May 25, 2005
Welp. We put down an offer...
On a house today. S'pretty.
Now we gotta see what happens...
Posted by Lee at 09:47 PM | Comments (0)
October 20, 2004
What's snew?
Lotsa stuff.
A week ago Tuesday, I got a call from a company that wants me to be a phone support guy for them. I interviewed two hours after I got the call. It went well.
The next day, Barb and i flew back to Dallas for Becky & Gene's wedding. Teel met us at the airport, and brought us back to Rusty & Sarah's to spend the night. I always thought that Teel and Barb would get along well, and I was right. Got to give Sarah a hug on her way to bed. I miss my friends.
The next day, we met mom & dad for lunch at this cool Texas italian joint. Yummy food. Good company. I miss my family.
Thursday evening, I went back to R&S's house to rehearse. See more below. Then we went out for dinner and met Tommy and the now remarkably un-Jesus-looking Greg. I mean, he still looks like Greg, but he doesn't look like Jesus, and that's weird. Barb and Mmree have abandoned me, and gone to play in Austin with a bunch of their dance friends. I know the two of them have been needing to re-connect, so that was a good thing.
Oh yeah, and the company called back and offered me a job. I start four days later. w00t. Not what I want, but it'll do for now. It's a contract position, so that gives everybody some flexibility. I will be making some decisions come January as to which direction to go.
Friday, I was back at my folks' house. Saw my sister. Packed a bunch of my junk. Went to the rehearsal dinner in Arlington. Met Matty & Sam & Sterrett & Barb & Tommy & Heather6 for dinner. YAY ALL MY FRIENDS! (and some new ones)
Becky and Gene got married on Saturday. I'd been looking forward to that for a long time. I am a great admirer of both of those protein units, and seeing them get married was quite an experience. They chose a Quaker ceremony, which entails long periods of contemplative silence punctuated by spontaneous thoughts from the witnesses of the union. The clerk of the Meeting of Friends (the happy couple's congregation) then read the marriage decree, and all present signed it as witnesses. I sang a duet with Gene's friend Simrit, with Rusty's accompaniment on the piano. I forgot to turn on the microphone like a freakin' idiot, but I managed to stay more or less on pitch and on tempo. Yay me. Simrit has a beautiful voice, and was a joy to sing with. Rusty was his usual staggeringly competent self, and did a wonderful job arranging the piece for solo piano and duet vocalists, and of course his playing was just great.
Then we went to the reception. Much dancing and fun. Then we went to a bar to hang out with My Dallas People. Many of my friends got to meet my ladytype, and she was favorably received by all.
Sunday morning, I led a passel to church. I'm glad I didn't try to sight-read with the choir, as it was a densely arranged African American spiritual. It was nice to be back in my spiritual home for a morning. Then, Barb and I went back to Tommy's for the Second Reception. (You know, like Second Breakfast, only with wedding receptions) Tommy was hosting a slightly more sociable reception (that is, few grown-ups) for Becky & Gene's friends. I was pressed into service as an electrician (the light fixture looks good!) and speaker hanger. I wired my iPod into the downstairs stereo and cued up some blues for people to dance on Tommy's NEW DANCE FLOOR. w00000t! Tommy and his crew, TOTALLY without my help, installed a beautiful laminate floor on his first story. It looks just awesome, and dances great.
Sunday eve, Matt and Sam and Sterrett and Jason and Barb and I went to Uncle Julio's for dinner. I ordered the Cadillac Platter for myself and Barb, which is fajitas and lobster. Since I'm not an enormous lobster fan, for me it's fajitas and toy. We had a little puppet show with the lobster while we ate. Then Sterrett and Jason ran us to the airport to go back to Portland. I almost lost my phone, which would have sucked enormously. Now, keep in mind that I've got about 100lbs of mo' baggage that I'm taking back to Portland with me, including my luscious red Kitchen Aid cookware. Yum.
But. It was not meant to be. We boarded the airplane. We sat on the airplane. We un-boarded the airplane. The pilot told us the throttle didn't work, and that was the last flight. Barb went to the ticket counter for hotel and "food" vouchers, and I watched my luscious red Kitchen Aid cookware go round and round on the baggage carousel. I was going to have to get through a plate glass window if anybody tried to rip me off, so that kinda sucked.
So we got put up overnight at a Homewood Suites (with free Internet that I totally failed to take advantage of because I was incredibly tired and so was Barb) and we remembered to call Aaron and tell him not to pick us up at the airport this morning because we weren't at that airport we were still in Dallas. *gasp*
Unconsciousness for about five hours.
Wake up get breakfast got on bus went to airport checked in collapsed in terminal. Got on airplane flew to Phoenix ran to second airplane because first airplane was late. Collapsed on second airplane, but got to watch Return of the Jedi on my Powerbook. w00t.
Got to Portland Aaron picked us up go home shower change clothes OH YEAH GO TO WORK. Ugh. Good thing I'd called my new bosses and told them I was going to be five hours late for work my first day. They were very nice to me.
So I report to the place I interviewed, and I was supposed to follow one of my new coworkers to the AAA office where I'm going to be working. He's driving a silver Toyota SUV. I start following him. Now, I'm admittedly a bit bleary, but I totally failed to notice that an almost identical silver Lexus SUV sneak right in front of me. Unfortunately, that SUV was going to Beaverton, not to AAA. That sucks. So I call back to the office, get my coworker's cell phone number, and proceed to get verbal directions in an unfamiliar city through a confusing part of town.
I got there. Met my new coworkers. Finished the day. Went out to buy work clothes. Came home and vegetated. Woke up. Went to work. Came home. Repeat x3.
Thursday, Barb got her Big Bonus, so we went shopping. We got an awesome pot rack for my luscious cookware, and a bunch of red kitchenware, and a bunch of shirts for me, and a blender, and a bunch of other stuff. My girl is cool.
Saturday, we woke up early (why? Dunno.) went to the Original Original Pancake House, ate breakfast, and went sofa shopping. Found a sweet microfiber chaise sofa. I was very annoyed that they wouldn't let me have the floor model, and that we'd have to wait a week or two. Bleh.
Sunday, I built Barb a new PC. It actually worked, which is amazing to me.
Then is this week. Same as last week. Only I get a paycheck this week. w00t.
Posted by Lee at 01:22 AM | Comments (0) | TrackBack
September 08, 2004
Happy Anniversary, Grammy and Granddad!
This past weekend, Barb and I drove to Oroville, CA for my grandparents' 60th wedding anniversary. (Uh, WOW. That's really quite an accomplishment! The marriage, not the drive...) We contemplated flying, but decided that the extra flexibility of having our own car outweighed the time advantages of driving. Basically, if you assume that a hour and a half flight takes about five or six hours of door-to-door travel time, and eight hour car trip isn't too bad. And we got to see pretty things on our way back.
We drove down Friday night. Barb managed to find a relatively traffic-free route out of Portland, and we made good time. Grammy let us in the door, and we basically collapsed into our air mattress on the living room floor.
I awoke to the sound of family cooking breakfast. YAY!
Saturday, we went swimming, and built a puzzle. My aunt K brought her son L up with her, and he and I had a good time playing in the water.
That night, we all went to this little Italian joint for dinner. Pictures here!
