My Favorite Kings

hallowoes

How can it be only 2:44 in the afternoon and I'm already sick to my stomach from too many Skittles and Starburst? Halloween festivities have hardly even started... and my coworkers know my weaknesses all too well...

Though my work is freakin nuts about Halloween. Best costume today? Four people dressed in Tetris-piece costumes. What a genius idea I am going to steal at some point in the future.

Every year there's a "group decoration" contest... and these are two of the winning entries--'"Heaven" in my area, and "Pirate Jungle" in the direct mail creative group.


Having dressed up both Friday and Saturday nights, and knowing another full Goth run will probably ensue this evening as well, I forewent the extreme costuming at work today and simply wore the angel wings. Rollin, creepy as all get out, won the company's best costume this year (ironically a very coveted award.)

Redeemed

I knew New Yorkers were cranky and pretty myopic. I'm used to the West and its general sense of politness. Not such the standard here.

However, with their last chance to redeem themselves, the New York City natives pulled through.

Getting on the subway for my last ride to the train that will take me to the shuttle that will take me to the plane that will take me to Vegas which will take me to the plane that will take me to Salt Lake which will take me to Krista's car which will take me to my grandparents downtown condo to pick up my car which will THEN take me home (deep breath) I was getting ready to lug my suitcase down the subway steps and some boy in a black North Face jacket asked if I needed help. Help! A New Yorker asking to help? Holy freaker. A miracle! That black North Face jacket man really saved some New York face.

OH for sake. The homie G-thang standing next to me on the 1 train burping with gusto might have just brought me back from my euphoric state.

(On a side note, the woman now sitting next to me since I escaped Captain Burp Squad is wearing a full length, full patterened Burberry jacket that probably cost $700. As Mel and I discussed last night, people with that kind of money would be traveling above ground. This leads me to believe that her coat is a fake she probably bought on the streets. End sidebar commentary.)

A Little Preview...

It's late, and my last night in the Big Apple is drawing to a close. It's now 2:19 AM EST and I don't have to leave to take the subway, light rail, shuttle, airplane until 12:30 PM EST tomorrow. My two Columbia MSW students have retired for the evening as their days will start much earlier than mine. However, I don't feel like writing a substantial blog at this time. But, I know Monday is a big blog-checker day, so I wanted to give you something to chew on until I'm back in full action wasting time at work and blogging on Tuesday. Bah. To tide you over until then, I'll offer a preview of the weekend which mostly involved shopping, eating, watching, and dressing up like dark angels.


If you simply can't wait until I return in full blogging fashion on Tuesday, check back frequently tomorrow (Monday) as I'll probably be blogging from my Blackberry random conversations I overhear on systems of mass public transit. It's a beautiful thing.

Meat on the Street

Overheard two minutes ago by the guy sitting next to me on the Long Island Railroad, one elbow resting on my suitcase, the other hand flipping thruthh an EW (E-Dub!):

"Dude, I'll be there in about 30 minutes. Have you guys eaten?"

(pause)

"Dude, there's guys selling meat on the street, I'm not really worried about finding something to eat."

The English Barrista

I'm not so much of a morning person. But I was sitting on my 7AM flight from SLC to Las Vegas, and this was the entertaining conversation I overheard.

AltaRockStar (who apparently works at a coffee house other than Starbucks): " So, they'll come in, all asking for a grande, or tall, or venti, and I'm like, "I don't speak Spanish."

GoodNaturedManNextToHim: "Well what kind of barrista are you?"

AltaRockStar: "An English one."

Oh boy. Some people will always speak louder in public places than necessary. AND be dumber than bricks.

Failed T-Shirt Idea #9532

Oh the mental image...

Fire department called when cremation gets out of hand
The Salt Lake Tribune
Article Last Updated:10/25/2006 09:26:48 AM MDT

Posted: 9:22 AM- A fire broke out at a Salt Lake City funeral home Tuesday afternoon as workers cremated the remains of a man who weighed more than 600 pounds.

"In the process, some of the body fat had liquefied and leaked out ... and caused a fire similar to a grease fire," said Scott Freitag, a spokesman with the Salt Lake City Fire Department.

