it feels so good to feel good again

in the words of elton john, the bitch is back. thats right. i am riding again (mom, if you are reading this, don't worry. i didn't have any pain and was safe). 6 and a half weeks after i broke my collarbone, i am able to handle the weight and stress on my shoulder just fine while riding outside. it was such an amazing feeling, allbeit a little weird handling the bike. and the rear derailleur got a little squirly towards the end of my 45 minute spin. so i will need to get that dialed in before i go out again today. but it was amazing. i wore my new white atmos and nhv team kit so if nothing else, those should keep me super motivated to ride all week long. we'll see what the doctor says, but i really have no intent of following his advice because now i know i can do it. what do doctors know anyways...

this weekend was great too. on top of riding my bike for the first time in over a month and a half. erin, dana and i went down to norfolk on friday afternoon. i took them out to the hermitage museum for the beautiful view of the lafayette river, the nycc, NIT, and the powhatan neighborhood of larchmont. had dinner with the parents then the the girls and i headed out to granby street looking for a good time. apparently a good time on friday nights at havana mean being stuck there for about 2 hours while waiting for an incredibly slow waitress/bartender combination all night and being served rediculously strong drinks. we still had a good time there. but after that we were pretty cooked for the night. we went to say hey to neal as he was finishing his shift at work.

saturday we went to the botanical garden to see the huge rose garden and the bald eagle nest. both stunning. then we went with my parents and emily to see the da vinci code. withough soundling like a snobby movie critic, i thought it was actually very good. i enjoyed how close it followed the (fictional, in case you forgot) book. i dont think i liked tom hanks too much in the lead rold, but thats just me. the thing i liked the most about the book/movie is just the intrigue that it created about the catholic church and all of that stuff. ts amazing how a fictional story with a tiny bit of historical fact can case such a huge shadow of doubt over something as fundamental as religious beliefs. people really got bent out of shape by the book. i thought it was very well written and definitely made you think about things from a different angle. so if you have read the book, i definitely recommend seeing the movie. if you havent read it yet, you can go see it too and will enjoy, but you will probably be really confused as erin and dana were.

then the girls and i went to the stockley garden art show and out to the oceanfront. both were great. went back home where dad picked up greek-fest drive-thru (who knew?) and proceeded to get us all drunk off dad's cosmos and chocolate martinis. i dont care if they are girly drinks, they were delicious. laughed really hard watching old family movies (a staple embarassment tactic when i bring a girlfriend to norfolk) to end a great day at home with phenomenal weather.

some atrocious traffic met us as we left for harrisonburg. but we made it back (in 6 hrs and 15 mins) in one piece. it was a really fun trip and now i am looking forward to spending the next 2 weeks just relaxing in harrisonburg without a care in the world.

ride with me. today.

now playing: come together - beatles


UPDATE: the doctor told me i dont have to wear my clavical brace anymore. time to go ride. peace!

reunion with harrisonburg

im back in h'burg for most of the next 2 and a half weeks. just maxin and relaxin, enjoying my last days of freedom before i move to pgh. i have been doing some shopping online and at stores for different apartment accessories such as televisions, tables, and furniture. its going to be primo living in shadyside for this dude. im psyched and will make sure to put up pictures of the apartment once i get moved in and settled. by the way, anybody know of a heavy-duty butcher's table selling for cheap that i can buy for my apartment?

erin and i are planning on going down to norfolk this weekend, which has potential to be totally awesome. greekfest and some ghent-square-art-show-thing are two awesomely unique events to norfolk and it will be great to show erin the best of norfolk/vabeach. greekfest has some of the best food around every year, and the outdoor art show is really cool in and of itself. granby street night life, va beach oceanfront, oceanview bay, downtown norfolk, hermitage museum, chrysler museum, the bald eagles nest over at the botanical garden, and of course, the water everywhere all combine to make hampton roads a pretty bitchin town if you ask me. i am going to miss all of those great aspects of my home (for the past 5.5 years).

being that today is day 3 since ive made my triumphant return to jmu by way of my golden chariot that is the 1985 volvo 740 turbo, i must tell you that it can be incredibly boring here in town without much to do. particularly without a television in your apartment. speaking of, if anybody out there wishes to loan me a television for a couple weeks, i will be your best friend. for a couple weeks at least. but thank goodness that my friends have arrived back in town and i can interact with real people rather than the ones through my internet connection. otherwise i think i would officially go insane. i shouldnt be complaining so much, life could be worse. i could still be in school. and i could be taking 4 hour long classes over may semester. haha suckers.

