Appreciation and Bile (Time to live with your decisions)

Tonights post will be short because I am tired from movie night.

Thanks to those who came, I think we successfully demonstrated the genius of John Carpenter and Kurt Russell.

To those that acted super excited but then bowed out at the last minute and I do mean, literally the last minute, and you were several, it's over between us, good luck with the rest of your lives.

Thank you god for the rain although it makes my life at work extremely difficult, I still enjoy the change.

Thats it, I can't take it anymore, I'm buying an Xbox 360 tomorrow, don't fuckin try to stop me! I need this. When GTA 4 comes out I want to have a good understanding of the Xbox controller. So there it is.


I would like to suggest this, I can't think of stuff to talk about so I would like you to suggest topics.. You put it out there and I will pretend to speak intelligently on it. And I do mean ANYTHING. Let's make a game of it, come up with something ridiculous and see if I can post a few paragraphs on it.

Also, I'm working on a top 5 Rock Bands post, so those of you who are members and can access drafts, no peaking, it spoils it.

Look at Randy's new Picture. Two things I miss, The Crown and Randy Moe. He would have enjoyed movie night. Come home soon my brother.

So Much Things to say Right Now

Its that time again. No I did not get my car smog checked today. I think I'll go first thing tommorow morning. (I have serious difficulty spelling the word tommorow, yes I see you you little red fucking line, but I ain't changing the spelling, so Fuck off.)
You'll never believe what I did today. I got up and went to work. again. Ah, it wasn't so bad. I had a product demo today. Those are insanely bad. You won't truly know human nature until you've asked a salesman a question regarding expected results of a product and seen the look on his face as he struggles with the moral question of whether to tell you the truth or not. Then I learned how to drive a scissor lift I had to show my crew who have worked there for 10 and more years that it was not impossible to clean light fixtures. Of course I did end up breaking a light bulb over my head, and not on purpose. We had a guy win a law suit recently when something similar happened to him. He claims he now can't think straight. I would have argued that he never could in the first place, but the city attorney never met him before his unfortunate little bop on the head.

I just got up to get a soda and might have broken my little toe. I was making fun of Lauri for watching America's Next Top Model for the 500th time in the last three days and I crashed my toe into the couch leg. Instant Karma's get you.

I sent this out in a mass text but just for clarification, you are all welcome anytime after 6:30 tomorrow (there I got it right) I thought I'd order food around 7 and we'll start the movie at 8pm. After that you all have to get the Fuck out of my house. Just kiddin' I hope you'll all stay for some post film discussion. I expect everyone to lay down a nice buzz, you'll enjoy the movie more. And no sleeping!

After this post I think I'm gonna watch 28 weeks later, even tough I know its going to be crap. In a world of blind men (or bad movies) the zombie movie is king.

Here are some Song Lyrics for you:

"havin' her on my brain's like gettin' hit by a train/shes gonna kill me/ and I don't mean softly"

"It's 3am 3 n----- just got hauled off in an ambalance, 2 n----- started bustin', and one n---- done took his shirt off talkin' bout "who else wanna fuck with Hollywood Cole?"

"There an old man sittin next to me, makin love to his tonic and gin."

"Strangers on this road we are on, but we are not two we are one.."

Well I'm sorry this post sucks, but thems the breaks tonight. See you tomorrow.

Another Post About Some Shit

I apologize for the lateness of the post. Have you been clicking the refresh button on your computer all day? I'm flattered. Man what a day. I long for the day when I'm not completely fried after work. Being fried after work calls for getting toasted. Or for those of you on the herbal tip, baked. Are you enjoying the cooking slang?

What's going on today? I don't know. I tried to watch Transformers but it sucks. I have to get a smog check on my car before Friday, but I have no idea when I'm gonna get particularly unpleasant chore done. I've also received a jury summons so that's super fun.

