paved in good intentions

It seems that throughout the day and week I have many thoughts on subjects that would inevitable make wonderfully insightful and profound blogs. Problem is once I actually get to a computer, all those wonderful thoughts seem to get zapped by the likes of facebook, gmail, kayak, hokiesports, etc.

How is this possible? How can something that seemed to make so much sense to me be so easily erased by my ADD web distractions? Does anyone else always have at least 5 browsers open simultaneously? How can it already be 1am when I got into bed at 11pm?

If the original intent of this blog was to make me work on my writing, it is certainly demonstrating that creating any kind of cohesive piece is not as easy as I thought. I figured all these subject-driven thoughts and analytical zeitgeists would easily flow from the recesses of my brain to the computer screen. I certainly seem to have enough to keep me occupied while I'm on the bus.

Perhaps it is that half zoned-out stage where your mind wanders that is the best for creativity. My problem is finding some longevity for these internal manifestos.

In the age of technology, maybe my best solution is to start carrying a moleskine and jotting down at least some phrases to remind me of my subject matter. In so many ways I have things I need to do that never seem to get done. Let's add this one to the list.

Maybe I need to take a lesson from Yoda and finally have memorizing all the Stars Wars movies pay off in some way: "Do or do not. There is no try."

Song of the Day: Star Wars Cantina - Richard Cheese

Internet killed the t.v. star

I am often that person who feels that tv provides little to enhance the human experience; that the scattered few years I have lived 'without' tv (bunny ears and a few static channels) were more fulfilling than with. That I don't need television to provide me with entertainment and I am capable of entertaining myself. That although some use t.v. as a crutch to connect with others I am able to find commonality elsewhere.

This is not to say I don't enjoy the incredible channel diversity currently offered by my satellite package...but even with over 100 channels the only things I watch regularly are the Daily Show and the Colbert Report. Seriously. And I can get those on the internet...so do I really need to subscribe to cable? Is it really providing me anything additional that I can't get elsewhere?

Today on the bus I overheard a few people discussing McCain's version of his Obama Girl...and one guy who hadn't seen it yet said "well, you're the third person to tell me about it, so now I'm gonna go check it out." This made me wonder: has the internet become our new common ground?

With the advent of TiVo and various internet sources to watch shows, there is no longer that next day water cooler discussion of last night's show...often you hear "oh, it's on my TiVo - don't tell me yet!" - so rather than providing a shared experience, it instead becomes more isolating - you watch what you want when you want, and you don't want others playing spoiler.

Even I, the self-professed anti-tv idealist can't resist the internet...and I would never consider that a waste of time, even though I have often been up way later than I originally intended doing nothing more than watching YouTube...if it is something I personally chose to watch rather than mindless channel surfing does that really mean it is better?

Is new media considered better because it offers personal entertainment choices or just because it is the latest new media? Does our new-found 'shared experience' do anything more than make us more isolated?

oh - and as far as my attempt as eavesdropping while listening to headphones? I'm guessing they mean the McCain Mama...

Song of the Day - You Can't Do That On Television theme song

A morning Haiku

My mind keeps racing...
an impossibility
to articulate

Bitter With Baggage Seeks Pizza

One of my favorite books is by Sloane Tanen - Bitter With Baggage Seeks Same. It's mostly photos so it's just my speed. A friend recently sent me some mini chicks that resemble the stars of the book, so I thought it might be nice to set them up in some scenes of their own...


This was taken at Piecora's in Capital Hill, which is decent Pizza (IMHO, and by Seattle standards). Now, everyone has their own opinions on pizza, and their favorite pizza, and oh you can only get good pizza in Italy/New York/New Jersey/Chicago/wherever. I love pizza, even bad pizza. It just always surprises me that some people actually like the same pizza that I would consider to be my last choice; thick but not-deep dish, more sauce than cheese, kinda chewy crust, not easy to fold. I have actually had Seattleites tell me they would rather have this than a thin, folded-in-half-so-you-can-eat-it-on-the-go slice of cheesy goodness. Really. I guess if they didn't like it, it wouldn't sell? Although that may not be a good example because, regardless, if it's around I still eat it...who lets pizza go to waste!?


To sort this all out, the folks over at SPLOG! are working their way through all the pizza joints in Seattle. Good luck and enjoy your research! In the meantime, I'm still going to eat whatever pizza happens to end up in front of me. And I'm going to eat double that amount when I'm in New York.

Song of the Day: I'm Fat - Weird Al Yankovic

Happy Pi Day!

Yes, I am that much of a dork that I celebrate Pi day. I even went out with a bunch of friends, all of us wearing large "I heart Pi Day" buttons...yes really. I think the moment of the evening was when a random guy from a neighboring table came over to inquire about our celebration.

"oh, what school are you guys from?" - I explained to him we were just a bunch of random old people who were out celebrating. And asked where he went "Oh. Seattle University - you know, over that way" (pointing) Yeah dude, I know. No, I didn't say that.

I find it odd that people so often assume that I'm in some kind of schooling program. I mean, it's great - but also surprising to me, because I feel so far removed from college.