i need to go counter the ill-effects of those 2 chili-cheese dogs i had for lunch with some mac and cheese with veggies. hope everybody is having a great summer break if you are out of college, and a great monday if you are workin the 9-5.

current jam: my my, hey hey - neil young

Get your filthy hands off me you damn dirty....alien

What I'd Say To The Martians
Jack Handey
The New Yorker, Issue 8-8-05

People of Mars, you say we are brutes and savages. But let me tell you one thing: if I could get loose from this cage you have me in, I would tear you guys a new Martian asshole.You say we are violent and barbaric, but has any one of you come up to my cage and extended his hand? Because, if he did, I would jerk it off and eat it right in front of him. “Mmm, that’s good Martian,” I would say.

You say your civilization is more advanced than ours. But who is really the more “civilized” one? You, standing there watching this cage? Or me, with my pants down, trying to urinate on you? You criticize our Earth religions, saying they have no relevance to the way we actually live. But think about this: if I could get my hands on that god of yours, I would grab his skinny neck and choke him until his big green head exploded.

We are a warlike species, you claim, and you show me films of Earth battles to prove it. But I have seen all the films about twenty times. Get some new films, or, so help me, if I ever get out of here I will empty my laser pistol into everyone I see, even pets.

Speaking of films, I could show you some films, films that portray a different, gentler side of Earth. And while you’re watching the films I’d sort of slip away, because guess what: the projector is actually a thing that shoots out spinning blades! And you fell for it! Well, maybe not now you wouldn’t.

You point to your long tradition of living peacefully with Earth. But you know what I point to? Your stupid heads.
You say there is much your civilization could teach ours. But perhaps there is something that I could teach you—namely, how to scream like a parrot when I put your big Martian head in a vise.

You claim there are other intelligent beings in the galaxy besides earthlings and Martians. Good, then we can attack them together. And after we’re through attacking them we’ll attack you.

I came here in peace, seeking gold and slaves. But you have treated me like an intruder. Maybe it is not me who is the intruder but you.

No, not me. You, stupid.

You keep my body imprisoned in this cage. But I am able to transport my mind to a place far away, a happier place, where I use Martian heads for batting practice.

I admit that sometimes I think we are not so different after all. When you see one of your old ones trip and fall down, do you not point and laugh, just as we on Earth do? And I think we can agree that nothing is more admired by the people of Earth and Mars alike than a fine, high-quality cigarette. For fun, we humans like to ski down mountains covered with snow; you like to“milk” bacteria off of scum hills and pack them into your gill slits. Are we so different? Of course we are, and you will be even more different if I ever finish my homemade flamethrower.

You may kill me, either on purpose or by not making sure that all the surfaces in my cage are safe to lick. But you can’t kill an idea. And that idea is: me chasing you with a big wooden mallet.

You say you will release me only if I sign a statement saying that I will not attack you. And I have agreed, the only condition being that I can sign with a long sharp pen. And still you keep me locked up.

True, you have allowed me reading material—not the “human reproduction” magazines I requested but the works of your greatest philosopher, Zandor or Zanax or whatever his name is. I would like to discuss his ideas with him—just me, him, and one of his big, heavy books.

If you will not free me, at least deliver a message to Earth. Send my love to my wife, and also to my girlfriend. And to my children, if I have any anyplace. Ask my wife to please send me a bazooka, which is a flower we have on Earth. If my so-called friend Don asks you where the money I owe him is, please anally probe him. Do that anyway.

If you keep me imprisoned long enough, eventually I will die. Because one thing you Martians do not understand is that we humans cannot live without our freedom. So, if you see me lying lifeless in my cage, come on in, because I’m dead. Really.

Maybe one day we will not be the enemies you make us out to be. Perhaps one day a little Earth child will sit down to play with a little Martian child, or larva, or whatever they are. But, after a while, guess what happens: the little Martian tries to eat the Earth child. But guess what the Earth child has? A gun. You weren’t expecting that, were you? And now the Martian child is running away, as fast as he can. Run, little Martian baby, run!