I'm sitting here staring at the screen wishing I had something fun to say. Maybe I should have promised a post a week, y'know let the stories and shit build up. Literally shit. What if I only posted and shit once a week. The shit would be the reward for the post. What would happen if you held you shit in for a week? I wonder, would you eat less? Maybe shitting once a week is the perfect plan for weight loss? Think of it in these terms, modern man considers it healthy to shit at least once a day, but maybe thats because we are able to shit so comfortably. Consider ancient man, ancient man had to shit outdoors and ancient man did not have the benefit of mass produced toilet paper. Imagine the wholly unpleasant experience shitting would have been for ancient man. Can we really believe that he did it once a day? I'm thinking more like once every two weeks. Then again ancient man lived til he was like 30 so maybe the everyday shit really is the way to go. Personally, I'm on like the 3 or 4 shit a day routine because I drink to much beer and eat too much.

I told myself that I wouldn't read Lord of the Rings again until I was 30, I wanted to get all the movie imagery out of my head before reading the books again. Now I'm 31 and still haven't read them. For one, I haven't got the movie imagery out my head (there are those that say I never will) and I really just haven't been in the mood. Lord of the Rings is good to read in really bad weather. Of course we haven't any that for a few years now.

I'm really looking forward to movie night, I'm stoked at all the positive feedback. The one thing about this movie, or this DVD I should say, that you won't get to experience is the audio commentary by John Carpenter and Kurt Russell for a movie nerd like myself its very insightful. This wasn't the only time they worked together, you'll remember The Thing, Escape from New York, and Escape from LA. There may be others that I'm forgetting.

I think thats gonna have to do it for today. Take it sleazy and I'll smell ya later.

Can't keep this up much Longer...

I think I should be let off the hook because I posted twice yesterday. But I'm not going to dodge my responsibility to the community. So here goes..."cricket...cricket..." I got nothin. Nothin but a headache. The thing about beer is that if you don't keep drinking it until you fall asleep, hangover tends to set in rather quickly. Especially when you are 31 and overweight. Well I say fuck it, I just cracked another beer and it's a Firestone Double Barrel so I am clearly not fucking around. I have 3 Netflix that I could be watching right now: Transformers, which after I get done with all the fast forwarding will be about a half hour of entertainment. I have 28 weeks Later which is a zombie movie so that will be fun. And I have the Hustler with Paul Newman, Jackie Gleason and George C. Scott. "I got a feeling Fat man I can't miss!" Frankly, Lauri won't stay in the room for any one of those so who am I kiddin. I'm looking forward to Big Trouble in Little China night. Its one of the few movies that I liked as a kid and can still appreciate as an adult.
I will take this opportunity to remind AJ that he has been commissioned to paint me an Old Ben Kenobi. ("Your powers are weak old man..." )Has it ever seemed strange to you that when Luke comes into Leia's cell on the Death Star and she get all bitchy with him and he intruduces himself as being with "Ben Kenobi" that she repeats it back in immediate recognition, "Ben Kenobi? Where is he?" Because in the recorded message she refers to him as General Kenobi and would clearly have known him as Obi Wan Kenobi. This has always struk me as strange because if you're hiding out all incognito from the Empire on some backwater planet and they know you alias all the way over on Alderaan, you're not doing a very good job of hiding. Oh, did you think we were gonna get through this post a day thing without talking about Star Wars? Doubt it.

Do you listen to SModcast yet? You should. This week you missed out on Americans being to fat and bottoming out boats on Small World at Disneyland and teenagers getting high by pissing and shitting in a container, leaving it in the sun and inhaling the fumes.

You know what I don't understand. People who think that they will have a job in a few weeks when they don't accomplish what I ask them to. I think I may be too nice. because I ask politely but what I really mean is, do it or you're fired. I've already fired 2 people you want to be next? I don't think so. I'll fire all you reading this just for the goddamn hell of it. Watch this..."I'm afraid things aren't working out, you're not meeting your expectations as a blog reader. So we've chosen to exercise our right to immediately terminate your employment. I'm sorry things didn't work out.." Actually that's not funny, firing people sucks even if they really deserve it.

Last week I was looking at tickets to Alaska for mid January, they were like $450 round trip. This week they are back up to like $750 I am confounded how can the exact same airplane ride cost $300 more over a 5 day time period. Clearly I'm not clued into the economics of air travel. Its no wonder the government has to constantly bail the airlines out of bankruptcy.

