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Wed, Apr. 18th, 2007, 09:22 pm
Unity
"I don't want to sound Pollyannaish, but I hope that out of a tragedy like this something good will come. I hope we understand we're one family."
Madeleine Albright
Not that anyone is probably reading this, but I wanted to express my sympathy to those at Virginia Tech.
Wed, Nov. 1st, 2006, 12:58 am
"Now what else is the whole life of mortals but a sort of comedy, in which the various actors, disguised by various costumes and masks, walk on and play each one his part, until the manager waves them off the stage? Moreover, this manager frequently bids the same actor to go back in a different costume, so that he who has but lately played the king in scarlet now acts the flunkey in patched clothes. Thus all things are presented by shadows."
Erasmus
For those of you who might be curious, I do feel that I now have gotten my money's worth out of my costume, though I could have gone to South Tampa tonight, invited by a group of strangers, including cute girls, who invited me along just because they liked my costume... Good times. To those who are interested, pictures will soon follow. :D
Sat, May. 13th, 2006, 09:03 am
Croon
"If you develop an ear for sounds that are musical it is like developing an ego. You begin to refuse sounds that are not musical and that way cut yourself off from a good deal of experience."
John Cage
No pictures, no video, don't write anything down*, deny, deny, deny.
*I'm breaking my own rule here to say only this. Karaoke night. I'm awesome. And my disappointment in learning too late to sing it that "Baby Got Back" is actually on the song list is somewhat tempered by the knowledge that we will probably do this again.
Thu, Apr. 27th, 2006, 10:08 pm
Junket
"The saying "Getting there is half the fun" became obsolete with the advent of commercial airlines."
Henry J. Tillman
My Trip To Vegas
My flight left Tampa at 9PM. Nonstop flight to Las Vegas, so it touched down in Vegas at 11PM local time. I checked in to the hotel and went downstairs to get something to eat. I was amused and impressed with the casino section of the hotel. Lots of bright flashing lights, people mulling around, party over here, party over there. I found a restaurant in the hotel. I was hungry, so I ordered the prime rib, even though I felt like $28 was a bit high for a steak. That was until they brought it out. I swear, that slab of meat was so big they must have gotten it from the "Thunder From Down Under" show. I ate then went to sleep.
I spent most of Sunday morning exploring the hotel complex. I ate brunch at the House of Blues, played some slots, and just wandered around the various shops. The whole place felt like an indoor city. However, while impressive, I did get bored around mid-day, having run out of things to do. Vegas isn't much of a town when you're by yourself and don't like to gamble.
The conference started that night, and once it started, I found myself very busy from that point on. The breakout sessons were very informative. Our sales rep pointed out a couple of sessions that he thought would interest me, and he was right on the money. I guess that's why they pay him the big bucks.
Monday night, I went to see Blue Man Group at the Venetian. That was one hell of a show. If you ever get the chance to see them, I would highly recommend it. After the show, it was a nice night out, so I walked from the Venetian back to Mandalay Bay. It was about a 45 minute walk, but also fun. I got to see all the hotels and casinos and do some people watching. Given more time and a lot more money, I might be able to have a good time there.
Tuesday, the conference wrapped up. I took down some notes on things that I had learned that I wanted to
apply to my job, as well as other ideas that popped in my head as I was there. That's what I love about the conference. Not only do I get to hear other people's ideas, but it also gives me some free time away from my job to sit back and think about things we could be doing.
Wednesday was a day of travel, as my flight left Vegas at 12:50PM, with a one hour layover in Houston. Given that a major conference was just letting out, I figured it would be in my best interest to get to the airport early in order to give myself enough time to get through security. Wednesday was a blur to me. All I know is that by the time I got back to Tampa at 10PM local time, I was tired, kind of hungry, and glad to be home.
I may be getting used to flying. Take-offs and landings still freak me out a little, but on Wednesday, I was so tired that I didn't care, and possibly had given up the will to live. On the upside, there were no snakes on a plane.
And now, to wrap up this boring entry, is my Vegas-inspired playlist. The Vegas Mix.