Sunday, Barb and I went down to Sacramento to visit with my mom's mother. We went out to the Crocker Art Museum, which was a really nice piece of architecture with some neat paintings in it (and WOW! What a dance floor in the ballroom!). We then went to see Riding Giants at Tower Theater (the original!), which was a beautiful movie. Then we went out to a tapas restaurant, which (with the exception of the rather dull potatoes and the mingy serving of a really nice goat cheese with wine) was very tasty and pleasant. We finally took Gram back home, and I spent half an hour showing her how to use her WebTV (with which she might be reading this missive, I hope!) and some basics on her mobile phone.
Technology is fun.
Monday, we played in the Feather River (which was stupendously cold) and watched the salmon run. That was fun (but stinky). That afternoon, we had a barbecue birthday celebration for several cousins. The tri-tip roast was, as I expected, delicious. There's something about meat grilled on my granddad's stagecoach-shaped grill. It just tastes better.
Tuesday, Barb and I woke up pretty stuffy. We had breakfast and piled into the car, and drove back home. We skipped the Sundial Bridge in Redding, which we were pretty interested in seeing, because we were both feeling pretty rocky and wanted to get home.
We rolled into Portland, and ate Lebanese food at Nicholas. Yum yum.
If I can just get my sinuses to drain, I'll be doing just fine. I've never in my life had my ears stuff up like this. Truly gruesome.
Posted by Lee at 04:59 PM | Comments (0) | TrackBack
August 26, 2004
Tommy came to visit me!
Flash bulletin update! Tommy's pics of the weekend are up! Do not miss the panoramic photos!
Now back to your previously written blog post...
This is my second crack at writing this blog entry. Yesterday, I foolishly closed the browser tab in which I was editing my post, and it went all splodey.
Hokay. So, here is the earth.
Last Wednesday evening, Tommy came up to the Pacific NW to play for a few days. Now, this is the perpetrator that introduced me to my lady (with whom I'm essentially shacked up with at the moment), so we were both happy to see the boy.
After sleeping in Thursday morning, Tommy and I met Barb (the ladytype, for those of you keeping score) for lunch, and then we stole her car and went on an adventure. We dead-reckoned our way up to Council Crest, the big hill overlooking downtown Portland (pictures forthcoming). We also popped into Powell's to geek out on books (which are a new taste for Mr. Tommy, and an old friend of mine). Then, we went to the regular Thursday night dance. Unfortunately (for all the follows in Portland), the dance was a bit lead-heavy. (For those of you non-dancer types, leads are typically boys and follows are typically girls. Typically.) So tha ladies of Portland didn't get to enjoy the terpsechorian stylings of either Tommy, or our friend Titus, both of whom are well-regarded dancers (to say the least).
Friday, we went a-hikin'. We first popped downtown to have coffee with the lovely Miss H, and then headed out to the Columbia River Gorge to see Multnomah Falls. The Falls are a big tourist trap, but still very much worth the look if you're in the area.
670 foot drop from the head of the falls, into the creek that feeds into the Columbia (which is just across the highways). We hiked to the top (a strenuous hike of a mile, with a lot of up. I was proud that I made it...although I must get into better shape) and took some pictures which Tommy will post soon.
We drove back along the old Scenic Highway and stopped at a few places to stroll and take pictures.
That evening, we were planning on visiting the Brazen Bean, a beautiful old Victorian house converted to a martini bar. Unfortunately, Victorian houses are teeny, so there's very little room in there, and (due to a time mix-up by yours truly) we couldn't get in. So, we dropped back ten yards and punted.
We wound up at McMenaminaroonaramalamadingdong's Ram's Head over on 23rd street. (The McMenamin brothers are local beer magnates, with brew-pubs all around the area. Good brew-pubs. They do have a funny name, though.) We (that is, Tommy, Barb, and I) had a yummy goat cheese and garlic appetizer, along with some drinkses. We were met by Miss H's and her boy, A, along with Titus, and we all headed out for Yuki's for sushi. (Teel, you need to come here with me!)
So we met Aa (Yes, another A person I'm going to keep semi-anonymous until I become better friends with them and I feel more comfortable horking their names into my blog. Barb just made the cut.) at Yuki's, and we all proceeded to eat raw fish and laugh like idiots for a couple hours. A good time was had. I told the Squid Caper Story, and Tommy and I told the Snoopy Kiss Story. Much hilarity ensued.
Then, we went to a scary Yuppie meat market on the 30th floor of a downtown Portland skyscraper. We commandeered a table, and proceeded to chuckle to ourselves at the primate dynamics playing out around us. There was some creepy swinging (not swing dancing. Swinging.) thing happening at the corner of the bar. Uh huh. We had some drinks and bailed.
Saturday, we went to the Lindy Picnic in the park. We had a nice afternoon chatting and dancing in a beautiful forest bower. Live music and pretty girls...there is no bad. We then went out for Thai with a bunch of peoples, and then went out to the evening dance at Norse Hall. (I had no idea that Scandinavian people had a beef with the Irish. Who knew?) More live music. More pretty girls. Yay!
Sunday was kinda low-key. We went T-shirt shopping for Tommy, and then decided to head out to the beach. Barb decided that we needed to go to Cannon Beach on the Oregon coast. Have you seen Goonies? If not, you need to get off the freakin' Internet and go to your video store and rent it. If so, you might remember the Three Big Rocks that One Eyed Willie hid his treasure ship near.
Found 'em.
This is Haystack Rock. Apparently Goonies was filmed in this part of the country, and this is in fact the place where they shot those scenes. The vista was absolutely breathtaking. Here you can find the pics from Barb's camera. Someday, Tommy will post his as well.
We had dinner at Mo's, apparently well-regarded for their fish n' chips. (Halibut, not cod, thank you.) That's what I ordered on Barb's recommendation, and I was not disappointed. Yummy. The waitress gave Tommy and me static about not ordering the chowder. (sorry, don't like chowder. Deal.) Then we find out that she doesn't like the stuff either. Uh huh...I've got your attitude right over here, sister.
We drove back, and Tommy composed a couple mix CD's on ye olde Powerbook. (When the muse speaketh...) I also roped him into making a driving mix, because the one I'd done simply wasn't doing the job. Go DJ Stu.
Then, we put Tommy back on the airplane. Sad sad. But! More hijinks will be here soon. Next big event is B&G's wedding in Dallas. I'm looking forward to going back and visiting my people, and seeing two cherished friends seal their union. And I'm singing! Yay!
Posted by Lee at 01:31 AM | Comments (0) | TrackBack
May 12, 2004
They got me. They got me GOOD.
Last night, I was conspired against. Deceived. Misled. It was terrible. The people I love most tricked me, those tricksy ones.
OK, so they threw me a surprise party...nothing dreadful. They did a pretty good job, as my radar about such activities is pretty good.
Teel called me, and invited me out to The Bone for Hash Brown's Tuesday Night Blues Jam. I was feeling a little maso-menos on the subject, as it was kinda rainy, which means that the dancing would be inside rather than on the roof, and it's always a little steamy inside. But, Teel (what a trooper!) prevailed upon me to come play anyhow. I knew I'd get to dance with pretty girls, so I didn't fight her too hard on the subject.