Here's something strange, I've become obsessed with my own iTunes top 25 most played list. I've been playing songs on repeat that I think deserve to be in the top 25 but haven't made it yet. I recently purposely bumped Cat Stevens "The Wind" in favor of David Bowie's "Life on Mars". Oh don't worry Randy I will not, at this juncture reveal the #1 on your top 25. No one would believe it if I did anyway. However, if someone out there wants to somehow entice me into telling them I'm open to that. It is I assure you, quite shocking.

In the spirit of Kevin Smith...Have a Day.

P.S. I'm gonna post this without proof reading...so...sorry.

It Has Been Announced

This is your confirmation. Friday night November 30 will be Big Trouble in Little China movie night at Me and Lauri's place. The movie will start at 8pm, we'll get some Chinese food to munch on and if anyone knows where to get some Tsingtao beer let me know and I'll pick some up. If you want Coors Light go ahead and bring some and if you can put $5 down on some Chinese Food that would be appreciated as well! Until then, keep your mind and spirit as one and remember its all in the reflexes.

My Insane Diatribe Against the Adventure Pass

I bought an adventure pass once. It was in Big Bear, we were staying at a cabin up there and I wanted to do a hike that was a few hundred yards down the road from the cabin. Being a good upstanding citizen, I drove a mile or to out my way to visitor center, paid my $5 and drove back to the trail head, hiked for an hour or two and that was that. That was the last time I bought an adventure pass. A short time later, at an event we had at the job (it was a geology show) there was a wild eyed activist who had rented a table at the show to rail against the adventure pass. I talked to him. He told me, what I later found out to be true, there was no actual penalty for not buying at Adventure Pass. He showed me his "notice of non-compliance" I looked at it carefully there was no fine, no notice to appear, nothing just a sort of vague statement to "don't do it again." I asked the wild haired activist (yes, he had wild eyes and wild hair) what purpose, in his opinion, did the Adventure Pass serve? He said, "It serves the purpose of creating a bloated government bureaucracy!" Well, I don't know if I buy into that, but I did resolve not to buy adventure passes anymore. Whats the point of obeying a law that no one bothers to enforce? It doesn't exist to remedy an unsafe condition like sppeding or running a red light. It exists to generate money..period. About a month later, I was hiking in Colby Canyon, parked on Angeles Crest Highway and I got one of these notices of noncompliance. I completely ignored it, nothing ever happened. There are no forest rangers staging a raid on my house, at least not that I'm aware of. Keep in mind this was all in the program's infancy, I've parked on Angeles Crest, probably a hundred times since that first notice and have never gotten another notice.
I guess that's my biggest argument against the adventure pass, that its never enforced. It feels like being taken advantage of. Its like, "yeah we don't really care if you pay or not, but if you're silly enough to pay us we'll take your money." I think the problem is this, to seriously enforce the fee , you would have to hire more rangers thereby eating up funds generated by the program. I was going to do a detailed list of points and point out that we don't know what the funds are being used for, but the Forest Service does, it seems, keep detailed records of how the fee money is being used on their website. But here's the thing, the Forest Service is not what you think it is. The Forest Service is not like the National Park Service and is not there to protect the natural environment. The Forest Service exists to manage logging contracts and land leases with timber companies and usually at a loss to the taxpayer. In A Walk In the Woods author Bill Bryson dedicates a few pages to how the Forest Service uses its funds. Mostly the Forest Service exists to build roads to the trees so loggers can cut them down. This is a government agency, funded by your tax dollars. Do you pay $5 every time you call the police or the Fire Dept.? No, thats because that 20% of your paycheck that disappears before you get it, pays for all that.
Did you know that the Adventure Pass exists only in Southern California and parts of Oregon? Thats because its an experimental system. Its called the "Recreation Fee Demonstration Program" it exists to research whether or not people will pay to recreate on public lands. Clearly since it's inception in 1994 the program has not taken hold across the country and now exists as a sort of donation program.
Jeff and I got into a debate about this the other night and he says I'm a freeloader, but this isn't so. When I camp on a Forest Service site I pay my fees. When I go fishing I get a license. If I go to a visitor center, I might even through a few bucks in the box as a donation, but I just don't see the use of a fee on top of a tax. I haven't seen any tangible results from the program. I've been hiking in the San Gabriels since I was 5 years old and I've yet to see new bathrooms, more rangers, or less graffiti on any of the trails I frequent. Nor would I want to. I ask very little of the forest. I ask for a trail and peace and quiet. Thats it. I piss in the woods and if I want to drink from the water I bring a water filter. And I pack out all my trash and usually trash I find on the trail. I don't want to see more urbanization of the forest. I don't want to make it easier for tenderfeet to go deeper into the forest, mostly they are just loud and what I'm trying to get away from in the first place. And guess what, if new tax legislation was proposed to help protect our forests from logging, hire more rangers and maintain trail systems...guess who's the first guy writing his congressmen.

