Zen of Everything

What a crazy last couple of months!

2010-02-01T19:36:00.000-08:00

I haven't made any updates lately because I've either been at work or staying with my girlfriend, the last few months have been pretty hectic.

Let me see if I can give you the brief rundown:

Meeting my girlfriend, it was a magical mix of feelings and a strong spark was ignited.
Willy Nelson!
My first trip home after living out of state.
A wonderful Christmas with my family.
My First AZ New Years, Russian style.
Tat's Birthday party and meeting all her friends.

I've been seeing various parts of AZ that I didn't know existed. Tubac, Green Valley, some scenic highways, and closer views of surrounding mountains.
Visited Superior AZ, there wasn't much to look at there. It's a small mining town with a few places to eat and a single motel. I hung out at a bar and had a strong margarita, my girlfriend had some kind of sour apple drink and then talked Russian with the local bartenderetta. It was a nice enough town with nice enough people, but if you ever check it out make sure you don't drive to fast or you'll miss it!

Visited Globe AZ this place was a larger version of Superior, a few more places to eat, a few more buildings to see, and no place I really felt comfortable drinking at. ;) The highlight of this trip was up to Tonto National Monument where Tat and I were allowed to go up to the top cliff dwelling for a guided tour. It was blocked off, but a nice park ranger came to our rescue. This type of thing usually happens when we are together, we end up seeing more than most people do. It was a nice little mini vacation, and although Globe wasn't much to look at, Tonto and the drive there were spectacular.

This weekend I'm off to San Diego so that my parents can meet Tat's mother. It's been ages since I've been to the ocean and I'm really looking forward to the trip. Stay tuned for pictures as I get time to post them!

The Sun and I have reached an understanding

2009-12-09T18:17:00.000-08:00

The sun and I had a talk recently over some tea. It turns out we have quite a bit in common, including rising in the morning and night. Not many people have the benefit of watching the sun rise and set nearly every day. I've also been out late most nights so I also get to say the same for the moon. This entry is going to be fairly short. But I thought I would share some pictures I've taken recently from my car to illustrate what I'm talking about. I'm thankful that I can see such a beautiful mix of colors at the start and end of my day.

Photos I have taken from my car during my commute.

An evening with BB King

2009-11-21T10:29:00.000-08:00

Blues music, what is there to say? About five months ago I was cleaning out my garage, listening to BB's latest album. Prior to that I had made the determination that I was going to buy music that I would not normally listen to in order to broaden my horizons. With strong guitar, bass, and brass an obvious start was Blues. I've always liked strong guitar sounds and I play trumpet and have spent many hours in concerts both performing and as an audience member. Perhaps I'm reincarnated from an older time, where people sang with their heart and not their mic.

To that extent Blues reaches out to me and touches a place in my soul that other music can't. If I had to describe the feeling, I would relate it to ocean waves. Sink in the sounds, let it wash over you, and pull you out into something greater than the sum of the parts. Last night I had to pleasure to listen to one of the greats perform live. The opening act set the scene for what was to come, Lukas Nelson (Willy Nelson's son) jumped on stage with his band TPotR They rocked, and his songs had pretty deep meaning. He needs better people to market his stuff, because he rocks on stage.

BB King was highly entertaining to watch. His voice is as strong as always, and it was good to see his sense of humor, which is something you don't get when you just listen to his music. As the night progressed I not only had good music to listen to, but also got a chance to see into his life and imagine what life on the road was like some 40 years ago. The show was quite inspiring, and for a few hours I was lost in the sea of guitar, piano, and brass.

Who'd have thought that rocking out in my garage one day would turn into actually seeing these guys perform in person. Life is crazy, life is chaotic, it's nights like this that I'll always remember. They help me realize that when all is said and done, I jumped in and held on to see where it takes me.

Happy Veteran's Day!

2009-11-11T17:01:00.000-08:00

I first wanted to thank the Vets out there for their dedication, sacrifices, and bravery for their duty in the service. My complete respect goes out to each of you and your families.

I celebrated my day off by hiking at Mt. Lemmon. I found myself a bit above 7,000 feet and a wonderful little trail-head called Butterfly Trail I quickly found out by talking to people in passing that an airplane crashed somewhere along the path
though I didn't see the wreckage. I'll have to hit the site I just linked the next time I go out to take some interesting pictures.