So she picks me up, and we headed over to Xpo Lounge for a couple drinks before going dancing. The party doesn't usually get started at The Bone 'till 10:30. I had no idea how exactly prophetic that notion would be. We met up with a boy that's sorta chasing Teel (he seems like a nice enough guy so far...you go Teel!) at Xpo, and hung out for an hour before going across to our Final Destination.
So we parked, and started walking up to the club. Peck was on the roof, hollering something about me being a sexy beast. Maybe he was talking about Teel...who knows? Sometimes the boy gets a little confused. I was kinda surprised to see him, but didn't really think anything ov it.
So I stroll in, none the wiser. Then I start seeing people who Don't Belong.
First I saw Rusty and Sarah, who had told me they weren't feeling like going out that night. Then I saw Chris and Niki, who I hadn't seen since shortly after their wedding a year and a half ago.
Then I see my mom and dad. I knew the gig was up.
There was cake. There was an embarassing video. There was my church choir director, who recognized some of the fun parts of the video with me singin' and dancin', since he directed them. I half expected Guy Smiley to come out hollering "This is Your Life!"
Then, we all collected on the roof and my mom and dad toasted me. I really think I'd have a hard time gettng better parents. They've taken really good care of me these years, and last night was a pretty darn cool experience. Having said that, I don't think they're going to be too bitter when I move out.,
Did you hear that? I'm moving out. Moving to LA. To take a job. A grown-up job. With Raytheon. WOO WOO WOO! This is exciting exciting stuff indeed! Right now, my preliminary security clearance paperwork is in process. I should hear next week that I am Approved, and then I'll set my start date. Should be sometime early next month, I hope.
So, if all goes well, in less than 30 days, I'll be moving into my own place in SoCal. Who's going to be my first houseguest, I wonder? I've got a pretty good guess...
It's been a big, big month for me. Saturday, Teel is throwing a Taurus Birthday Party in Austin, and I'm going to have to throw a big Go Away party on Memorial Day. It's going to be fun fun fun fun fun! and I get to spend some quality time with my friends before I abandon them all for the sun and the beach and a grown-up size paycheck. I think they'll understand.
I'm feelin' the love, people. I really am.
Posted by Lee at 10:31 PM | Comments (0) | TrackBack
April 27, 2004
Long time, no update...
Hi everybody! Remember me?
So, this weekend was way fun. Tommy had a houseguest, a friend of his from Oregon. Her name is Barb, and I rather like her. Long distance relationships are sub-optimal, but I'm coming around to the idea that this might be an exception.
Saturday, Tommy and Heather and Barb and I went to see a dance festival that got rained out. So, then we got thrown out of the DMA (since when are they charging admission?!) and walked through the Crow Museum of Asian Art. And saw the well-endowed badger in the foyer. Yikes. Then we went to Eatzis and be'd food geeks for a while. That night, there was a dance at Sammons Center, but I decided I needed to go home and get some sleep, as Sunday morning I was going to sing at three services. And I didn't have a voice. And I needed to try to get it back. So I dropped Barb at the dance and went home to sleep.
The next morning, I actually did get up in time to go sing with Mom, and I got more and more of my range back as the morning went on. Barb and Tommy and Heather and Mark came to listen at 11, which was very cool. Then, Barb and I met up with Carlos and Mmree to go see Ain't Misbehavin'. Not only is the theater a Frank Lloyd Wright design (which means it's beautiful and not entirely practical), but the show was really cool. I've been humming tunes ever since.
So after the show, we went over to Tommy's for Movie Nite. We watched Ghostbusters, which was even better than I'd remembered, and Eddie Murphy's Raw, which is never not funny.
Next morning, I had to put Barb on a plane back home. That was not my favourite part of the weekend, but something tells me or paths will cross again. Soon.
This is not what I expected. But it's kinda cool. : )
Posted by Lee at 11:44 AM | Comments (0) | TrackBack
September 20, 2003
Two Nights of Fun and Music
Thursday night, my swing dance friend Heather invited me out with a bunch o' cool people (and Tommy) to go to the Addison Oktoberfest. We met at Blue Mesa Grill for margaritas (YAY!) and went over to Addison for the fun.
Tony, Heather, Angela, Angie, Tommy, Sam, and Lee
Now, it was super wet and soggy, since it'd been raining cats and dogs, but nevertheless we managed to have a good time. In the Uber-Tent, there was food and bier, and a polka band. The band was cool, because when they saw Angela and Tommy transition from polka into swing, they obliged us with a swing tune that most of us knew how to dance to. Good times.
Incidentally, City of Addison, I don't think it counts as a real Oktoberfest if the only beer you have is Lowenbrau. Yeah, it might be Lowenbrau's "Oktoberfest Lager", but it's still right at the bottom of the barrel. My kingdom for some Paulaner. Yes, I am a Beer Snob, thanks for asking.
Now, Angie scored the Prize of the Evening. She got a wine bottle that has a copper-painted monkey molded into it. She said the wine was ick, but the bottle...coolest bottle evar. It wouldn't be the first time I got roped into buying nasty alcohol for a cool bottle. (Arrogant Bastard Ale, Sam Adams Triple Bock, more than I'd care to list...)
Angie and her Monkey
Tha Ladies
Tha Mens
More pictures at Tony's web site.
Tonight, Teel, Rusty, Sarah, and I went to see Polyphonic Spree. These guys are just about my favourite band on Earth. Imagine 20 people leaping around on stage in choir robes, playing every instrument you've ever heard of. Tonight they had a guest harpist, who did an encore solo that just blew everybody away. Suffice it to say, this band is incredible. Go out of your way to catch them next time they're near you.
Posted by Lee at 02:38 AM | Comments (1) | TrackBack
August 14, 2003
WEIRD AL RULES!!!
Last week, my old friend Dan called me up, and said "Hey, dude, wanna go to the Weird Al show?" My first response was "EEK! I'm poor!" But he headed me off, and said the magic word:
"FREEEE!!" w00t!
So tonight, Dan and I went to the Weird Al Yankovic Poodle Hat concert at the Bronco Bowl. Now, if you are like me (fat chance, eh?) you'd think the way I used to: That the Bronco Bowl is like the Cotton Bowl...it's a sports stadium, right? Maybe for a rodeo or something, right?
Well, you'd be wrong. When Dan and I went to the last Weird Al concert (Saga Begins, about three years ago), Al said that he insisted to his booking agent that he play at least one show in a bowling alley. The Bronco Bowl is, in fact, a bowling alley. I had no idea.
Unfortunately, the Bronco Bowl is no longer a bowling alley, and it's not going to be a concert venue for much longer. It's being turned into a Home Depot. I can not tell you how much that annoys me.
So the show was awesome. It was like Al was reading my mind as to what song I wanted to hear next. I've been listening to his music for about as long as I've listened to music, and he impresses me again and again as a great musician, a great performer, and a really funny human being.
Tonight I became more aware of his band, who are all really really good. The show was just WAY amusing.
Dan and I met Tommy and Helen (who, in another incarnation, are teaching me how to swing dance). Helen at first was not sure what the heck she was doing at a Weird Al show, but seemed to come around really quickly. She seemed to be having a really good time. Tommy? Well, duh. Tommy's at a Weird Al concert. Of course he had fun.