Here's a few things that will confund you further about the Adventure Pass:

If you hike at Chantry Flats, on the weekend there is a Ranger there encouraging you to buy an adventure pass. On the weekdays its a ghost town. Whats the difference? I'm still technically in need of an adventure pass right???

You can Hike to Mt. Wilson from Sierra Madre or Altadena and not need an Adventure Pass, but if you hike it from Chantry Flats you technically need one. Three quarters of the way up its all one trail. In fact I could hike from Sierra Madre into Chantry flats if I was so inclined.

If you venture into the Azusa Canyon area, they actually have signs posted that you do not need an Adventure Pass on weekdays. Why? If the purpose of the program is to collect funds, shouldn't they be trying to get as much as possible?

The Chantry Flats trail head was closed for three years, where were the funds to get it back open? The Henniniger Flats trail is still closed due to landslide, where are the fees at work for that? Mismanaged, thats where.

My Facts here are not irrefutable and I'm sure Jeff is salivating waiting to post his rebuttal, but I don't care , I just don't like the program, its poorly run and not enforced. I feel my taxes and other fees pay for any impact that I might have on the forest. So I will continue with my small bit of civil disobedience.

I reserve the right to edit this post as I think of more shit to say...

A Post a Day

Thats my promise kids. I started this blog to talk shit about people and movie and music and shit like that. And to begin with, it was fun, and I don't mind tooting my own horn a bit, I think those post were pretty good early on. Lately, aside from a few exceptions, its been feelin like a chore. writing has become harder for me because I'm doing it less often. Well no more this is the first post in a long stream of posts. I'm going to try to keep up a post a day for was long as I can. And I'm going to try to make them quality posts not just the hit and run jobs I've been throwing up lately. I'm going to try not to talk too much about work and stick the mundane shit that was out bread and butter for so long. Here's the thing though, you are all characters in my life (and of course vice versa, I don't believe you are all actors or part of the matrix but I have my suspicions) so your name may come up in conversation. Don't be offended, I'm laughing with you not at you. Consider this post #1. I might get to post two today depending on how boring or exciting my Sunday is. I usually don't sleep on Sunday nights so we'll see how it goes.

Neither Rain nor sleet nor snow...ever

I don't say this very often, and maybe I don't even really believe it but fuck southern california. Jesus Christ I am so bored with the weather here. Nothin ever changes. Me and Lauri went for a walk tonight just to experience the little wind there was. It lasted half an hour and it was a hot wind. Now its back to business as usual, I have the sliding door open and I'm not even wearing a sweater. Will it ever rain here again? I'm not so sure. The thing is, layers of clothing work in the favor of a person of my particular proportions. I have all these great gap sweaters just sittin in my closet. I remember the wind, I remember the rain. I remember that these things once happened here. I remember reading in my room with the rain beating on the window or the wind rattling the sliding glass door. In a place where weather in an anomaly, you can occasionally defeat some boredom by taking an interest in whats going on outside. In a place where theres no weather at all everything just becomes too easy.