I would like to thank everyone for coming to my cage tonight to hear my speech. Donations will be gratefully accepted. (No Mars money, please.)


current jam: gasoline - audioslave

some good/clean/american/angry, alien-burning music

the beginning of the end

what a long strange trip its been. officially done with college. after about 17 years of being a student, i am on to a real life career. its absolutely crazy. graduation was very anticlimatic.

went down to charlottesville on friday evening to have dinner with my parents, brother and sister, and grandparents. delicious restaurant called hamilton's on main street. highly recommend it if you have the means. after that neal and i came back to harrisonburg, hung out with pootie for most of the evening with a little splash of erin thrown in for good measure. then saturday was the big day. the big ceremony started at the bridgeforth stadium, the football field. i was a little disappointed with senator allen's commencement speech, but i think just about everybody was. that's cool that your daughter is going here, due to the fact that she is too attractive to go to uva, but try not to be such a political-technology dweeb next time, senator. then the business ceremony came next up at the convocation center, the basketball "arena". with about 730 graduates (including the 2 valedictorians in quantitative finance. why would you subject yourself to that much stress??), they flew through the different majors like a hot knife through butter. we got out of the ceremony around the same time that some other colleges did with a meager 300 or so graduates.

after the ceremonies and sitting in silly traffic for way too long, my family made it back to my apartment for a little food and drink before hitting the road back to norfolk that afternoon. i then split to stonegate to meet erin's family. aside from the initial nerves, it was a lot of fun. after dinner, we went out to catch up with jakob and some oldschool alumni. saw a great band play, had some fun, said some goodbyes. kicking the night off with some champagne and ending the night with 40s was both a classy and fitting way to celebrate graduating from jmu.

woke up early sunday morning to drive home for a graduation party consisting primarily of my parents friends and neighbors. it was an alright time. nothing too exciting. i was just so exhausted after the past month with my broken collarbone and staying up late the past couple weeks straight, i konked out around 9:30 last night.

today was spent catching up on some much needed beauty sleep, investigating changing my own oil in the volvo (then later deciding it was actually cheaper to take it to get done), cleaning the inside of said volvo, and going to target. saw lots of sweet things for my apartment at target, i am getting really stoked. although a sense of longing is beginning to develop along with the excitement. longing for framiliarity, friends, yada yada yada. im sure ill be fine, just the mix of emotions that are flowing in and out i suppose.

looking like another night of monster sleep. score for me. loss for you if you were hoping to talk to me past 11pm. but before bed i plan on sitting here, listening to music, playing around online, and catching chocolate covered rasins in my mouth by tossing them as close to the ceiling as possible.

best of luck to all of my friends and freinds-of-friends who are traveling to europe or across the country before starting their jobs. adam and bk, i hope you get pictures of the kodiak you are going to wrestle. jakob, i dont want to hear about some crazy techno-rave with a crazy american flashing the locals left and right. basic, drink lots. everyone else, be safe, have fun, and relax. in a way i envy you all. but in another i don't, because i will be having my own adventure up in pittsburgh with a whole new world opening up.

And all of these moments

Just might find their way into my dreams tonight
But I know that they'll be gone
When the morning light sings
And brings new things
For tomorrow night you see
That they'll be gone too
Too many things I have to do
But if all of these dreams might find their way
Into my day to day scene
I'd be under the impression

I was somewhere in between

Jack Johnson

not getting any younger

as if dealing with the climax of my college career this saturday wasn't enough, i have to cope with the fact that in a little more than a week i will be 22. yikes. no thanks. i still feel like i have the mentality of a 7th grader going through those not fun years at st. norbert back in cali. difficult to believe that i am going to be that old. what am i doing for my birthday? a whole lot of nothin really. being that it falls on the thursday after graduation, i am either going to be back in norfolk or just up here in harrisonburg relaxin. maybe just lay outside and have some me-time.

if the weather on my birthday is anywhere near how beautiful it has been the past week and a half or so, i will be plenty excited. maybe i will stay in norfolk util friday and just go to the beach. thats not a bad idea if i may say so myself. in fact, yeah, i think i just talked myself into staying home until friday. if anybody is going to be back home for thursday and wants to go out to a bar or two, let me know. ill be down.

how nuts is this facebook stuff going to get? seriously. people that only communicate through this website profile stuff are kooky if you ask me. this is in no way directed towards anyone in particular, believe me, but what fascinates me is how much some people are into it. i think its fun to stalk somebody just as much as the next guy, dont get me wrong. i have run a few "background checks" and "investigative querries" in my day using facebook, but if you really want to know about me and my favorite books, movies, quotes, whatever...try talking to me sometime. i wont be offended, in fact, i will most likely enjoy our conversation and be glad that we had it. who knows, we might even transition from "facebook friends" to "real life friends". if you're lucky.

life moves pretty fast. if you don't stop and look around once in awhile, you could miss it.

ferris bueller's day off