So after the show, Tommy and I roped Helen into going dancing over at Sons of Herman Hall. We got there at about quarter after eleven, and managed a few dances. Teel brought her friends Jennifer and Andre, who probably had little idea what they were in for. Immediately after introducing them, Teel started showing Andre the basic step. Me being swuft on the uptake, I took Jennifer aside and started to show her what this swing thang is all about. Seeing as how I've only been any good for, like, a month, I felt good about how quickly she seemed to pick it up. Of course, that may well be that she's just far more coordinated and graceful than I am....but I'd prefer to take the credit.
OK, she's far more coordinated and graceful than I am. I still don't suck.
So, tonight, bedtime. Tomorrow, I make a ROCKET MAN! costume for the Superhero bash this weekend in Austin. Celena, babe, here I come!
Posted by Lee at 01:00 AM | Comments (0) | TrackBack
July 29, 2003
What day is it?
Last night, Teel called me and invited me to dinner with Erin and her friend Antonio. I'd just had dinner with the fam, but I decided it would be fun to go hang out and drink coffee or something. So I hopped in the car, and went to Teel's amazing apartment downtown, and we all headed over to the Bangkok Inn somewhere in East Dallas. (I don't know if I could find it again on a bet. It was somewhere near Live Oak and Skillman, but I wasn't paying attention.) I had a Thai iced coffee, which was a tasty beverage. (ORANGE MOCHA FRAPPUCINO!) Everybody else seemed to get something involving either a) fish b) noodles or c) both. I ate a squid from Erin's plate, and it was properly squid-y.
First, we went to the Balcony Club to listen to a bit o' jazz and have a chocolate martini for dessert. This was a new and different, and very very tasty, concoction. Although we came in between sets, the band was great.
Then we headed over to Coyote Ugly (you know, like from the movie I haven't seen) because Teel's friend Kelly has some kind of VIP hookup that means free drinks for his party. That's my favourite kind of drink, so we went there. The bar wasn't very full. There were two pretty bartenders (if you've seen the movie, you'll know that's about par for the course) and nobody dancing on the bar (which, if you've seen the movie, is not par for the course), but they plied me with cheap liquor. So we got along fine.
So then I got Snoopy kissed. Twice. Somehow, it didn't bother me too much, particularly after Antonio and I agreed that he was just going to sit right over there on the other side of the table and do nothing whatsoever.
One thing to note. If you go into this bar, don't ask for a glass of water. That's my habit, after having a drink or three, just to pace myself. Well, the barkeep attacked me with a Super Soaker, and told me that had I not been courteous about it, it would have been a bucket. OK. Noted. I then got myself in trouble by telling Erin to order a glass of water, but the barkeep heard me and was again with the Super Soaker. Word to the wise: Don't be that guy.
Kelly and his friend Burl (sp?) run a custom auto wrapping shop in Deep Ellum. Burl took me over and showed me the operation, which was supacool. I've spent the last ten minutes trying to remember what their web address is, but I can't. I'll update it later. Teel and Kelly also came over, but Erin and Antonio didn't get the message, so they were rather annoyed with us that we'd bailed on them at the bar. Second time this week I got on Erin's grumpy list...not a good track record.
So after Teel and I found Erin and Antonio again, and ran the gantlet of surly homeless guys, we went over to the Velvet Hookah for martinis. Now, I'm normally not a martini guy, but since that's, like, the specialty of the house, I thought I'd try one. Let me tell you, Katie (the barkeep) knows what she's about. Good stuff. And I got the last olives in the building. I read horoscopes, and mine says that I get guardian Amazon women with boomerangs. I love that freakin' horoscope. Erin's had something to do with hawk poop. Not sure what the deal was on that.
So, after last call, we poured Erin into the car and headed back to Teel's place. I wish every Monday night could be that much fun.
Posted by Lee at 10:11 AM | Comments (0) | TrackBack
December 01, 2002
Thanksgiving...With Crazy People!
Sunday, December 1, 2002
Happy Thanksgiving! Only a few days late. Last Thursday, I went over to my pal Tommy's house. My man Tommy has an account of the festivities, as well as a picture gallery of the fun.
I spent Wednesday night over at Tommy's, ostensibly to get an early start cooking on Thursday. Didn't happen. I woke up about an hour before the T-man and spent it in front of Ratchet and Clank. I called my sister Liz, who was at home, with a list of about half a dozen things that I had forgotten in the previous evening's Berlin Airlift-scale movement of ingredients and cooking hardware I brought to my inveterate bachelor friend's house.
(Tommy has a beautiful house...but I cook more in that kitchen than he does. So I had a good idea of what I needed to bring...namely everything.)
My first order of business was to make pies. Now, in my house, you can have Thanksgiving without turkey and cranberries and stuffing. But, you best make sure you're not in arm's reach of me if you tell me there's not gonna be any pie.
That's my mom's pie crust recipe. I've also put it on my friend Rusty's recipe database. You can find it here. I loves me my pie crust.
I planned on making four pies. Two apple, one pumpkin, and one strawberry. The strawberry pie was at the specific behest of my sis, who by some freak of genetic drift does not like apple pie. Which suits me just fine, since I don't have to wrestle her for it.
So, Liz has by now arrived with all sorts of hardware and ingredients, supplementing my prepositioned Thanksgiving assault gear. I make up the pie crust batter, finishing just as Rusty and Sarah arrive. They've brought their bread maker and ice cream maker, along with some carrots they were going to cook with brown sugar and butter. (I like that kind of vegetables.) Liz and Tommy peeled potatoes and apples.
At about three, my classmate Kevin arrived with his wife Patty and their son Eric. Patty has baked a pecan pie, and prepared a cornbread stuffing and a fruit salad (all of which were superb!). At this point, I was busy arguing with my pie crusts. I have a heck of a time getting them rolled out circular and thin. Patty told me that there exist circular, zippered bags for the express purpose of rolling out pie crusts. I will make pies for whoever can find me some. You will like the pies.
Finally, it's time to start playing with the bird!
(Note Kitch-N-Aid stand mixer. That's my baby. Also note Flavor Injector. That's for marinating the bird from the inside. With orange juice and Tony Chachere's Cajun Seasoning.)
Our plan was to deep fry our turkey. This proved to be a superb plan. Rusty had borrowed a fryer, and I'd bought a turkey at Hirsch's (where I work part time), and we had decided that it was something we all wanted to try.
Let me tell you...if you know how to cook a turkey this juicy and delicious in less than an hour, I want to hear about it.
Sarah's playing with our new friend, making it mo'tasty. She did a fine job.
Okay, so Rusty and I were gonna cook this sucker. He was just about to stuff the bird in the pot, when I had a vision of the oil burbling up and getting through his mitt and the rolling around on the ground with the screaming and the third degree burns and the trip to the hospital.
So I decided to do things differently. I grabbed a long board from the garage, and we put that through the handle. This was a Good Idea. I strongly recommend it.
And THAT, my friends, is the purpose of our exercise.
Right about this time, our last guest Jeff showed up bearing additional carbohydrates. Yay dinner rolls!