Sausage Bread

Buy a pack of pre-made loaves of bread (Bridgeford makes a pack of three you can find in the freezer section). Thaw it overnight in the fridge. Once thawed, set the loaves you are going to use out under a damp towel to rise for a couple of hours. Cook 1-1.5 pounds of sausage (Jimmy Dean sell them in tubes - spicy seems to taste best). Drain and cool the sausage when done. As the sausage cooks start working on the dough. You need to get it pretty flat and into a 18x12 rectangle. Put a layer of mozzarella cheese on the dough then sausage, then more cheese (about 1.5 cups of cheese or so - OK, maybe 2). Then roll it up like a jelly roll. Pinch it shut. Beat one egg with a tablespoon of water and brush it on the bread. Bake for 40-45 minutes at 350 on a greased baking sheet.

My Peoples if you with me, where you at?

My History of Music (Part 2)

So I left off where I was listening simultaneously to some hip-hop and some 80s/90s metalish music. This was about 8th or 9th grade. I was still pretty geeky, but was looking to become more cool, a nearly impossible feat for a fat, smart, socially awkward sophomore. So my "style" in 10th grade was a mix of my enjoyment of hip-hop (baggy everything), metal/grunge (flannel, with holes, sometimes jeans) and the jock side of me that played baseball (Oakley Blades, sometimes jerseys). Yes, I looked like a bloody moron.

In 10th grade I figured out that cool people liked classic rock. So, as Pete predicted in his comment on the previous post, I figured out that CCR was a great band (greatest ever? I don't know). I also listened to Hendrix, Led Zeppelin, Steve Miller Band, The Eagles (they were just starting comeback tour #4), and Santana. That was the bulk of my CD collection. It was also pretty convenient that my dad had many of these albums on LP.

It was also at this point that I more or less dropped the hip-hop. In the 90s I found one of my true love in music and I can't define it better than 90s rock. EMF, Jesus Jones, Ned's Atomic Dustbin, Sponge, Bush (a little), even Spin Doctors for a short time. I stuck with Guns n' Roses despite the "Spaghetti Incident" but dumped the rest of the metal sound. The grunge movement was kind to the portly teenager and I ran with it. Generally, my fashion sense was about 12-18 months behind the rest of the world (I got my first Birkenstocks in 10th grade - they were cool when I was in 8th), but I could easily justify flannels since they were pretty cheap.

After 10th grade I could no longer dodge my academic future. I had straight A's that year so they convinced me to get into AP classes, where people wore polos and tucked their shirts in. When in Rome... I also started to wear glasses off-and-on, which went really well with the tucked-in polo shirts. They also listened to the music that their older siblings listened to and I already stated that I never listened to Depeche Mode, The Cure, etc. So my musical tastes were all my own that point forward. I stuck with the classic rock phase for a while and even went to an Eagles concert during the summer after my junior year in high school. However, this was also the time that I first started getting into punk and ska. It actually started one summer at summer camp when I first heard Rage Against the Machine. Listening to that music was the first time I connected to the lyrics. I mean, let's face it - how much can you connect with CCR? Not me at least. From there I heard some of the newer pop-punk bands like Blink (later Blink-182), Green Day, Rancid, etc. - the more mainstream stuff. I'm not sure how fast it happened, but I dumped the classic rock right then and there - rarely to go back. (sorry Pete)

My senior year brought me more money and freedom (two jobs). I would guess that 75% of that went into going to punk and ska shows, buying punk and ska CDs, and buying t-shirs of paunk and ska bands. All levels of ska were great for me - skacore, 3rd wave, two-tone, Jamaican, whatever. Same for punk - hardcore, pop-punk, etc. Voodoo Glowskulls at the Barn. Aquabats at the San Bernardino Arena. Bouncing Souls at Showcase in Corona. DFL at the Underground in Redlands. It was all I did. That seriously lasted through college and into my first year or so afterward.

