5.23.02

Oh will this week ever end? It seems like a month ago I went to work on Monday. I guess it’s because we have the three-day Memorial Day weekend coming up and I, in my timing genius, have taken off Friday as well to make a four-day mini-vacation. So in looking forward to tomorrow at 4:00 when I’m done working for the next four days, time seems to be slowing down considerably. Don’t you hate that?

Speaking of the weekend, should be a pretty boring time. I basically have no plans. I would like to head out to the driving range sometime, but with the rain coming in for Friday and Saturday, it looks like Sunday or Monday will be my best chances. I haven’t hit a golf ball in over a year, so it should be interesting.

Well, I’ve seen Attack of the Clones twice now and I still love it. Will everyone love it? Oh, no, no, no. In fact, one of my die-hard Star Wars buddies didn’t love it, but merely liked it. It’s a complex tale and one that requires multiple viewings to understand, which will really push people away from it, sadly. But I think everyone would have to agree that it’s better than The Phantom Menace (damn you Jar Jar). And, yes, Yoda kicks ass.

Been working on that story that is perpetually “in progress” lately. I’m pretty much restructuring the whole damn thing. I hate it when I do that. But I can see already that it’s going to make a much more interesting story this way. I just wish I’d have sat down and worked all this out before I wrote fifty-nine, single-spaced pages. Oh, well. I’m sure it’ll kick ass in the end. Oh, and I think I’ll be returning next week to The Boundry. Might do another serial adventure as I did last time, might just do a few little short things. Haven’t really decided yet, but I’ll let you know next week if I’ll be publishing again.

Had a good time last weekend at home. The family is doing well. I got to see my sister’s new home. It looks like it will be really nice when it’s finished.

Had fun seeing the old friends on Saturday night. Ate pizza while watching Trading Spaces on TLC. Man, are we old.

Sunday I went to a huge, outdoor concert called Pointfest 14. Met up with Ben and his friends Nicey and Kathy. It was pretty funny walking around all day with the these three as Ben is around 6’4, I’m 5’6 with my boots on; Nicey is about 5’8 and Kathy is close to 5’5. We were like a couple of Abbot and Costellos.

It was kinda cool because a while back, the band Goldfinger came through Champaign for a show and Nicey ended up becoming friends with the bass player, a guy named Kelly. Anyway, they keep in touch and she was getting calls on her cell phone from him all day, trying to work out some plan for them to get together while he was in town. He was doing a fan signing at one of the booths and when it was over we walked with him and another band mate back to their trailers. Not that Goldfinger is as infamous as The Beatles or anything, but it was still cool to be walking alongside someone who an hour later would be up on stage in front of hundreds of screaming fans. And the band did put on quite a good performance, too, so it was especially cool to have that brief brush with fame.

Despite not really being into the modern rock scene anymore, the concert was still a lot of fun. Tenacious D put on a great performance, Reel Big Fish were fun (still love that song “Sell Out”), Our Lady Peace was ok, but they didn’t play my favorite song, which sorta sucked, as I said, Goldfinger was cool and fun as hell, and for the three songs I saw of the headliners, Sevendust, they rocked pretty hard. But, again, most of the fun of going to this type of an event is hanging out with friends, which is all I was really interested in anyway.

So what do you think about this whole pre-9/11 knowledge that’s coming out? Personally, I think it’s silly that people are blaming our intelligence agencies for ignoring what might or might not have been a serious threat. I think if we knew about every possible terrorist action our agencies hear about on a daily basis, we’d be a nation living in a constant state of panic. I know I sure as hell don’t want to know about every possible threat that comes across the desks of FBI agents. Sometimes ignorance truly is bliss.

Man, I am so sore from working out this week. Because of the whirlwind I lived through last week, I only got in two workouts – one of which was only cardio. Therefore, this week has been especially tough on the ol’ body. I’m feeling good and have begun to see some definite changes in my form. The shoulders are starting to be a little better defined, biceps are starting to get a peak, and, my personal favorite, my thighs definitely have some peaks and valleys where the quadriceps are. I’m not going to be entering competition anytime soon, but I can definitely feel a difference, and that’s all I’m really going for. Still haven’t permanently broken through my weight loss brick wall – I did momentarily on Monday by one pound, but gained two pounds by Tuesday. It’s frustrating, but as long as I can keep seeing results in the muscle tone, it won’t be such a downer for me.

Got invited to the wedding of an old family friend last week. This is someone I’ve known since I was about three or four, so it should be like a family reunion. I need to buy a decent white shirt and a belt that actually fits me, so I’ll have to do some shopping sometime soon. Oh, how I loathe shopping for clothes.

Before I go, just want to give a big, hearty “congratulations” to JK and his long-time girlfriend, Ellen. The two went on a vacation down to Florida last week and JK popped the question while (if everything went to plan) sitting on the beach. These two have been dating since they were infants, so there’s really no reason this little marriage won’t work. They are absolutely perfect for each other and, although I wish them the best of luck, luck isn’t really needed in this case. Anyway, I’m very happy for them both and we’re already starting to plan JK’s bachelor party.

So, have a good Memorial Day weekend. Eat some grilled mammal flesh and drink a beer to commemorate our fallen veteran’s. God bless America.

Space Monkey X