An employee at Gardner Funeral Home, 1001 E. 11th Ave. put the blaze out with fire extinquisher before firefighters arrived, he said.

The department assisted with smoke removal, and there was no damage to the funeral home, Freitag said.

Quasi-Celebrity Spotting

So there we were last night, kicking it at the Chili's on 4th South. No big surprise seeing as we eat there at least once a week. (Last week? Three times. I'm a freak, I know. But the chips 'n salsa, chicken enchilada soup, and Diet Coke with cherry syrup prove to strong of a temptation.)

In walk three tables of young bucks. They all look like dancers--that's my first thought. Well lo and behold, I'm sitting, facing this guy who looks pretty familiar to me and then I place it. It's Craig from the first season of So You Think You Can Dance--my summer guilty pleasure favorite.


Then, the guy with his back to Krista turns his head and I realize I recognize that swoop of hair. It's Ben from the 2nd Season of SYTYCD. A little research this morning and I find out they're in town dancing with the company doing the annual Thriller showcase.












Aren't cell phone cameras a great thing?

The funniest part was that in the 20 minutes we'd been talking about Benji, Allison, and Ivan. Two months after the finale and we still can't let it go.

Now I don't expect anyone to be as excited about last night's event as I am--because I don't think anyone's guilty pleasure or passion for SYTYCD runs as deep as mine. But Craig was always one of my favorites last season... so it was pretty exciting... see? I am still one of the luckiest people alive.

My Weekend in Random Pictures

A man reading the newspaper in a movie theater, waiting for The Prestige to start. Some people just can't relax.









Tobias eating at California Pizza Kitchen.








The view rounding the south-bound spaghetti bowl curve from I-15 to I-80 East on my way from the Best Western Garden Inn to my house o' black liquid death.







Waiting for my laundry to complete at my sister's. Provided a comfortable resting ground for la bebe.








Getting ready to float 'lil Moses down the river.

Pins and Needles

Freaker. I'm on pins and needles and a restless ball of energy. I don't usually get this anxious sick-to-my-stomach feel, but I'm certainly feeling it now! Blagh!

I'm speaking in church tomorrow. No big--12 minutes and suitable research has been conducted, quotes gathered, and minimal word-for-word planning done. The recipe for a great talk. I know it'll be fine, but I'll be anxious about it from now until 3:35 tomorrow afternoon when I stand and deliver.

I found the perfect, and I mean perfect place to live in the big life change of 2007. But I'm waiting on official word--coming soon I hope--and then I can relax further.

I know this blog isn't funny, or entertaining, or alarmingly offensive, but it's me at this moment.

But my last thought before closing--is eating at the continental breakfast at the hotel tomorrow morning considered 'eating out' and in turn mean breaking the Sabbath? I wonder if that's in the official church handbook...

All Fired Up

Haven't the Dixie Chicks been fired up for like three years? And is anyone else getting sick of hearing about it? Holy cow, move on...

Behold the Damage!

I finally went home last night--I needed a restock of clothes and other items. I also wanted to check in on how Paco, our construction guy, is doing with our moldy renovation.

Behold... the exceptionally high-quality camera phone photos I took.















The Downstairs Bathroom

Until yesterday, Marge, our landlord, didn't even know there was a problem in the downstairs. As if a wet and dropping-pieces ceiling weren't notice enough. I pushed on the ceiling, and in most places it's soft and pliable. I'm kind of waiting for the bathtub right above it to come crashing down.
















The Upstairs Bathroom

The moldy walls have been replaced with new drywall--big question is whether or not they got all the mold out...

And it's still stinky and now it's just freezing because all the windows are open to dilute the smell and it's 45 degrees!

Can you tell why we're loving the hotel?

Quick Update

This is my cute baby niece Adrie giving a shout-out to all the readers of my blog.

Just a reminder--I named this baby and I named our dog Kino. Two for two so far. If you need some help, let me know.