I carved the bird, and finished assembling the pie, and then we descended upon our food as ravening wolves. Although the rest of the afternoon had been really well organized, we didn't get much in the way of planning how we were going to serve. So we sorta just scattered dishes around the kitchen, and turned people loose.
After dinner and conversation, we had coffee, and PIES, and Rusty's stupendous cinnamon ice cream. My friend Rachel stopped by for dessert. The Fergusons, unfortunately, had to put the little one to bed, and adjourned before we began The Games.
Tommy and I demolished the competition at TriBond, and I annoyed everybody by winning Give Me the Brain. Then, we just sat around and chatted for six hours.
All in all, a VERY pleasant day. And every moment, I was mindful of how grateful I was for these friends. I'm a very very lucky man.
Posted by Lee at 01:44 AM | Comments (0) | TrackBack
August 25, 2002
God and Goddess Party! w00t!
Sunday, August 25, 2002
Tommy hooked me up. After my ambiguous trip to NYC (see below), he knew I needed to shake it loose. So he went over to the fabric store and got fabric for togas (tie-dye for him, green and gold for me), laurel wreaths, and grapes. I went over to his house, and we headed out for Austin (three hours away) after I got out of work. The togas looked AWESOME.
The (ostensible) excuse for the party was Suzyn's birthday. Tommy and I stopped in Carl's Corner, TX to get birthday presents. Suzyn got beef jerky, a postcard with grasshoppers plowing a field, a Carl's Corner toothpick holder, and a Stone Cold Steve Austin car air freshener. We were pretty sure nobody'd ever given her any of these things, so it was quite memorable.
The only person I knew at the party apart from Tommy and Suzyn was Cathy, who was also at Tommy's birthday party. She's a nationally-ranked tae kwon do champion, and a really cool human being. Don't want to make her mad, though. : )
The hostess I actually MET was a charming gal named Celena.
Work it, baby!
This party turned just freakin' great. Had some beer, flirted with women, ate some cake...JUST what I needed. Life is good, yes?
So, after the drunken debauchery (during the recovery period) I found myself outside in a circle of about ten people talking about all sorts of cool stuff. Then people started dropping like flies! SLEEP IS FOR THE WEAK! Tommy and I wound up talking to Celena and a fellow named Erik all night, and the four of us went to Kerbey Lane for breakfast (mmmm....migas!).
I miss Austin. Good people, good town, good food...it's the only part of Texas that I don't want to nuke from orbit.
Here's Tommy's photo album of the evening, several of which I've used above. His website also has a more cogent account...I think I'd had more to drink than he had. : )
Posted by Lee at 01:42 AM | Comments (0) | TrackBack
August 22, 2002
New York, New York!
Thursday, August 22, 2002
(pictures to follow as I get them uploaded)
I have but three words for you.
Va. Ca. Tion.
(Hmm...vaca means "cow", and cows are pretty funny...I like that.)
Last Thursday, I flew to New York City for a week. I went to visit Emily and spend some time adventuring in the city.
New York is not what people say it is. People say that it's smelly, dirty, crowded, full of mean people, and generally very unpleasant. Although there are parts of it that are, ah, fragrant, it's not any worse than any other large city I've been in. And maybe I was lucky, but EVERY PERSON I dealt with was courteous, friendly, and very pleasant to be around. Some people say it's a different place since the attacks last September, and if that's so, I am glad to see that such a horror can have such positive side-effects.
And the subway! LOVES me the subway. I paid $17 bucks for a 7-day unlimited metro pass. That gives me free access to buses and trains throughout New York. The maps were excellent, and the signs in the subway stations (once I figured out what I was doing) were very clear.
On Friday, I went to the American Museum of Natural History and saw lots of cool anthropology stuff, and lots of animals (stuffed ones, in dioramas) and dinosaur skeletons. The cool thing about going to a dinosaur exhibit is that you can be eight years old again. The bad thing about going to a dinosaur exhibit is all the shrieking eight year olds. Whatcha gonna do, eh?
Saturday, Emily and I waited all day for the cable guy to show up. Finally happened, an hour and a half late, and set everything up. (He was a really nice guy...very competent and friendly)
Sunday was church, brunch, and hangin' out.
Met a guy who was selling some furniture (that Emily needed) who worked for The Late Show. Emily and I half-jokingly asked him for tickets, and he totally hooked us up. (No, you can't have his name or phone number.) We planned on going to the Tuesday show, to see Robin Williams and James Taylor.
Monday, Emily's friend Davis and I went to the Guggenheim Museum. Now, I'm not a big fan of modern art (anything newer than Impressionism is generally totally lost on me) but there were some really cool images and films presented in the Moving Pictures exhibition, which explored the uses of film, photography, and digital techniques in art. Lots of neat stuff, lots of stuff that didn't mean anything to me. I did formulate one of my issues with modern art, though. I found that many of the pieces made much more sense when you read the artist bio/blurb near the work. In other words, the works don't stand on their own merit. It's not possible to see what the artist was trying to accomplish without being told what the artist was trying to accomplish. To me, I feel like if you want to tell somebody something, you should be a writer. If you want to show somebody something, be a (visual) artist. But I think it's the mark of an unskilled communicator to present a work that is not self-contained.
My opinion. Could be wrong. : )
I liked Jeff Koons' Easyfun Ethereal collection. Huge 9'x12' paintings, rendered photo(sur)realistically in oils. He composites his paintings together from magazine clippings, then gets a great big canvas and starts painting. Man seems to like junk food.
I also enjoyed Peter Fischli and David Weiss's photography.
Monday night, I cooked dinner for Emily and Davis and Braxton (Emily's roommate). Pork chops with a honey and cinnamon marinade. Everybody seemed to think they were really tasty, and I think they were right.
Tuesday, I went to the museum aboard the USS Intrepid, which was docked on the Hudson River at 44th Street. I've always been a pretty big naval aviation enthusiast, ever since Time Warner sent me a copy of "The Carrier War" (which I hadn't asked for). I read this book so many times, the spine broke. I was fascinated by the idea of the aircraft carrier replacing the battleship as the major offensive weapon of the fleet. The USS Intrepid was one of the first carriers to enter service during World War II, and served with distinction well into the jet age. It was really a moving experience for me to walk around on the decks of this venerable warship, thinking about all the men who died in these spaces.
Then, from the sublime to the ridiculous, I met Emily and we headed over to the Ed Sullivan Theater to see Letterman. We went to a guy in a blue shirt, and said the Magic Words given to us by our new friend with the furniture. We were whisked away to a charming gal with an honest-to-God CLIPBOARD with OUR NAMES ON IT. We were ON A LIST. First time in my life I've been on "The List", and it was super-cool.
We were led past a line of thousands of people who DIDN'T get into the show, feeling all smug and important. The audience attendants told us "Hey, when in doubt? Laugh." and then we were led into the theatre. Emily and I were seated on Dave's left-hand side of the theater, basically right in front of The Desk. We were in the front row of the balcony, and had a good view of the (tiny!) stage. After the monologue, Dave played with the deli owner next door, Randall Jee. Here's a shot of Emily in front of the Hello New York Deli.
Robin Williams and James Taylor were the guests. Mr. Williams was suitably zany, and plugging his new movie One Hour Photo. He also spoke extensively of his trip to France, following Lance Armstrong's successful bid for his fourth Tour De France victory.