Artist / Album / Song
Tom Jones / Reloaded: Greatest Hits / It's Not Unusual
U2 / The Best of 1980 - 1990 / Desire
Madonna / Music / Don't Tell Me
Various Artists/ Pure 90's / Lovefool (The Cardigans)
Michael Jackson / HIStory: Past, Present & Future, Book I Disc 2 / Money
Stevie Wonder / Original Musiquarium I Disc 1 / Superstition
Jamiroquai / A Funk Odyssey / Little L
INXS / The Greatest Hits 1 / Mystify
The Cars / Complete Greatest Hits / Magic
Peter Gabriel / Shaking The Tree: Sixteen Golden Greats / Big Time
Talking Heads / Little Creatures / And She Was
Bruce Springsteen / Greatest Hits / Human Touch
Janet Jackson / All For You / All For You
Mary J. Blige / No More Drama / Family Affair
George Michael / Faith / Monkey
Shakira / Laundry Service / Objection (Tango)
Alannah Myles / Alannah Myles / Black Velvet
Sheryl Crow / Tuesday Night Music Club / All I Wanna Do
Elvis Presley / 2nd To None / Viva Las Vegas
Wed, Mar. 29th, 2006, 10:24 pm
Education
"Think like a wise man but communicate in the language of the people."
William Butler Yeats
I heard a story today that further proves how much I wasted my college experience. Apparently, one spring break long ago, someone saw a guy dressed up as a pirate, standing on the balcony of his hotel room, reading the Penthouse Forum to an audience of women. He apparently did not read them with a pirate accent (Arrrgh), but if he had, that would have been really kick awesome.
In completely unrelated news, I went to the Bodies exhibit in Tampa. It was rather interesting. I always forget how large the liver is, and how small the brain is. Its amazing to see the human body from the inside out, broken down to its smallest part. During the exhibit, I kept thinking to myself "I am Jack's Medula Oblongata." "I am Jill's Nipple". "I am Jack's raging Bile Duct." "I am Jack's Colon. I get cancer, I kill Jack."
Also, the largest muscle in the human body is the gluteus maximus. That knowledge makes me happy, for some reason.
Fri, Mar. 17th, 2006, 07:43 am
Green
"St. Patrick... one of the few saints whose feast day presents the opportunity to get determinedly whacked and make a fool of oneself all under the guise of acting Irish."
Charles M. Madigan
ANOTHER IRISH DRINKIN' SONG
by DA VINCI'S NOTEBOOK
Gather 'round ye lads and lassies, set ye for a while,
and harken to me mournful tale about the Emerald Isle.
Let's all raise our glasses high to friends and family gone,
and lift our voices in another Irish drinkin' song.
Consumption took me mother and me father got the pox,
me brother drank the whiskey 'till he wound up in a box.
Me other brother in the troubles met with his demise,
me sister has forever closed her smilin' Irish eyes.
(Chorus)
Now everybody's died, so until our tears are cried,
we'll drink and drink and drink and drink and then we'll drink some more.
We'll dance and sing and fight until the early mornin' light,
then we'll throw up, pass out, wake up and then go drinkin' once again.
Ken was killed in Killkinney, Claire she died in Clares,
Tip in Tipperary died out in the dairy air.
Shannon jumped into the river Shannon back in June,
Ernie fell into the urn and Tom is in the tomb.
Cleanliness is godliness me Uncle Pat would sing,
he broke his neck-a-slippin' on a bar of Irish Spring.
O'Grady he was eighty, 'tho his bride was just a pup,
he died upon the honeymoon when she got his Irish up.
(Chorus)
Joe Murphy fought with Riley near the cliffs of Alderney,
he took out his shillaly and he stabbed him in the spleen.
Crazy Uncle Mike thought he was a leprechaun,
but in fact he's just a leper and his arms and legs are gone.
When Timmy Johnson broke his neck it was a cryin' shame,
he wasn't really Irish, but he went to Notre Dame.
MacNamara crossed the street and by a bus was hit,
but he was just a Scotsman so nobody gave a...
HEY!
(Chorus)
Me drunken Uncle Brendan tried to drive home from the bar,
the road rose up to meet when he fell out of his car.