While travelling home for Christmas last year, I had a brown tube carrying a poster for my brother and a print for my parents. When I went to get off the plane, a woman handed it to me from the overhead and rather excitedly asked "Oh, is that some homework or a project?!" . Um, no. But thanks? It felt more awkward than complimentary but perhaps in ten years I will be more grateful for looking young. *by the way, I don't actually think I look that young...

Tonight at one point we were talking about Bel Biv Divoe and Boys II Men and someone said: "A.B.C., B.B.D."

I replied "(finishing the song) mmm, hmmmm. Whatever happened to A.B.C. anyway?"

at this point someone else joined in: "They weren't cute anymore. HA, A.B.C. - more like Another Bad Creation. (pause) ...oh, wait...that was actually their name, wasn't it?"



Song of the Day: Van Halen - Nerf Herder

Yet another reason to support full-size, closing voting booths

photo credit: J.D. Pooley/Getty Images

Doesn't it look like all three of these people are in a slow-speed getaway from the camera with walkers? From this Sunday's Times Magazine

Legitimate Fiction isn't just the name of a blog

The faint call from the other room was barely audible: "Sally?..."

Since she had been frantically searching the folds of her sheets for her cell phone anyway, and it was well past the hour she had intended to go to sleep, Sally slowly emerged from her bedroom and wandered out into the living room.

"Jessica? Did you want me? Are you ok?" she said as she rounded the corner to find her roommate collapsed on the couch - half sitting with her upper body half laying on the cushion next to a large bowl twice the size of her face.

"I threw up in the peanuts..." Jessica murmured in a faint whine. "It's rather tragic."

Sally didn't see any other substance in the peanuts other than some discarded shells, but the genuine concern and disappointment from her roommate was not to be disregarded.

"I think I got vomit all over the place," said Jessica, pointing to the coffee table in front of her knees, and around the room in general as she sat up. Her slur was becoming more audible to Sally the more she kept talking. "I'm really sorry. The show was great. I got a little too drunk. And I rarely get sick, and I can't believe I threw up and I'm so sorry and the peanuts are ruined and I don't think you really care that much but I'm really sorry about it and I can't believe I did that." she continued after her last run-on with a brief pause, "I'm really drunk, please tell me what to do."

Sally didn't know whether a gut-busting laugh would be well-received in light of the peanut tragedy, so she toned it down to just a smile. "Jessica - it's ok. I don't see anything anywhere. Are you ok? Don't worry about the peanuts, they were left over from someone who brought them over anyway."

"I know...ok...ok...but I vomited in them. I'm really drunk. Please just tell me what I should do?"

Sally picked up the bowl and brought it into the kitchen. "Well, first let's get you some water" she said as she dumped the peanuts into the garbage, put the bowl in the sink and filled a glass with the Brita from the fridge. "You should probably have a glass before you go to bed. And anyway I'm sure you want to wash your mouth out."

As she returned to the living room, she handed her roomie the glass and sat next to her on the couch. "We should probably get you up into bed. Is that ok? Can you go upstairs?"

Jessica closed her eyes and took two deep breaths. In what she thought was a private mutter but was actually just as loud as her speaking voice she said to herself, "Pull it together Jessica. You can do this."

"Do you want me to help you stand up?" inquired Sally without letting on that she could hear the personal dialogue

"Well...I'm just worried I'm going to throw up again on my way up the stairs"

"Ok...why don't we get you a travel bucket? Will that make you feel better?"

As Jessica nodded, Sally went into the bathroom and came back with the small plastic garbage can.

"Here you go! Just carry this with you - I can take your water. So, we're all together...are you ready to upstairs now?"

Jessica again nodded and stood up, which Sally took as a sign to go upstairs. As she was more mobile than her heavily inebriated roommate, once she got to the top of the stairs she put the water down on the dresser and attempted to arrange the sheets and comforters and blankets strewn across the bed in an order that would allow for Jessica to easily crawl in. As she was shuffling blankets, she heard the sound of scraping coming up the stairs due to Jessica's using the support of both the wall and the plastic garbage can to steady herself.

Suddenly she heard a thud and the sound of shattering glass so perfect, it was like an audio engineering student's "A+" sound-recording project.

She turned to see her roommate collapsed at the top of the stairs, half between the stair wall and a lazy boy, with the lamp that had once rested upright in the very same spot leaning cockeyed against the wall. The bulb and glass lamp shade were no longer in their correct place but instead strewn about in pieces on the floor.

"Good God, Jessica! Are you ok?! Be careful, get up slowly" said Sally as she extracted her into an upright position and launched her as best she could onto her bed. "Let me check your arm. Did you cut yourself, are you ok?"

Seeing no scratches, she laid her roommate down and pulled the blankets up over her. "I think it's time you get some sleep" said Sally.

"Ok," murmured Jessica, "but let's not tell anyone about the lamp."

"Don't worry," said Sally as she walked down the stairs, "I won't."


Song of the Day: Can't Nobody Hold Me Down - Puff Daddy feat. Mase