A breeze blew through the mountains almost continuously, not only did it cool my damp shirt, but it also brought scents of memories from my times spent camping in California. Just like my previous hike, the views were serene with the only sounds coming from the rattle of leaves as the wind blew them off of trees and they fell like large snowflakes on the ground around me. Colors exploded everywhere, and as I looked around the trail this hike quickly became my favorite so far.

The hike was mostly down-hill and then a difficult up-hill walk when I finally decided the sun was getting too low for my comfort being my first time on the trail. This trip also marks the first time I brought my gun along. Although late in the season, there are bears and other wild animals about. Since I've been hiking alone I needed a little insurance.

Flickr shots of my adventure

Following my trip, I swung by El Charro and had a nice dinner. Now I'll retire for the evening and watch G.I. Joe in celebration of our troops. I hope everyone else had a great day as well.

Making the most out of AZ

2009-11-07T18:19:00.000-08:00

My last post talks about hiking in California, and now I am going to talk about hiking in Arizona. It just goes to show how much I've been neglecting this blog. Thankfully I am now at a point in my life where I can spent time to put things into writing. The long and the short of it is that I followed my career to this great water-less state amidst some heartache and some life lessons about going with my gut instinct when it comes to trust. That's a story for another time, perhaps. At the moment I am going to make the best out of the current situation and explore this state and share my experiences.

Today I went hiking along a trail called Green Mountain Trail It is located between mile marker 11 and 12 up the Catalina highway in Mt. Lemmon. The entire area of Mt. Lemmon is beautiful even after surviving a decimating fire. Nearly seven years have passed and although there are definite signs of damage, nature has worked its magic to rebuild the beautiful greenery in the area.

Initially I had set out to hike up Sabino Canyon but changed my mind after reading an article in the AZ Daily Star Talk of Fall colors had me hooked and off I went. The weather was beautiful, there was a nice breeze at the top of the mountain, and the sound cascading through the trees were the only interruption to an otherwise serene landscape. I feel in love when I reached the canopy of trees as it felt like a whole other planet from the dry single-colored landscape that exists in Tucson. The trail was a moderate up-hill hike, which I traversed both ways only being slightly slowed down by a broken toe from this morning. I'll admit that I was a little winded and sore when all was said and done, but three years of WoW and relationship stress will do that to you. I hope to go up every weekend and explore different trails since I went ahead and purchased an annual pass to the area.

I've linked my Flickr set below. Hopefully I will have many more pictures to share.

http://www.flickr.com/photos/44415324@N02/sets/72157622756886820/

Spenceville Wildlife Refuge

2009-04-27T21:14:00.000-07:00

Spenceville is one of those interesting pockets nestled in the hilly areas parallel to Beale AFB. I started going here when I was pretty young, and since then have taken many trips with friends and shared many memories with others. Now I've said many, far too many times. The place is thriving with nature, and the destination that I stick to is the falls at the end of the hike. Waterfalls in the Yuba-Sutter area? A good portion of it exists in Yuba County, but it also falls inside Nevada County as well.

You would be surprised at what types of wildlife that roam across the rolling hills:

Here we have the gigantic man-eating cow. I barely escaped with my life. She gave me a dirty look when I exclaimed "Moo to your mother!"

Back when I was younger we were able to drive a car through the main road all the way up to the Falls. This was pushed back about four miles or so some years after I started going. The new Parking area has remnants of the old road. Here we see a bridge that was recently torn out, up until a few years ago this bridge remained with a few holes burned on the surface. It's the nature of the beast, that eventually nature reclaims her property. I wonder how long the cement pillars will remain:

The journey of a thousand miles starts with a single step. Which path will you follow?

I was going to post some video of a few shots but Youtube is being naughty so I'll have to wait until they start allowing uploads again to share.

The final payoff of the hike is the waterfalls. Having felt the massive rumble of Snoqualmie Falls Beale Falls is tame in comparison. The falls still have their own beauty and majestic feel to them. Here are a few pictures I'll share of my recent visit.

I enjoyed the fresh air, the sound of water crashing over the falls, and ultimately surrounded by peace helped me relax a bit and spend time enjoying what life is all about. I always learn something new when I visit these falls, to me that's what life is all about.