Irony at once befell me Great Grand Uncle Sam,
when he choked upon the very last potato in the land.
Connor lived in Ulster-town, he used to smuggle arms,
until the British killed him and cut off his lucky charms.
And dear old Father Flanagan who left the Lord's employ,
drunk on sacramental wine beneath the altar boy.
(Chorus)
Someday soon I'll leave this world of pain and toil and sin,
the Lord will take me by the hand to join all of me kin.
Me only wish is when the Savior comes for me and you,
He kills the cast of Riverdance and Michael Flatley too.
Now everybody's died, so until our tears are cried,
we'll drink and drink and drink and drink and then we'll drink some more.
We'll dance and sing and fight until the early mornin' light,
then we'll throw up, pass out, wake up and then go drinkin' once again,
then we'll throw up, pass out, wake up and then go drinkin' once again,
then we'll throw up, pass out, wake up and then go drinkin' once again.
Tue, Feb. 14th, 2006, 08:36 pm
Adoration
Love is a snowmobile racing across the tundra and then suddenly it flips over, pinning you underneath. At night, the ice weasels come.
Matt Groening
A couple of weekends ago, I went with my friend Andrea to the Ink & Blood exhibit in downtown St. Petersburg. I thought it was really fascinating, though I did find it somewhat sad to see how many people died for their desire to translate and publish the Bible for the masses. I was also impressed with the displays and the layout, and I couldn't help but think how Kathy would have really liked the fonts they used, especially for the logo. ;)
I also saw Brokeback Mountain last weekend. It was an OK movie, but I didn't see what all the hype was about, really. Other than the shock value of gay cowboy sex, of course.
At work today, I gave everyone in my department Cookie Monster Valentine's and some chocolates. I bought Cookie Monster ones, because they were the best I could find while I was at Target. I was disappointed that I couldn't find old school generic "I Choo-Choo-Choose You To Be My Valentine" cards. Everything was branded and commercial. Yu-Gi-Oh cards, Scooby Doo cards, Batman Cards, Bratz cardz, etc. Maybe I got there too late. Maybe Target is too cool for that, and I should have looked at Wal-Mart. At least the Cookie Monster ones were pretty sweet, though I would have preferred Spongebob ones.
Did I mention that I have a crush on every girl? *ARROWED!*
Thu, Feb. 2nd, 2006, 08:38 am
Clique
"True happiness is of a retired nature, and an enemy to pomp and noise; it arises, in the first place, from the enjoyment of one's self, and in the next from the friendship and conversation of a few select companions."
Joseph Addison
Olivia already beat me to the punch with a weekend review. So instead, in list form, things I crossed off my list last weekend:
1) Drank mead, though I did not have a large mug to slosh to and fro (I'm all about the sloshing).
2) Saw the sun set at the #1 beach in the US, Fort DeSoto.
3) Ate at a tapas restaurant. (That's a tasty pair of tapas.)
4) visited ratemypoo.com
5) Learned a quality ST:TNG drinking game.
Add to the mix a day of playing hooky to watch Star Trek and X-Files (SPORED!), and good times indeed.
Thanks guys, you're *awesome*!
Now, I need to shower, because my friend Eric is in town, and we're off to hob-nob with people more important than us, if that's possible...
Sat, Jan. 14th, 2006, 01:14 am
Affable
"I was always taught to respect my elders and I've now reached the age when I don't have anybody to respect."
George Burns
My first day in my 30's is officially in the bag.
I know I've been moody lately, and I thought most of it was due to this impending milestone. I realized this morning that the true cause of my melancholy wasn't my age. At least, not directly. The truth is, I've been very lonely. I don't have that many friends in this world, I can count them all on my hand. And here, where I live, I have only one person whom I can call friend (and by friend, I don't mean people I like and get along with, I mean people whom I can call up and go do things with, or just hang out and do nothing). I think it would be nice to have neighbors or friends who can just pop in whenever, chill out, play video games or watch football, grill out, or just sit around, drink beer and bullshit. How cool would it be to have a "Lawrence" in your life telling you to check out the chick on channel 9.
I guess having a major birthday magnifies such self-perceived shortcomings in one's life.