For some reason, once I hit 23 I stopped going to shows. I can't even say what my last show was. I stopped listening to punk and ska for the longest time. My preferences turned back to pure rock, fueled mostly by bands like Foo Fighters, Hot Hot Heat, and eventually White Stripes. Through it all I stuck with Rage Against the Machine until they broke up (sort of?). I also got more into jazz. In fact, my first real date with Amanda was something called the "Holiday Jazz Caravan" sponsored by K-Jazz where we could ride a shuttle from club-to-club to see different jazz bands/artists. (By the way, there was a previous "not real date" with Amanda which was just a night where we caught up after not seeing each other for a while after college. It was not a real date since we were hanging out with several friends. That may have been the last time I had a chili dog at Pink's).

The point of all this is that I looked through my musical history to see what part of my musical anthology has stood the test of time as far as my tastes.

Question: Do they still hold a solid place in my personal jukebox?
Parent's music: not even close
NWA - still a few on my iPod, but I still think Dr.Dre's "The Chronic" was one of the best albums of all time across all genres. So that's a yes.
KIIS-FM-fueled pop: dead as a blind dog on the freeway
classic rock: sorry, Pete. Hardly any (only Dylan) on my iPod and all of those CDs are gone
metalish rock: I can still listen to any Guns and Roses except anything after the Use Your Illusion series, but the rest is only there as a kind of joke - so I guess not really
90s rock: I practically get a boner during "Rock of the 90s" weekend on KROQ - strong yes
Punk: yes yes and yes
Ska: there are some of my ska CDs that I loaded on my iPod due to the in ability to ever replace them if the CD was lost, but a lot of that more poppy-3rd wave stuff is just not my cup of tea. There's this band called "Jeffries Fan Club that I thought was pretty dope back in my first year of college - now I can't stand them.

Hmm... that was kind of a weak finish to a long two-part post, but I hope you enjoyed it.

My History of Music (part 1)

This isn't a history of all music - just a history of the music that I have listened to. I loaded a bunch of CDs onto my iPod and as they are going through on the shuffle I am noticing that not all of my old CDs are that interesting anymore. So I looked at my old stuff and deep into my memory to bring you this archive of Jeff's musical interests. Most is probably not that surprising while some is downright shameful and hard to talk about. (I decided to break this into two parts since it was getting to be too long)

As a kid I really didn't have much musical taste. My first record was (I think) something like "Mickey Mouse's Parade" or something. At 2 years-old I didn't really get to choose, but I remember digging the hell out of it and maybe marching around the living room like I was in a marching band. There is even a slight possibility that this still exists in one of my parents' collections.

The lack of choice is what really defined my first 10 years as a music listener. Since my parents preferred Lionel Richie, Neil Diamond, and Michael Jackson that is also what I preferred. I feel like these days kids start liking music earlier than 10, but whatever. So there is a distinct possibility that all of the lyrics to Lionel Richie's "Dancin' on the Ceiling" are buried somewhere in my subconscious. Also, this was when we got our first stereo (we will always refer to my brother and I since, as twins, we never get separate "big presents" until much later in life). That stereo was an 8-track player and the only tape we had was Billy Joel. It was a dark time, but it got darker.

The one very positive music decision I made early in life was Beastie Boys. My brother and I had License to Ill (on vinyl) shortly after it came out. So you would think that things would only turn right from here. Not so fast my friend. Beastie Boys led us to KIIS FM, which led us to the absolute shit that Top 40 stations play. This includes C&C Music Factory, Color Me Badd, and I even think that either myself or my brother might have encouraged my mom to buy New Kids on the Block before we knew what that meant. I'm going out on a limb to say that it was my brother. Ask Amanda why I think this.

Strange enough, almost at this same time, I was getting into other music that would lead me closer to my own taste. My first black friend (I know it sounds bad, but I grew up in the 909) introduced me to NWA. He also introduced me to the idea that some kids call their parents by their first names as he always called his mom "Joy" and not mom. He also turned out to be a douchebag later in life. After that I found a short-lived love for late 80s / early 90s hip-hop. Granted, my parents would only let me have MC Hammer, Vanilla Ice and the Fat Boys, but I would go to the homes of my friends with less restrictive parents to listen to Slick Rick, LL Cool J (he cussed a little back then), 2 Live Crew and a little Public Enemy. I kind of stuck to this rap thing, but also ventured a little into alt rock.

