Not a happy camper!

On Friday the carpet installers were scheduled to put the new carpet in my house. Today is Sunday, and I am looking at bare floors. The reason for this? There is a bunch of stuff in the way. Stuff that I was told would be removed last week. Stuff that I don't have room for. Stuff that isn't even mine. You see, my house has been used as free storage for, oh, about a year now I guess. Before the new carpet can go in, obviously the old carpet has to be removed, and the walls have to be washed, and then painted. Trust me, it's NOT a 10 minute job. And every day that these items sit in their dusty location, is another day that the renovations on my house are at a complete stand still.

Bed, Bath and Bullshit.

Okay, so I know this is my second posting about a movie in the last, um, not very long. But I can help it, I keep seeing really good ones. And since I do nothing but work on my house all day, every day, I have nothing else to write about.

I don't know if anyone knows this or not, but my idea of the perfect girl is Anna Faris. Put her together with Jon Heder, and that's a movie I'm going to watch. And I did, "Mama's Boy" would be it's name. And it's so damn funny. A cute little story of freaks and losers. And did I mention funny.

Before I slip into unconsciousness.

I really should be sleeping right now. But before I sleep, I wanted to put a song up.
Here you go Heather.

Busy.

Wow, I haven't had anything new to say since December 5th? That doesn't sound like me. Maybe it's all the work I'm getting done on my house. I've been working on it sun up, til sun down. And starting tonight, even later. At this point I'm on the job til it's done. No more taking the evenings off to watch movies, or even to read. I must not rest until all is right in my world again. I NEED my kitchen back. A culinary whiz such as myself can only survive on microwave meals and peanut butter and honey sandwich's for so long.

Outsourced.

This is my new favorite movie. Go check out the site. Then go rent it. You will love it, and if you don't, you can't be my friend anymore.
http://www.outsourcedthemovie.com/

Time is running out.

Count down to action, adventure and British accents. As of right now, (right now being 2:30ish am on Monday) we're just about 36 hours away from Bond. Any and all are welcome to join me. Not totally sure what time yet, but I'll have it pinned down by the end of the day. Get a hold of me, one way or another for more info.

Daylight

So there's a new movie out called Twilight, maybe you've heard of it. Apparently it's adapted from a series of books that are super popular. Which strikes me as a little odd, because I thought most people had become to dull and lazy to pick up a book. A few days ago, Bryan, Chris, Pat and I were sitting in our gorgeous new book store in the mall, drinking peppermint coffee, when I remarked that I was surprised to see so many St. Georgian's in a book store. "I didn't think it was trendy to read anymore." Smart ass that I am. Bryan explained, "It's not trendy to read, it's trendy to own books." But back to Twilight. Bryan and Danalee saw it a week or so ago, and she wanted to see it again. So she talked me into going to see it with her. And to tell you the truth I was a little curious to see what the big deal was. We got settled in our seats and decided to text Bryan and tell him that we went to the new Bond movie instead. I'm abstaining from Bond until my birthday, and he's been trying to get me to break my pledge for about 2 weeks. After our bit of fun, and about two hours of teen angst, I'm still not sure what all the fuss is all about. It wasn't bad, it had it moments. I thought Jasper was hilarious, funny is what they were going for there, right? I guess my only real problem with it, is the title. Most of the movie took place during the day, what does "Twilight" have to do with anythning?

Lame fortune cookie, not so lame Sunday.

I was bored today so I decided to treat myself to dinner and a movie. And what I found was a rare treat. A movie named "Sukiyaki Western Django", a Japanese made, English language, Japanese version of a spaghetti western. And yes, it was as strange as it sounds. I paired this with some really good Chinese take out. I guess I would describe this evening as delightful. The Japanese confuse and fascinate the hell out of me. And I just can't wait to get a first hand look at their culture. I guess that means I better get my ass in gear and get done with all the stuff I need to get done with before I go. Hell, I still need to learn to speak Japanese. Guess I should have done that before looking at apartments.

Eating at me.