After the Late Show, we took a quick spin through Rockefeller Center, and then took a ride on the Staten Island Ferry. (None of my spectacular photos of the Statue of Liberty came out, unfortunately...)
Wednesday, I slept in. Emily's roommate Braxton took me to a deli for lunch, and I had God's own pastrami sammich. Yummy yummy! Then we went down to Coney Island to ride the Cyclone.
I expected the Cyclone to be a nice little roller coaster. Once we went over the first lift hill, though, I realized this thing had a well-deserved reputation as a first rate wooden coaster. It's every bit as intense as the Texas Giant, although it's much smoother (and, of course, smaller). Great great great roller coaster.
Thursday, Belgian waffles at the corner restaurant, and a limo ride to the airport (courtesy of Emily, who was grateful for my work on her computer, which was WAY more than I'd counted on) and a pleasant plane ride home. Talked to a neat guy named Zak. We spent the flight to Charlotte figuring out how to fix all the ills in the world. As single-serving friends go, he was top drawer.
Then, home. And me own bed. Hurrah! What a fun trip!
So, all in all, the vacation part was great. However, my romantic designs on the charming Emily were for naught. She decided I wasn't the boy for her.
grr.
Insert large amounts of chagrin here. Ah well...and now we turn the page.
Posted by Lee at 01:40 AM | Comments (0) | TrackBack
July 22, 2002
More on Snoopy Kisses
Monday, July 22, 2002
More details on the Snoopy Kiss Incident.
Friday night, Tommy and I went to the CD store to get some more discs, and then his (big finger quotes) friend [NAME CHANGED TO PROTECT THE INNOCENT] called him. She was going to swing by his house to say hello. Tommy now does dance of joy, and then panicks that his house is a mess.
It's not, he's just compulsive.
So, [NAME] comes in and tells us some amusing anecdotes about her cats. We tell her about Tommy's disc golf prowess. I beat a hasty retreat, having cleverly noted that I am the third wheel.
Couple hours later, Tommy IMs me. Transcript follows. I'm MoofPC, he's Synnibarr.
Synnibarr: So, I learned something about women just now...
MoofPC: ...they're different from boys?
Synnibarr: no...how you shouldn't snoopy kiss them while you in the middle of a makeout session.
MoofPC: ROFL.
Synnibarr: That's bad.
MoofPC: Dude, you're pretty smart.
MoofPC: She didn't think that was very funny?
Synnibarr: Dude...that was about the dumbest thing I've done in a long time.
Synnibarr: No...she didn't.
MoofPC: Like "Wow, I'm SO out of here!" didn't like it?
Synnibarr: Not, I'm SO outta here, didn't like it...but "Uh...I'm going not going to kiss you anymore and I'm ready to go now."
Synnibarr: Hmmm....that could be a "I'm so outta here".
MoofPC: Wow.
MoofPC: eek.
MoofPC: That really sucks.
Synnibarr: Yeah. Dumb me, eh?
OK, so I'm SUPER amused right now.
* MoofPC is giggling pretty uncontrollably right now
Synnibarr: I did say, "Ok, that was pretty dumb. But I'm not going to take it back!"
MoofPC: it hurts...it hurts...
Synnibarr: hahahahaha...I'm glad that you're getting a massive amount of pleasure out of this...
MoofPC: too....funny....
Synnibarr: hahahahha
Synnibarr: Enjoying this?
MoofPC: Dude.
MoofPC: You have NO idea.
MoofPC: ROFL
Synnibarr: Is this going to go on GeekIssues.com [sic]?
MoofPC: ...
MoofPC: Not a bad idea.
MoofPC: No, because you'd have to know what a Snoopy kiss is to get it.
So, no, I can't post it on geekissues.org, 'cuz it wouldn't be funny. But with an explanation of what a snoopy kiss is, it will be funny. See how that works?
A Snoopy kiss is like the kisses Snoopy liked to give Lucy. You know, just a big broad lick to the cheek. Here's the setup, excerpted from the conversation.
MoofPC: So, did you preface it with "Hey, you know what a Snoopy kiss is?", or did you just, like, lay it on her?
Synnibarr: Yes, I did.
Synnibarr: I told her that I didn't she she was ready for it.
Synnibarr: didn't think she was...
MoofPC: And you were right.
Synnibarr: After a few more kisses, I tilted her head to the left and then...SLURP!
MoofPC: ROFL
So now, kind reader, you too know...girls do not typically like Snoopy kisses. Use this knowledge only for good.
Posted by Lee at 01:34 AM | Comments (0) | TrackBack
July 08, 2002
Show Us On The Doll...
Saturday, June 8, 2002
Disclaimer: This story contains the account of a joke at somebody's expense. Said joke is in fairly poor taste. If any of ye be faint of heart or spirit, go nae further. For DEATH awaits ye ALL with nasty big pointy teeth!
Every Friday night, Tommy and I go play geeky role-playing games until the wee hours of the morning. My pal Bill (who's also an aero geek at UTA) hosts these get-togethers (gets-together? What would be the correct plural?) in Flower Mound. Normally, Eric and John (who looks like Henry Rollins, only shorter) are there, and we have a rotating crew of frequent players including Bill, Zack, Zack 2.0 (aka Ryan, Zack's twin brother. As an aside, had I met Ryan first, it would be Ryan and Ryan 2.0, Ryan's twin brother. No offense express or implied.) and Mike (who's pretty quiet, and pretty funny).
Tonight, there were about seven of us. Tommy, John, Bill, Eric, and I went to Steak N' Shake (this one to be exact) to eat. I wasn't hungry, so I got the largest strawberry shake in captivity. I asked our (very amusing and patient) waitress Jamie whether they served anything in a wastebasket-sized container, and she told me no. Rats.
So anyway, Zack and a New Guy show up. Well, he was new to me, anyway, and that's all that matters. New guy's name was Kitt. Now, back when I was in third grade, I LOVED Knight Rider. I used to try to talk to my watch, hoping the cool black Trans-Am would pull up in front of school. Well, unfortunately, it didn't happen. Said Trans-Am was a computer-enhanced SUPERCAR named...wait for it...K.I.T.T. (Knight Industries Two Thousand, if memory serves). Now, I have to give my new table-mate Kitt (the dude, not the black car) some slack...I know he's been dealing with this joke since he was walking upright. But man! I LOVED that show! That was the coolest car! So I HAD to make a comment.
He didn't think it was very funny.
OK, fair enough. I offer an olive branch, and he more or less accepts it. Now, when we're actually gaming (as opposed to eating) we kinda make fun of each other. A lot. And we laugh at each other. A lot. Especially new guys...you gotta sink or swim with this crew.
Well, it was about to go to a whole new level.
Somebody mentioned Spider-Man, the cool new movie. (Oh, and by the way, YIKES. Do not go to http://www.spiderman-movie.com/. You will be sad. You'll be redirected to http://hanky-panky-college.com/, and then barraged with a bunch of pop-up windows that it's really hard to close rapidly enough to make your boss not see them. You've been warned.) Kitt opined that the CGI (computer generated imagery) sucked. There was pretty general disagreement at the table...most of us really liked the movie, and thought it was done pretty well. Kitt started to mention that he thought the story was well done, he just had some technical issues with the way the computer characters were integrated into the movie. Fair enough, but blood was already in the water, and we were starting to circle.