This was about the time that KROQ only played the Smiths, The Cure, Depeche Mode, and other music for closet homosexuals as well as their counterparts - Oingo Boingo, Violent Femmes, and Jane's Addiction - bands whose fans would later produce our current EMO kids. Since I never like any of these shite bands I pretty much avoided KROQ like the plague (but was still listening to KIIS for some reason.) This would lead to my rock phase where I listened primarily to glam-type bands (Warrant, Motley Crue, Skid Row) who would lead me to Guns N' Roses, who would be the last "metalish" band that I ever listened to - it just wasn't my style. However, this is also the time that I got my first CD - Too Much Joy's "Cereal Killer". Too Much Joy is still probably my favorite band although I'm sure most people have never heard of them. In any case, they helped me realize that I like a little more mellow version of rock in most cases. This is also where I found one of my true loves in music - but that's for Part 2.

Part 2 sneak peak: 90's rock, grunge, punk, ska, jazz, electronica, up to today.

This has been your Movie and Television Review

I would like to retract my previous statement about Everest: Beyond the Limit. Last season was awesome. This season sucks. They turned it into some kind of Survivour on Mt. Everest. The climbers are all unrealistic douchebags, mostly leftover from last year. Fuck that show.

I saw Darjeeling Limited, the new film by Wes Anderson. Not bad, not great. Somewhere along the lines of The Life Aquatic. No where near the greatness of Rushmore or The Royal Tennenbaums.

For the most retarded movie I've seen in a long time, the award goes to "The Guardian" with Kevin Costner and Ashton Kutcher. When you have Netflix you order a lot to get your money's worth. It's amazing how bad Kevin Costner can be when he is trying to do drama.

I saw Black Snake Moan. I actually didn't find it that bad. Good Music, interesting characters, completely implausible scenario, but at least it was a somewhat original concept.

I'm anxious to see "No Country for Old Men" I'm a big Cohen Bros. fan.

Last Day

Well its my last day at a job that i've worked at for 8 1/2 years! I spent my all my 20's here practically. That's kinda sad. Am i sad cuz i'm leaving though? Nope! This place is a funny farm of just the strangest people you could imagine. You all think you have that one person who drives you crazy or who you think may actually be crazy? Well imagine a whole company filled with those people. I kid you not. I didn't get a farewell party either. I'm the longest working employee who's ever left and i get no party. I just want 5pm to roll around so that i can start a new chapter in my life. I start at the Civic tomorrow. It should be cool. I'm excited to learn something new. And everyone that works there is always willing to help you. That's nice i think. That's about it from here. I'll keep you updated on the new job experience in the coming days!

Stuff

Hi...i'm bored...really bored. So i gave notice to my job that i'm leaving and i'm in the process of pretending that i'm not here so that everyone has to find other avenues of getting the things they need. Unfortunately its going fine. So fine that i wonder why i'm here. I have nothing to do! There's small things that happen and i tell them what needs to be done, but once i correct them, it doesn't happen anymore. Now i know that's the way its supposed to go but i'm still stuck with nothing to do. My boss has decided to get rid of my position all together. So now my job has been divided into 3 parts. 3 parts with 3 people running each "department". Its not gonna work in the long run. Its gonna take some time for everyone to see that once i leave i think. Yesterday, at 4pm, my boss comes running into my office and hands me a very important order that needed to go out in like 20 minutes. It wouldn't be a problem if i were "here". But see, i'm not. If i were "here" i'd put the whole order together in 5 minutes and wouldn't even break a sweat. This new system he's created made him have to go talk to 3 people. Ridiculous. By the time the order was packed and shipped, those 3 "departments" were super stressed and so was my boss! And some how i was the one that got blamed? Blamed you ask? How? Well during the whole fiasco, he came to my office and in his little way, he told me that if this order doesn't go out right, i'd be in big shit! Needless to say, i was insanely angry! How dare he set up this whole system and then in the long run i'd be in trouble. He's the one who fucked up in the very beginning by giving ME the order. Stick with your new system buddy!!!! Ass. I can't wait to get out of here. So its now Wednesday, at....oh god...9:45am and i can't believe i have to sit here and do nothing. No one even talks to me, which is kinda great btw. But still, it gets to you. So that's the update.