A few days ago I had an off putting conversation with someone. This person wanted me to surrender something, that at the time seemed benign, but as it would turn out, was better left unasked for. This left me thinking. I've always had the habit, of trying to cultivate relationships with people who are simply not as interested as I am. Over the years this has left me with a lot of one sided friendships. A door mat, so to speak. And though at times I can be an ass, I'm a pretty good friend to have. I can be called on day or night, with almost any request, and I usually snap to.
Through my recent and ongoing journey of self exploration, I have come to realize many things about both myself and the people around me. And I keep coming back to one thing. I don't want to be that guy anymore.

A Ray of Light on a Partly Cloudy Day.

So, maybe everyone already knows about this, but it came out while I was in Alaska, so this is the first time I've seen it. And if you haven't seen it, I strongly recommend that you go watch it right now. It was created by Joss Whedon, and that by itself is enough to get me to watch. Normally I hate musicals that are not Rocky Horror Picture Show, but this one is so funny that I fell in love with it at once. It was fresh and clever. And I truly hope there is more to come.Why are you still reading this? Go, go, go, and watch it right now!

Home

My day started off like any other, wake up, eat breakfast, drink coffee, take a shower. Only today I didn't have time for breakfast. Today I fly back to Utah. The float plane that I need to take to get out of Thorne Bay is a little late, no big deal, it's 8 AM, and my flight out of Ketchikan isn't until 1 PM. Considering the weather, I'm just glad they are flying at all. Well, as some of you may know, bad weather makes for a rough flight, and when the plane you are in is smaller than a VW Bug with wings, rough flight means ROUGH flight. At one point my head actually hit the roof. I've come to expect this on the "Beavers", but add an empty belly. Not a good combo.

I'm safe and sound now in Ketchikan, with 4 hours to wait, and I decide to check in anyway. That bag is heavy and I want to get rid of it as soon as possible. I check in only to find that the 8:45 AM flight that I wouldn't have been able to make, has been delayed for mechanical problems. And if I want, I can get on it, and make it to Seattle 3 hours early. Of course, I would normally say, "No thank you, I'll wait for the plane that wasn't broke down." But today I'm thinking that the quicker I get home the better. As it turns out, the mechanic who fixed the plane is sitting right next to me, which makes me feel pretty good about the whole thing.
So now I'm in Seattle, and now I'm really starting to feel good about the trip, surely they can get me on an earlier flight, so off to the help desk. And the first question, the one that I just knew would give me problems. "Do you have checked bags?" Apparently it takes 2 full hours to get bags changed to a different flight plan. And the earlier flight that they could have gotten me on leaves in an hour and 45 minutes, but she will try. "Oh but wait, what's this? You are traveling with a firearm, that complicates things." Of course it does.
By this point I'm pretty damn hungry, and the smell from the "Chili's Too" mixed with my frustration at Verizon for not being about to get me online has come to a head. The smart move would be to go to above mentioned bar and grill who's name has nothing to do with the flavor of the food, but I go in search of pizza instead. What I find is a fish place, and as soon as I walk on by it, I think ti myself, "I'm going to regret not getting fish tacos for lunch." The pizza place I find has a lot of people just standing around, assumably waiting for their food. So what's better than pizza? Sushi of course. And why not, this is that Seattle airport, and it's a big airport, with lots of people, and it's a coastal town. I'm sure the sashimi is fine. Well, it wasn't fine, it wasn't fine at all. The salmon while not fresh, luckily had almost no flavor, and the tuna was funky enough that I'm not sure if it would even be good cooked. The problem with sushi is that you really don't know if it's any good or not until it's in your mouth, and by that time the damage is mostly done, so I choked it down with the aid of a bit more wasabi that usual. Then headed directly for the closest news stand, so buy pepto to try and ward off the inevitable gastrointestinal problem to come.
Back to waiting, and waiting at the wrong gate it seems. I've been content to sit at D11, when I should be at C11 in a different wing of the airport. A mistake I don't realize until it is past time for me to board my plane and there's no plane to board. I manage to be the second to last person on the plane, and we're off.
Las Vegas, Nevada, and I'm guessing it's about 85 degrees. There is a smell, not a bad smell, but not a good one either, just, familiar. The desert, dry, warm, home, almost. Two and a half hours later and we are pulling into the shuttle station. Almost there, just a short hike with about 65 pounds of luggage, and I'm at the front desk of the hotel where Jalee has procured me a room.
It's been a long summer. I loved Alaska, but it's nice to be home. Especially since I don't have a pesky job to get in my way. So now what?