We were trying to figure out what exactly had gotten his underpants in a wad about this movie. Somebody asked whether Spiderman had taken Kitt's lollypop. Then we were wondering if the director of the movie had inflicted some sort of childhood trauma. Somebody (I think it was Bill) said "Did Stan Lee abuse you as a child?" (Stan Lee is one of Spider-Man's co-creators)
Then Tommy drops Tha Bomb.
Tommy calls out, "Show me on the doll where he touched you!!"
Utter silence.
Then, everybody at the table ERUPTS in laughter. At that point, I become absolutely incoherent...tears are streaming out of my eyes and I'm pounding on the table. John, sitting across from me, is laughing hysterically. Eric looks like he's going to fall out of his chair. Kitt, well, Kitt is nonplussed. Poor guy, I mean, here he is, among a group of relative strangers, and they're all laughing hysterically at his expense. Been there, done that, guy...I do feel for you.
But it was really funny.
Posted by Lee at 01:26 AM | Comments (0) | TrackBack
May 25, 2002
The Great Squid Caper
Saturday, May 25, 2002
OK, so it's been forever since I've updated this. This story will be worth the wait.
My friend Matt messages me yesterday. Here's a transcript. I'm Lesingemechant (that means "The Naughty Monkey") and Matt is mmussel3
mmussel3: OH MY GOD DUDE!
mmussel3: I JUST THOUGHT OF THE FUNNIEST THING IN THE ENTIRE WORLD!
LeSingeMechant: Yes, Tim? (That's an inside joke. Ask Matt about it.)
LeSingeMechant: Uh oh.
LeSingeMechant: What is it?
mmussel3: [scoff]
At this point, I'm fastening my mental seat belt. My friend Matt here tells the best bad jokes on the planet, so his prank is likely to be pretty out there.
mmussel3: heh heh
mmussel3: so, you know how Ann's toilet is utterly bespangled with warnings to all males to put the lid down, not peepee on the seat, etc etc etc?
LeSingeMechant: Yep.
LeSingeMechant: We have to do something bad to it.
mmussel3: (which, if I might add, really makes one wonder at her freudian toilet training issues, among other things)
mmussel3: it doesn't say ANYTHING about...
mmussel3: octopi.
So I'm kinda worried now. Matt's taken a complete left turn, and I have no idea where he's headed. The light has not yet dawned.
LeSingeMechant: You're right, Matt, what is the significance of this omission?
mmussel3: well, considering that I know how to obtain said whole dead octopus
mmussel3: for a reasonable price
LeSingeMechant: Dude.
LeSingeMechant: She would flip out.
mmussel3: how freaking funny would her reaction to THAT be?
mmussel3: X'D
LeSingeMechant: I think we'd find her hanging by her fingernails from a light fixture.
mmussel3: X'D
So at this point, Matt and I are totally on the same page. We're apoplectic with laughter imagining what poor Ann's reaction is going to be to her new cephalopod friend. I go to school chuckling to myself about how uncontrollably funny this is going to be. Fast forward to 9pm, when I get to the scene of the crime. The perpetrators have all arrived, and our victim is anticipated at around midnight. However, there has been a change of plan. Matt bought an octopus at the market, but unfortunately, he realized it was only half an octopus. The cross-section was interesting to examine, but the shock factor just wasn't there.
So he got squids.
OK, so that's Matt and our new cephalopod housemate. The thing is about as long as your arm...I couldn't believe how big it was. So we stuff the thing in the commode, so all you can see is a head and tentacles.
Now, we're all laughing 'till we can't stand up. This is the apparently the funniest thing that's ever happened to any of us.
Now, the house we're defacing belongs to my friend Tommy. He thinks this is pretty amusing too, but we want to not wreck his plumbing. Having said that, we're considering two logistical problems.
1) Inadvertant flushing of the mollusk. That's bad.
2) Apprehension of mollusk by Mocha and Chloe, Ann's adorable and inquisitive (and probably hungry) cats. Said apprehension being followed by dragging the poor squid across the floor, resulting in an unbelievable reek. (This thing was STINKY.)
So, we did two things.
1) Sabotage toilet
2) Fill toilet with additional water to submerge squid
We just think we're so clever. So, fast forward to about midnight. The lot of us are upstairs blowing each other up on PS/2 and Dreamcast. Chu Chu Rocket RULES! We're being all noisy and stuff, so Ann shows up and promptly decides to spend the night at a friend's house.
Ruh roh, Raggy.
This was not part of our foolproof master plan. Ann snags a toothbrush and a change of clothes, and starts headin' for the door. We're all looking at each other, aghast at the thought of our carefully crafted plan crumbling before our eyes, thwarted by the incomprehensible revelation that no, thank you, Ann does not need to go tinkle.
Enter Sarah. Sarah BRILLIANTLY attempts no less than four carefully arranged ruses to draw Ann into the bathroom, to meet her new friend.
No avail.
OK, so we're all just totally cracking up right now, and Ann knows something's up. She's all like "Uh, see you guys later or something..." and is out the door. We're all just totally crestfallen! All this hard work! Tommy's rolling around on the floor hollerin', trying to figure out what went awry. The ruckus draws Ann back into the room, at which point we all basically shout "FOR THE LOVE OF GOD, GO LOOK IN THE TOILET!!!"
so she does.
You can also read another account of this on Tommy's page.
Oh yeah, and I burned some holes in a CD with a laser. I rule.
Posted by Lee at 01:22 AM | Comments (0) | TrackBack
November 08, 2001
More HalloweeEEEEN!
Thursday, November 8, 2001
There it is, in all its glory. This was taken ON HALLOWEEN, at my friend Rusty's house.
Yes. Rusty IS wearing pants. It's just a joke, people.
This is Rusty's wife Sarah, looking quite lovely in her French Colonial get-up. We thought it would be funny for me (the cowboy) to speak French, and for Sarah to speak hick all night. Unfortunately, we never had an opportunity to ply our wit on anybody...they were all boring.
We three went to see Thirteen Ghosts, which was a not-awful slasher flick with Tony Shalhoub and Shannon Elizabeth. We laughed, we cringed, we're not going to see it again and again, but it fit the bill for cheezy Halloween entertainment.
We were the only ones in the theater who were dressed up, though. This holiday's not what it used to be. Maybe it's because it was on a Wednesday.
Posted by Lee at 01:15 AM | Comments (0) | TrackBack
November 04, 2001
SIX FLAGS!
Sunday, November 4, 2001
Mom, Dad, and I went to Six Flags yesterday. Every year, Pilgrim's Pride rents out the park for their employees. Mom counts chickens (on an industrial scale) for ol' Bo Pilgrim, so we get to go. We got there a bit before noon, and Mom and I immediately headed for The Titan, dragging a somewhat reluctant paternal unit.
Now THAT, my friends, is a rolly-coaster. Mom and I grinned gleefully as we clambered aboard, but Dad looked distinctly wild-eyed. He was sitting next to Mom, in the car right behind me. I turned around and grinned as we ascended the lift hill, and Dad was definitely looking like he had left his keys somewhere...anywhere but on this 85mph BEAST.
