We're back

2-2-07; Somewhere between Oregon and Illinois.

OK, I've been slacking. At blogging. I know. I intended to do a huge write up of my trip to Europe, but it never happened. I still have notes from it; maybe pieces will surface as appropriate.

So, now I'm on a mini-vacation. I hate to be self-satisfied and say that it's "much-deserved", but honestly, I've been working my ass off. (ie no Christmas time off) When I return, I'll have 2-3 months of constant shit to deal with, but I'm hoping if I get into a routine, I'll keep up with this. I like the idea of posting a "column" every Sunday, with random notes in between. I'm working on a new script that will make that easier. I've also been applying my 10 pm email curfew to my blogging. This will be lifted, so many of th random notes will be fueled by drugs, alcohol and exhaustion. So take them with a salt-rimmed margarita.

For the month of February, I'll be blogging on another site as well. I've been writing more music lately, and decided to sign up to the rpm challenge (http://www.rpmchallenge.com) where artists attempt to record an entire album during the month of February. I think it will provide a much needed kick in the ass, and if something cool comes out of it, that's almost a bonus. I may cross-post a bit, but you can check on progress and get exclusives at the aforementioned web site. The name of the band/project is "Tree Bites Man". We'll see what happens.

So far today...

I had a classic "Whitey" moment about two weeks ago where I wiped out on the sidewalk randomly. Ripped some skin off the heels of my hands. Not cool. Also not cool is the fact that my iPod was in my pocket at the time. Cracked the screen. Found a cool repair site on-line (iPodresq.com), so I sent it in. Pretty sweet turnaround, but I fucked up and got it in a day later than I expected. Then yesterday I tried to get them to ship it to NH, but they had already sent it to Portland. It was supposed to be delivered this morning, but I waited as long as I could before I had to call a cab and go to the airport. So now, it's presumably sitting on the porch. I need to find someone to hide it until I get back. And no iPod for the trip. I even bought a car adaptor/transmitter for use with my rental. Oh well. We'll see how long I can listen to WEEI without wanting to kill someone.

Cab to the airport. Uneventful. Talkative driver, but he was kind of quiet, and I couldn't understand him. So I stopped responding, and he shut up till we got there.

Airport security makes me feel like I'm getting mugged.

Empty your pockets!

Cell phone? Lap top? Let's see 'em!

Keys? Change? Come on, let's go! Move!

No funny stuff, you hear me?

And if that's not enough, you have to take off your shoes and belt and jacket. Then they let you go, but you have to walk around for five minutes with all your belongings in your hands and your pants falling off, because there's nowhere to sit anywhere near the checkpoint station.

And no liquids!

So that sucks, but once you're in, you're in. It's like an exclusive club. And it leads to my favorite part of the airport. The airport bar. If you can't have a good conversation over a beer while bellied up to an airport bar, you suck. If it weren't for the security gate, I think I'd hang out there more often. (yes, you can go to the bars outside the gates, but it's not the same) Chicago will be even better, because you get a mix of people coming and going from all corners. Portland, well, you're either from here, or going home. Less exciting. But today I chatted up a dude who designs interiors for private commission helicopters. He was flying standby to Vegas. I sucked down a pair of Tecate drafts, had a quesadilla, and caught my plane.

The flight's empty. It's awesome. Full row to myself. I get the window seat, plus I can keep my bag next to me without losing any leg room, and I don't have to feel bad about getting up to use the bathroom. (which I just did)

No meal on this jaunt, but they did hand out a snack-pack, including some dried fruit, funky graham cracker things, and...
wait for it...
Handi-Snacks!

Dude! It's been years. They're the stick ones, not the crackers with the little red plastic spreader, but still. Sweet.

Actually, this "cheese" is pretty nasty. Nevermind.

There's also a Sudoku in the box. I haven't done one of these for 6 months or so. Time me...

Seven minutes and forty seconds. I'm rusty.

That's all for now.