In other news, if you haven't heard, Pete and I are headed to Texas this weekend. Nothing crazy, just the weekend. We leave Friday afternoon and get back Sunday night. It'll be my sister Sharon's bday on that Friday so i'm sure we'll hit some hilarious honky tonk bar. Culture shock for Pete! I can't wait! The weather will be great and there's the potential for a crazy Texas thunderstorm on Saturday. We'll take our camera and see what crazy Texas stuff we can get into.

Guess that's about it for now. Someone actually came into my office and needed help! I'll help them and then i'll be bored again. Let me know what your all up to! :)

Level 2 Answerer

One of my newest addictions is Yahoo! Answers. You can either ask or answer any question in a variety of categories. The more questions you answer, the more "points" you get. I have answered 54 questions, which really doesn't get you that many points (2 per answer). Where my addiction lies is in being voted the best answer, which nets you 10 points. Right now 25% of my answers have been picked as the best answers and have earned enough points to be a "Level 2" answerer. I generally answer questions in the beer, wine and spirits section, the soccer section, and the economics section.

Here is my best answer so far. Its about soccer. I was picked as the best answer out of 18, which is a lot by my standards.

Does this make me a nerd (or add to my nerdiness)?

Question of the Day

Whats a Moe?

Like some kind of blogging pheonix....

Hey Ratracers! hows it going? hope all is good in Cali. I've had the most chaotic and eventful year, but feel like I have passed into calmer waters now (or is the eye of the storm?). Have ended up working at a backpackers hostel in Wales, where, apparently I'm the bar manager. Those who remember my frankly heroic drinking sessions in the Crown will probably be thinking of emailing Cardiff Backpackers to warn them. But I assure you 90% of the time I'm sober (except in the first few weeks when it was probably more like 5%). The main duties of position are: talking shite to travellers, forcing my record collection upon guests, sleeping on the couch during night shifts and a little light cleaning.- it's the role I was born for!

Have also started doing a bit of music promotion type stuff- putting on gigs and club nights. Pete and Laurie, I dont envy you- I get stressed when dealing with a handful of people in a small venue- I dont know if I'd have the mental capacity to operate at your level!

anywho, hope everyone is good, will try to drop in more often.

Iechyd Da! (good health)

Plight of a Substitute

So I have been subbing for my Aunt since Tuesday. That's right it seems here in Cordova anybody can be a sub. The classes are small and no trouble plus she pays well. I am not really what you would call a substitute teacher though. I would refer to it more as a glorified babysitter.
The point I am trying to emphasize here is that I have nothing to teach because the lesson plans she leaves all instruct the student what to do and really allow me no free reign over what they should do or will do. It is a digital photography class by the way, I also teach a nursing class later in the day. She also gives passes to these kids in Digital whenever they ask for it so they can take pictures. It is rainy, cold and windy as a mofo outside right now and the only reason I am blogging now is because nobody is in the class. That's right people not a single student is now in the classroom. They all have a pass to go take "pictures." Yeah right. Anyway I feel like I am being taken advantage of a bit. But I can't deny the kid a pass. I am just the substitute. I have to abide by the actual teacher rules, don't I? If she gives out passes willy nilly I have to as well. Whatever all the kids here are rejects anyway. It is so sad. I feel somewhat bad for them because they have no idea what the real world is like and probably won't like it even if they escape Cordova. I also feel bad for them cause there is nothing for them to do. I see them aimlessly wandering around the front of the library, down First street. No wonder half of them are on drugs what else is there to do.

Yay!!!

Well it finally happened! I got a new job! I gave two weeks to my current job yesterday and i start my new job on Nov. 15th. What's my new job? Well it came in handy to have a second job at the Civic cuz they decided to hire me full time. So i'll now be an Event Manager there. I'm very excited!!