So today when, after work, I'm told to meet my friend Andrea at a local bar for some drinks with some people. I'm expecting to find the usual suspects there, friends that she hangs out with occasionally. Imagine my surprise to find that, waiting there for me are about 10 former coworkers who all came out to wish me a happy birthday. I've been moping around wondering what kind of impact and meaning my life has had, and here are these people, most of whom I haven't seen or spoken to in almost 2 years coming out to wish me well. I have to admit that I was moved, and it was exactly what I needed. I got to chat with different people and catch up on their lives. I had a chance to be social. It felt good. That's what's been missing from my life.
And, as if that wasn't enough, I also got to see Charlie Murphy perform at the Improv in Ybor City. Good times, indeed. I just hope the carriage doesn't turn into a pumpkin at midnight. :)
Fri, Jan. 13th, 2006, 12:00 am
Curmudgeon
"Well, birthdays are merely symbolic of how another year's gone by and how little we've grown. No matter how desperate we are that someday a better self will emerge, each flicker of the candles on the cake we know it's not to be. That for the rest of our sad, wretched, pathetic lives, this is who we are to the bitter end. Inevitably, irrevocably. Happy birthday? No such thing."
Jerry Seinfeld
Happy birthday to me. I am now 30. Nothing left to do but spend what few good years I have left working, then wait to die.
Perhaps I'm a bit melancholy because, as I'm getting older, I'm starting to see birthdays not as a marker of how much time has passed, but little checkpoints counting down what little time I have left. It also doesn't help that I don't have a strong faith that there is anything, good or otherwise, waiting for me after I die. There's a good possibility that I will just wink out of existence. Poof. No more Frank. Its a little frightening, because I can't imagine not being. Like the line in the Matchbox Twenty song, "Long Day", "I'm here all the time, I won't go away".
Logically, this shouldn't be a cause for depression, but instead motivation to live life to the fullest. But whenever I try to imagine myself going out and being free and doing whatever the hell I want to, I get this gnawing sense of dread. I'm not sure what I'm so afraid of. I need to work on that.
Then again, there's always the possibility that I'm just a whiny bitch who's full of shit. One can never rule that out.
Oh, and while I'm complaining, why in the hell is it so hard to get a good haircut at a reasonable price? I'm going to have to start going back to the salon and paying $25 plus tip for a haircut. I mean, my hair is really all I have going for me. Thick, lustrous hair is very important.
Wed, Jan. 11th, 2006, 11:48 pm
Divergence
"Health is not valued till sickness comes."
Dr. Thomas Fuller
My Mom got back the biopsy result. Thankfully, it came back negative. They also discovered the cause of her chest pain/discomfort is asthma. I'm slightly amused at how differently you can feel about finding out your Mom has asthma when the initial diagnosis is cancer.
"Aw wow, you have asthma? I'm sorry to hear that."
versus:
"You have asthma? Yay!"
I'm also slightly jealous that my friend David has an evil doppelganger in Texas. Actually, I don't want an evil doppelganger. I want to *be* an evil doppelganger.
Sat, Jan. 7th, 2006, 09:39 am
Stagnation
"To resist the frigidity of old age one must combine the body, the mind and the heart - and to keep them in parallel vigor one must exercise, study and love."
Karl von Bonstetten
I'm better this morning, but 2006 has not been off to a good start.
After having fun in Jacksonville setting off ordinance, I forgot to pay my rent on time, and had to "beg" the property manager to let me slide, just this one time. Bah. I know I was late, but I hate being treated like I'm a deadbeat, especially when my track record proves otherwise, and especially when I think that a $157 "late fee" is a tad bit excessive. At least they waived the fee... My mom had to have a biopsy on a growth/lump in her lung, which the doctors think may just be an infection, but still need to test to be sure. And then last night made me feel like a completely inept social ass. Plus, I'm sure that all of this is being magnified by the largely looming ginormous birthday, which will chronologically confirm my status as a geezer.