Forecast: Sunny

Usually loving gloomy weather, when the sun came out today I was a little glad to see it. Sitting in a corner with no direct line of sight to the sun from a window, I find myself wanting to stretch out an arm like "Swamp Thing" and soak up a little of that light. I really thought it would take longer for me to miss the sun. Although I'm not sure if it's the sun, as much as the lack of rain that I'm glad for. Or perhaps I'm just low on vitamin D, and my body is craving a solar recharge. I don't think I've been feeling down, but maybe a little homesick. Either way, I'm heading home to Utah on Monday, and back to an indefinitely sunny forecast.

The big day!

Well, here it is, that thing I agreed to a few days ago.

My friend Scott called me a few nights ago to tell me that he and his girlfriend had decided to get married on her birthday. And they wanted me to marry them. Obviously I said yes, and why not? How often do you

 get to do something like this?

                                                                             Everyone was a little nervous.

I think I rushed the lines a little bit, and at one point skipped a couple of them. I don't think 

anyone really noticed though.               

                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                  

  The whole thing went better than I expected. considering there was almost no planing involved. Scott and I set every thing up just a couple of hours before hand, and I think most of the guests were invited that same morning.

I had fun. I don't know if I would do it again anytime soon. But it was fun none the less. Their plan had been not to tell anyone until the last minute, so that it would stay small and simple. The plan half worked, her mom tried to make as big a thing out of it as possible with such short notice. I know I've said it before, and I'll say it again. If I ever get married, I'm going to elope.

Best fortune from a cookie ever!

"You will travel to many exotic places."

I got an interesting call this evening, with an even more interesting request. And I absolutely accepted! And just in time too. I just bought a new digital camera (the smallest 10.1 mega pixel on the market, and yes, I'm bragging a little), and now I have a great opportunity to get some pictures with it. I don't want to say what I agreed to yet, I think that pictures will be a lot more entertaining. All I will say is that I need a hair cut and a new suit by Sunday. And it's not what you might think, so think on that.

This is my life.

The last couple of days I have been wrestling with a tough choice, and I think I've come to a decision. I'm going to take a job that I don't really want. I going to do this because it's a means to an end, or in this case a means to a beginning. I am going to start living the life I want to live. Like most people I have spent my life just going through the motions, never really going anywhere, or doing anything worthy of writing home about. I have lived my life by just trying to get through it. Always just finding it acceptable to have made it to the end of another day, another weekend, another birthday, another decade gone. I don't want to be part of the mass of sheep that are content with mediocrity. We are all moving constantly closer to death, and if mine came tomorrow, the life I've lived thus far is a wasted one. Doing the same thing everyday, always looking toward some reward, and wondering why it never comes. Now I know that it will never come. Nothing great comes to those who wait. Instead of being at ease when another day is over, I will strive to wake up glad that a new day is starting, another opportunity to get have a better day than the one before it.

I AM a beautiful and unique snowflake. I will be a mercenary. I will take what I want from life. I will forget what age is. I will not care what others think of me. I will feel music. I will alienate people. I will live on a boat. I will eat something strange, and be thankful I don't know what's in it. I will stand out in a crowd. I will make friends. I will laugh more. I will try to never eat pre-packaged, one step, ready to eat food. I will read more. I will sleep in, when it suits me. I will learn. I will do something stupid. I will do it again. I will count the stars. I will be a vegetarian who occasionally enjoys a bloody steak. I will teach. I will have my own theme song. I will have an encounter with a stranger in an elevator. I will travel. I will do something brilliant. I will love. I will question. I will dine at sunset, and then stay out all night and watch the sunrise over Tokyo. I will be the person I've always wanted to be. I will do this, because if I don't take advantage of all my life has to offer, what's the point?

This is not a call to arms. I'm not hoping to inspire anyone else to follow suit. I don't really want anyone stealing my thunder.. If you are overly fond of the guy you always knew, better say goodbye. In this world full of people content to color inside the lines, there's just not room for me anymore. I'm going to paint my world red, with a yellow crayon.