So we tip over the top of the lift hill, and I swear that there's no track in front of us. All I can see is the hole we're headed for, 300 feet below my nose.
At this point, I start screaming my head off, and put my hands up above my head. The last cars crest the hill, and it's off to the races. The pull out at the bottom of the first hill is absolutely breathtaking, and then you're shooting up into the sky heading into an elevated right turn. The hard-banked 180 winds up pointing you back at the ground, and we then hurtle across the length of the ride into a camel-hump hill that throws you up off the seat (into the thoughtfully provided lap restraint). Then come two ascending right handed spiral turns, that try to squish us down into our shoes. At the top of the spirals the brakes hang us off of our lap harnesses. The car tips over precipitously to the left. Since you're going through this turn at low speed, it really feels like you're going to fall out of the car. Pretty cool. Then it's down a big hill, and into another (harder) spiral, then back into the start house.
No inversions, just fast fast fast. Mom and I rode the thing four times before the day was over, but Dad decided to go look for his keys. (I happen to know his keys were in his pocket, but he was not interested in getting back on that beast...)
So at this point, my voice is SHOT. I needed to be able to sing on Sunday, but that did NOT happen. Hopefully, with the application of some hot buttered rum, I'll be ready for choir practice Monday.
So we hit every coaster in the park, at LEAST twice, and we were done in less than four hours. Private parties at amusement parks rule! Batman and Mr. Freeze were great coasters too.
I like roller coasters. But not this one. 
Now, if you have a really fast Internet connection (or a very large amount of time on your hands), you can look at my new favourite ride. It's being installed at Six Flags Magic Mountain, and I cannot wait to conquer it. It's the craziest roller coaster I've ever seen.
Posted by Lee at 01:14 AM | Comments (0) | TrackBack
October 27, 2001
HALLOWEEEEEEEEEEEN!
Saturday, October 27, 2001
Had a pretty cool time last night. Thursday night, I stayed up 'till about 6am studying for a Friday midterm in my circuit analysis class. Thank heaven that there are people who like circuit design, because I certainly do not. Somebody else gets to make the black boxes that will keep my aircraft a-flyin'.
So, I take the test basically in a sleep-deprived daze. Apparently, it worked. I either did pretty darn well, or I was horribly horribly horribly confused as to what I was supposed to be doing.
So. I shamble into work, dog tired. I perk up a little bit at this point, because I like the people I work with, and the job that I do. That, I think, makes me luckier than a lot of people. Anyhow, I recall that I'm going to go to a Halloween party with my friends Niki and Chris at the Studio Movie Grill. I haven't the faintest idea what I'm going to be for the costume contest. So, as I'm driving home, I decide that I'm just gonna put on my dad's cowboy apron and go as "The Last Minute Cowboy". I then remember that Dad has a hat and a great pair of boots. Hmmm...this is shaping up.
So I bounce through the door, "Hi Dad! I'm raiding your closet!" Dad: "Uhhh...OK." and I bounce out the door and over to the SMG. (That's the super-secret secret code name for the Studio Movie Grill, the happiest place on Earth. Except for Tijuana.) The movie (From Hell, about Jack the Ripper) was profoundly disturbing. Note to self: Don't watch horror films while eating pizza. You'd have thought I'd learn after watching Hannibal while eating chicken fingers. OK. So I'm dense.
So, Chris finds the center of his generic surfer-dude costume when his fiancee Niki tells him that he's Jeff Spiccoli from Fast Times at Ridgemont High. Hopefully, I'll get some pictures from the party up here, and you can see just how apt the characterization is. 
Niki is dressed up as Chris's beach blanket betty. John is dressed up as James Dean, but he decided to skip rolling up smokes in his T-Shirt when the only available pack were girl cigarettes. Good call, dude. Kyra (sp?) was dressed up as an enchanting fairy princess.
So, spinning the Mix 102.9 Wheel O' Prizes, I win the new Cranberries CD. Great angsty Irish band. Awful obnoxious web site. Be forewarned. And I think I'm feelin' pretty good, since I like The Cranberries and now I own a CD with a label that says: "This compact disc is the property of the applicable record label and is being provided for promotional use only. Resale in unlawful and may be punishable under federal and state law." So, unfortunately, it's yet another record album that the artists didn't get paid for. Someday, I might get together the gumption to rant about how evil the record industry is, but for now I'll let Courtney Love do it. Caution: Raw language ahead.
Anyhow.
So, I'm enjoying my new Cranberries CD, and all of a sudden, it's time for the costume contest! Yay! So there are about a dozen people dressed up tonight. The employees of one of the Frederick's of Hollywood stores were apparently promoting their, ah, wares. Several young ladies were wearing outfits from the movie Moulin Rouge. Haven't seen it yet, but everybody raves about it.
These costumes were, well, a bit distracting. I figured I don't have a chance to win. But hey...anything can happen.
So, we get up in front of the (rather dead) crowd. And then, the radio personality, Lisa, says that we're all supposed to dance the Time Warp to see who wins the costume contest.
Everybody except me gives said radio personality a blank stare. I, on the other hand, grin slyly, because I do in fact know how to dance the Time Warp.
Stand back, people.
OK, so the music starts after some technical difficulties. Everybody is sorta milling about. A couple people start dancing, but they're NOT dancing the Time Warp. I, on the other hand, am. I FLING the cowboy hat across the room, and the place goes nuts. I'm dancing the Time Warp like a madman, and everybody's trying to figure out what's wrong with the guy in the apron.
We get through the chorus, and Lisa stops the music. I'm sorta annoyed, because it's just getting to the best part. So, the hosts of the party all put their heads together, and come up with five semi-finalists. I'm one of them. Wow! Pretty cool! One of the Frederick's girls is dressed up as a bumble bee. A very very shapely bumble bee, in big clunky boots. She says to me, smiling a cute little smile, "If you win, I'm gonna kick your ass!" I say, "Well, little lady, with those boots, I'm a-scared!" And we both laugh.
Little did I know.
So, they do an Applause-O-Meter thing on the five semi-finalists. The Purple Pimp Daddy didn't get much love. The guy dressed up as Dracula (the Gary Oldman one) did OK, as did his date who called herself Morgana and was toting around a chalice full of dry ice. Cool, says I. Miss Buxom Bumble Bee did pretty well, and I actually got a respectable showing myself. Surprise surprise!
So, they announce the second place winner: Count Dracula. Cool, says I. That's a good costume.
First place: The Bee. Yeah, I'd have voted for her too.
Grand prize: Guess who? It took me a minute to figure out that the cowboy they were talking about was me. Wow! Pretty cool! I take out my oven mitt six-shooter, and fire a celebratory barrage over the crowd. Pictures are taken (hopefully they'll be up on the radio station's home page Monday. I'll link 'em if they are). I collect my prize: A new DVD player, and a stack of movies. Woo woo! It's cool to be me!
So, I wound up trading the DVD player to my friend Ann, who had a nice car stereo she wasn't using. Mutual advantage is a beautiful thing, my friends!
So, tonight, instead of sleeping like a sane person would, I'm writing this to you nice people. THEN I'm going to bed.
Like, now.
Posted by Lee at 01:09 AM | Comments (0) | TrackBack