I think part of the problem is, the more I reflect back on my life, the more I realize that, for the last couple of years, my growth as a person has pretty much stalled. Sure, I've become more financially stable, I have a stereo that is very decent, a wardrobe that is getting very respectable. I'm so close to being complete. But emotionally, mentally, I don't think I've evolved much at all. All I know is that I can look at myself right now and see that I'm not the person that I want to be, and I can also see that I've made no progress toward that goal. That's depressing.
I really need to get to work on that. One thing that I have realized, though, is that I need to make sure I cherish what few friends I do have, even if the majority of them live hundreds, if not thousands, of miles away. I also need to quit being so hard on myself. I need to remember that I'm not a loser, even if I am no Eddie Van Blundht, either.
Fri, Jan. 6th, 2006, 10:17 pm
Stupid
"The worst loneliness is not to be comfortable with yourself."
Mark Twain
2006 sucks.
I should have known better to try to have a good time. I'm not sure which makes me more depressed; that I'm too ugly and fat to hang around, or that people would think I'm too dumb to know that I've been ditched.
Either way, its probably not best to listen to "Fix Me Now" by Garbage, but I am anyway. I like kicking myself when I'm down.
Wed, Dec. 21st, 2005, 04:01 pm
Infatuation
"I'm dating a woman now who, evidently, is unaware of it."
Gary Shandling
I can never resist a good quiz, especially one like this. It also doesn't help that we have a new girl at work who is so cute she's making me stupid. D'oh!
( Quiztastic! )
Mon, Dec. 19th, 2005, 11:18 am
Parsimony
"If more of us valued food and cheer and song above hoarded gold, it would be a merrier world."
J. R. R. Tolkien
Here at work, we have a little tradition called "The 12 Days Of Christmas", where people bring in all sorts of food for 12 business days. Its lots of fun, because you get to try a good variety of foods, and you don't have to worry about breakfast or lunch.
Last week, I brought in David's famous bacon-wrapped hot dogs in brown sugar. I made two packs of hot dogs and brought them in that morning. I put the tray down at about 8:45 AM. By 9, they were all gone. Many people didn't get to try them, so I decided that I would make a bigger batch and bring it in this morning.
I made 4 packs of hot dogs worth of the delectable treats, and put them out at around 8:30 AM. This time, they lasted a bit longer, making it all the way to 9:15. I also brought in recipe cards, because I was getting tired of telling people how to make them.
Because I was in a cooking mood, I also made some chicken and pork adobo (which I was going to do alone, until I decided to also do more hot dogs.) This also proved to be wildly popular. I find it strangely satisfying that I am able to make people happy with food, and I'm sure some of that is self-congratulating that I can cook a decent meal.
I find it funny that I do enjoy cooking, but I don't cook for myself. Part of it is that I hate cleaning up. Doing dishes is the bane of my existence. Not to mention that I always make a sloppy mess of the kitchen when I do cook. But the other reason is that, like everything else I do in my life, I always go overboard. In the case of food, I always cook enough for 5 people, even though I'm usually only cooking for me. This means 5 days of leftovers, and I'm not a big fan of leftovers.
I understand the theory of moderation in all things. I just don't practice it.
Thu, Dec. 15th, 2005, 10:25 am
Adulthood
"What I look forward to is continued immaturity followed by death."
Dave Barry
I was in Publix on Monday doing my usual grocery shopping, and I decided I wanted to get some cereal. As I pondered which cereal I should by, I had a flashback to when I was a little kid, and I would want to try a new cereal, like LIFE or Honey Comb, and not being able to; my Mom wouldn't buy it because no one else in the family wanted it. Now, standing in that aisle, I realized I can buy whatever I want. I'm an adult. If I want LIFE, I can buy LIFE. If I want JIF peanut butter instead of Skippy, I can buy JIF. I can be a choosy mother.
Enpowered, I looked over the selection, determined to buy what *I* wanted. Yet, as I scanned over the ginormous selection, I could not decide what I wanted.
I can do whatever I want, but I have no idea what I want. That's pretty much the epitome of my entire adult life. I am a 30 year old boy.
I have Christmas shopping and vacation on the brain. Somebody please think for me, I can't bear to...
Fri, Dec. 2nd, 2005, 09:25 am
Compulsion
"There is no reason for any individual to have a computer in his home."