In other random news, I bought my ticket for another grand return to NEW YORK CITY! I'll be flying out next Friday and staying to Monday. Oh man, I'm so so so so SO excited. I had such a blast last time, but it'll be fun to be on my own and in a smaller group this go-round.

I'm going to see Step Up at the dollar movie theater tonight. I'm pretty excited since I love urban dance movies. We'll see if it can replace my now NO.1 fave Honey.

One more week in the hotel. I guess I'll have to go home to the black liquid death house tonight for some more clothes. Good timing considering I'm out of clean underwear.

And with that mention of unmentionables, I'm out!

V. Mars

Those who associate with me on a personal level probably know about my obsession with the show Veronica Mars. Like near literal obsession. Complete and total. I watched the first two seasons on DVD but have been eagerly tuning in to the new CW network on Tuesday evenings to catch Season III as it occurs.

Kristen Bell is totally my new girl-crush. (Sorry Alba, you're out.)

So there I am, tuned in tonight. I left the gym in perfect timing for the third installment of this season. I'm watching in amazement as Veronica throws zingers back and forth with my favorite characters (where was my boy Wallace tonight?) and crime solves... all typical fare for a Freshman in college. Right?

Less than ten minutes to go in the episode and the CW freaks out. The screen stays black and V. never comes back. Instead, the local affiliate, fearing dead air time, turns on the freaking King of Queens. Oh please. So now I'll never know who stole the Hearst football player's play book or what kind of repercussions Veronica's placing of a GPS tracer to track a suspicious trip to Mexico will have on her relationship with bf Logan.


What other shows can give you this kind of fabulous commentary?

- "Veronica Mars, modern college girl on the go."
- "Dick Casablancas, Neolithic college boy on the sauce.
- "OK, I'm not sure what Neolithic is, but hey, I'm in college, maybe someone will teach me."

or when Veronica tried to get her used-to-be-the-sheriff PI Dad to hire local quasi-reformed town Latino, Weevil as his secretary so he'll meet his parole mandates:

"All those times I arrested him, he never struck me as great secretary material. Didn't he get arrested for murder?"
"Assault."
"See, he's not even a very good murderer."

This cult show struggles for ratings... if the CW cancels it I may have to force a boycott of all my other favorite C-Dub shows. And then One Tree Hill will only have four people watching. Take that!

Living in a Hotel Downtown 'Aint So Bad

Night number four in the Best Western. Tonight's agenda:

+ What Not to Wear marathon on TLC. Man. What I wouldn't give for a personal shopper!

+ Near 2-hour phone conversation with an out of state best friend.

+ Enjoying a fresh bed made by someone else.

+ Revel in the glow of this last weekend including old friends and a rockin Killers concert.

+ Tortilla chips, Diet Pepsi, and a back to back showing of Legally Blonde. I'm worried my hair is starting to look a little Elle Woods. Question of this blog: what is Elle's dog's name?

Oh man, they just announced that She's All That is on next. Freddie Prinze Jr is such a babe!

And I'm still uber slow at typing on this BlackBerry and that's why I'm not writing ANY more!

back to the future

I'm posting this blog from my new BlackBerry. Look how high tech I am!

The keyboard is all funky... It's like learning to text all over again!

What a strange world we live in when I can blog from my phone from my downtown hotel room while watching friends play Tetris.

Ladies and gentlemen, the American dream has been fully realized.

Pick-Me-Up

Does anyone have any good news to share? I would sure like to hear some.

Use Your Words George.

I've realized that I haven't really written anything lately. My posts have been mostly cheap thrills via YouTube, screencaptures of strange websites/banners, or celebrity commentary. Some might argue, but I feel I'm (at least on some levels) a little deeper than that. Some, not much.

It occurred to me that I haven't written many wordy posts lately because I'm getting sick of words. In the last three weeks at work, I've written 321 emails. I've received four times that many. I enter at least three dozen log updates in our tracking software daily in addition to the IM-ing I do with my peers to clarify the work I've assigned. And I don't even have the heaviest workload of the people who do my job.

Since we no longer have internet at home, I'm forced to blog at work--and sometimes I don't feel like using words anymore! I like pictures and easy laughs. But alas, I'll try harder to be a real blogger and quit using cheap tricks to keep my readers happy.

