care less about said milestone, and neither do I.
- I'm pretty sure former co-workers wonder why I'm still at the same job/company.
- The grass has never looked greener on the other side.
- However, I'd have to find the other side first.
- When you're no longer 'entry level' nor 'middle management'...what does that make you?
- Despite internal bickering, it's not a bad place to be paying the bills and I should be happy to be gainfully employed right now.
- Corporate America still sucks.

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

Leftover Chinese Hits Year Number Four in The City

So far so good, except...
- Four years closer to 30 and still avoiding serious responsibility.
- I could probably stand to be more proactive with the daytime 'career'.
- Base-Ball gets watched a lot more than before.
- Should have gotten off my ass earlier.

Not so bad because...
- The so-called 'plan is to not have a plan' has worked out so far.
- It's basically an adult existence.
- Both coasts seen...and Texas.
- I think I know what I'm doing.

Disturbing trends...
- The Chicago adventure started in a top floor highrise on the lake. Now crawling westward on the ground...with a cat.
- People keep talking about their 10 year High School reunions.
- Comfort level in the city increasing.
- I own three suits, two ties, and a lot of dress shirts.

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

Leftover Chinese Gets Grass Seats


Michael McDonald takes it to the proverbial streets. (or literal, as it were)


I'm convinced Donald Fagen is a robot.

Yes, indeed. Last night featured a visit to Tinley Park, IL for a comfortably attended performance by these aged rockers. Steely Dan played nothing but hits. Michael Mcdonald spent an hour on his Motown favorites. I could have lived with out hearing "Heard it on the Grapevine" for the seven-thousand-sixty-fourth time. Some guy behind us was hoping to hear "China Grove." Wrong Doobie Bros era, friend.

While the show wasn't a rocker, highlights included:
- A near-vomiting/intoxicated woman being lead to the bathroom (or her car).
- An extremely excited 16 year-old-kid doing a McDonald impersonation after McDonald's set.
- Polo shirts, khaki shorts, and Mardi gras beads.
- A woman shown on the jumbo-tron playing the combination air-guitar/air-drums.
- Women behind us screaming at each other to 'Call DAD!!!' during "Do it again."
- Stupors.

Outdoor Stadium shows. You gotta love 'em.

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

Leftover Chinese Leaves Town for the Fourth Consecutive Weekend


Heat. Grass. Pool. Alcohol. Bags. Corn. Mosquito bites.

Third annual trip to West Bloomfield, Michigan completed. The host family's hospitality was much appreciated by all. Although the trip was one day longer than originally planned, it was a good time.

Lessons learned:
- Whiffle ball is still fun.
- There is such a thing as a mini-calzone.
- You will inevitably learn quite a lot about other people over two straight days of sitting next to a pool.

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