Ken Olsen, President, Digital Equipment, 1977
It's not enough that, having a fat, completely digitized music collection on my home computer, and that said computer is hooked up to my stereo for my listening pleasure. Oh no, I had to have mobile music.
I had to have an iPod. Needed. The new order: Shelter, computers, food (Mt. Dew & Doritos, specifically), then clothing... then again, if you're not going to go outside ever again, do you really need clothing? Esp. if Xbox 360/PS3 is lumped in with computers... In fact, replace "computers" with "technology"... there that feels better.
I did discover that the only thing more daunting than sifting through a 140GB music collection to find something to listen to, is sifting through that same collection to find 30GB to put on an iPod. Its surprisingly hard, but not for the reasons you may think. I currenly only (only!) have about 16GB of music on it right now, because I was having trouble deciding what I wanted to take with me. I ended up grabbing mostly the stuff I hadn't listened to, but had heard of. I figure I can get learned while at work, the car, and the gym now. But filling it up started to become tedious. After you've added 2,300 songs, how many more do you need? I'm not planning on playing this thing for 2 days straight.. but I could.
I'm thisclose to being complete...
Thu, Nov. 3rd, 2005, 04:31 pm
Cherish
"Feeling grateful to or appreciative of someone or something in your life actually attracts more of the things that you appreciate and value into your life."
Christiane Northrup, M.D.
One of my coworkers brought in lemon cake today. She brought it in because she baked it for her son (she said it was his favorite), but no one touched it.
The cake was delicious, so I'm glad she brought it, but thinking about it makes me sad. It really sucks when you do something for the people you love, and it goes unappreciated. And I know I've been guilty of not appreciating more times than I'd like to admit. Something else I need to work on.
It probably also doesn't help that, during lunch today, I heard part of Jim Rome's interview with Jim MacLaren. This guy lost his leg in a motorcycle accident, and goes on to compete in the Ironman competitions, and becomes the fastest amputee athlete in the world. Then he gets hit by a van and breaks his neck, and becomes an incomplete quadriplegic. He also overcame a cocaine addition, and now is a motivational speaker. The man's life could be considered a painful tragedy, yet he's one of the happiest people in the world. I'm not sure I'd have that kind of fortitude.
I often need to be reminded of how lucky I am, because as human beings, its easy to get swept up in our own little problems. I'm fortunate to be where I am, and to have friends and family who love me and care for me. I need to make sure I let them know.
Tue, Nov. 1st, 2005, 02:23 pm
Guise
"'Tis now the very witching time of night, When churchyards yawn and hell itself breathes out Contagion to this world."
William Shakespeare
Yesterday, on Halloween, I put on my Ghostbusters costume (the one I almost lost my thumb on), and went to Publix to buy some candy. I'm still amazed at the reactions I got from it. Peoples faces really lit up. The manager of Publix gave me a $5 gift certificate because he said it was the best costume he had seen all night.
Then, I went over to Andrea's to help her hand out candy. There weren't a lot of trick-or-treaters out, but I was amused by the reactions to my costume by the parents (Hey, its a Ghostbuster!), versus the reactions by the kids (What are you supposed to be? What's a Ghostbuster?).
After trick or treat, we went out to the Green Iguana, which was pretty empty, except for one very excited 21 year old, who was celebrating his birthday. The kid also happened to be a huge Ghostbusters fan. I posed for a picture with him. Thankfully, this all happened before he went out to the car to throw up. Happy birthday, kid.
Overall, I'm pleased with how Halloween turned out. Now that I have some time to work on it, I'll probably reinforce the Proton Pack to make it more durable, then maybe work on a Ghost Trap and PKE meter. Everyone needs a hobby.
Wed, Oct. 26th, 2005, 10:32 am
Calamity
"Mishaps are like knives, that either serve us or cut us, as we grasp them by the blade or the handle."
James Russell Lowell
It wouldn't be a proper do-it-yourself project without some accident that involved self-mutilation. So, one trip to the ER, a tetanus shot, and 3 stitches later, I'm happy to report that my thumb is still attached to my hand.
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