In the continuing thread of guessing, does anyone know where my headline is from? For many of you, this shouldn't be hard. Either you watch, or you don't.

Here, written out in word form, are some of the thoughts I've had today.

a. It's time to have my eyebrows waxed again. Wildabeast growing on my face.
b. Why do yogurt lids spit-up without fail, every time you open them? Annoying.
c. Amanda and I are wearing the same pants and shoes. Twinners!
d. I guess I'll plan on another long run tonight again since bowling will without fail not happen.
e. I've got to get this insomnia thing under control. Lying in bed for three hours without falling asleep is punishment suitable only for murderers and boys who leave the toilet seat up in my bathroom.
f. Our house smells like a sweet combination of rotting bathroom walls and cigarette smoke from the white trash neighbors. Enter at your own risk.
g. This post is getting long and if I continue writing more words I'll lose all the people who come to look at flashy pictures.

And the Count-Up Continues...

I confess that I've become a bit of a gym-rat lately. Not the ripped-shirt, bulging-neck variety, but simply I've been hitting the gym pretty consistently in the last few weeks. Being the non-runner that I am, I'm pretty impressed with my new running capabilities. I ran on the treadmill five days last week and am off to a great start this week. Last night I really pushed myself and ran 5 miles! For me, that's a freaking eternity. Granted, I run slower than spit, but it's consistent, and my times are improving. I've come a long way in a month.

That's all, I just wanted to brag.

Tony Says it Best...

Something's Coming

Could be!
Who knows?
There's something due any day;
I will know right away,
Soon as it shows.
It may come cannonballing down through the sky,
Gleam in its eye, Bright as a rose!

Who knows?
It's only just out of reach,
Down the block, on a beach,
Under a tree.
I got a feeling there's a miracle due,
Gonna come true, Coming to me!

Could it be?
Yes, it could.
Something's coming, something good,
If I can wait!
Something's coming,
I don't know what it is,
But it is Gonna be great!

With a click, with a shock,
Phone'll jingle, door'll knock,
Open the latch!
Something's coming, don't know when, but it's soon;
Catch the moon,
One-handed catch!

Around the corner,
Or whistling down the river,
Come on, deliver To me!
Will it be? Yes, it will.
Maybe just by holding still, It'll be there!

Come on, something, come on in, don't be shy,
Meet a guy,
Pull up a chair!
The air is humming,
And something great is coming!
Who knows?
It's only just out of reach,
Down the block, on a beach,
Maybe tonight . . .

Kudos in advance to whomever can name where this came from...

Steal of a Deal

Today, I paid my sister Kendall five bucks to ride the bus 2 miles. She didn't ask for the money--I offered, in an effort to avoid getting caught in post-BYU football traffic.

That small and insignificant $5 bill in my wallet saved me 50+ minutes of driving.

What's the very most you would do for $5?

Little Superstar

Taking a poll... is he a little person or a child?

My work poll had the following comments:

1. Child -- "Little peoples' joints don't move that well."
2. Little Person -- "The smoking at the end made stear away from child."
3. Neither -- Like Webster (aka Gary Coleman), this individual's body is completely proportioned.
4. WHO CARES -- "That smile will be forever burned in my memory."

Oh I love it so much.

What is your favorite part? My favorites are at 17 and 37 seconds. (And I don't know why there's no sound... sorry!)

Shave the Sheep!

Remember what I said about crazy banners? Case in point:


How do I get a job designing these!? And can someone PLEASE find me the out-knit Saddam? A special prize in store...

Random for the Day

Oh for freaker. I watched the funniest episode of The Office tonight at the gym. I was laughing with my mouth gaping open (which is doubly advantageous since I'm a mouth breather and get really quite winded on the treadmill). Anyway, the episode was The Fire and I'd heard some of the girls at work talking about it before, but tonight was my first experience experiencing myself. GO check it out. You won't be sorry.

The best quote I heard today:

Krista: So I was watching the Iron Chef earlier today and guess who won! Not the Iron Chef!