Childhood memories

2008-12-11T14:24:00.000-08:00

As often times that happens, something current will trigger my memories of something past. This time around I was talking to someone about the closure of KB-Toys. As a child there were two stores that made me jump for joy when my parents said we were going to town, KB-Toys and Ernie's Toyland. I would love to link more information about Ernie's since it was unique to Yuba City, but there isn't a wiki or history about this place beyond a blurb located here. I should probably explain a bit of history about our fair town before I drive down memory lane. In the '80s this little hole in the wall place had no big name stores. FAO Schwartz in San Francisco was a long ways away, and I wouldn't make my first visit until the '90s. Before "The Mall" came to Yuba City, we had Ernie's, and that was pretty much it. I remember they had aisle upon aisle of toys, a small play area that consisted mostly of a wooden train set, and some plastic kid's seating. As a child the store felt gigantic, and it was sectioned off in age groups from toddler up to adult. In my adolescence, I covered about three sections worth of space in that old store ranging from He-man to Atari games. The owners eventually went batshit insane like most people do who try to run a business in the area and moved over to a small shop in Marysville where they sell collectible dolls.

My fondest memory of Ernie's besides recalling the smell that greeted me at the door (if they could bottle that smell, I'd set it along side the new book smell and enjoy a moment of peace every now and then while inhaling) would be my trip to visit the He-Man cast. That's right, He-Man was my hero for a long time in my childhood. If my memory suits me, the cartoon was out long before G.I. Joe and Transformers were on the heels, though my first experience with transforming automobiles came from the Go-Bots when a kid brought a transforming ambulance to school one day and I instantly knew it would be a hit. For a few years I ate, breathed, and lived He-Man and fondly remember the Battlecat figurine I had, along side a panther that had glued on fur. They just don't make toys like that any more. I met Orco, my personal hero and friendly neighborhood mage (I wonder if this later played a role in my accidental Freudian selection of a mage in World of Warcraft). Orco's figurine left much to be desired of the well-loved mage. It was hard plastic, with a small device that would send him around in circles across the table.

I suppose the main point to this blog entry is that a piece of my childhood has been whittled away with the closure of KB-Toys. Sure we still have a Toys R Us around, but I didn't grow up traversing the far too crowded and narrow aisles of Toys R Us. The close to an era my friends.

It has been a busy month!

2008-10-30T13:47:00.000-07:00

I have arrived from my week-long journey otherwise known as the trip to Tucson, Arizona. It was there that I participated in Dan's wedding as a groomsman. A little nervous as to the duties of a groomsman, I quickly learned that the position just required me to look good and stand in line as the marriage commenced. There were also massive amounts of pictures that I attempted to smile for, but I have a hard time pretending to smile for pictures. Apparently the one required skill as a groomsman, I severely lacked.

The week was packed full of things that I'm not so much accustomed to. I met a boat-load of Warcraft friends and guild members that I had not met before. I believe there was a total of 10 of us. It was great to put faces to names, and visit with people I had met on a previous wedding. The hard part for me, is meeting new people is not something I often do, nor consider myself very good at. I'm a pretty quiet and introspective person. I'm not skilled with small talk, or am I very good at asking questions that might create hour-long meaningful conversations. It's just not so much who I am. So add that to stress of being in the unknown as well as a few other things going on in my life, I was fairly worried. Then before I knew it, the wedding was over and I had a few days to enjoy the area.

Although the hot/dry Arizona climate isn't my ideal habitation (I prefer the ocean and smell of evergreens), I did realize that there were a few benefits to being there. I noticed that the air was much cleaner than what we breathe here in California, after stepping off the airport everything smelled great and my nose cleared up. And the food, oh boy the food... I know Californians don't know BBQ, what we do here is just grilling. But to have authentic Mexican BBQ in AZ was one of those things that I've been missing all my life but never knew.

I have so much to write about, so I'll split this post into two parts. I'll leave you with a picture pilfered from Mary, since I haven't had time to get my pictures together yet. Enjoy!

Front left-right: Wylloah, Phyrra
Center left-right: Zak, Necro, Tyxee, Herbnosis, Tasmyn, Noks
Rear left-right: Sprogan, Xenrath

What makes a good memory?

2008-09-17T13:14:00.000-07:00

What makes a good memorable occasion? Is it something life-changing? Is it spending time with people you care about? What leaves a mark on our mind that allows us to take a day and wrap it up inside our hearts? For me, every memorable occasion is different, I can remember vividly my first entry into Main Street as an adult. My subsequent entry into Adventure Land for the first time. How the jungle-like Tiki land took me to a play far away from the stress of adult life. All of that took place in my mind without human interaction. Conversely for my birthday I was surrounded by people I love, had no social apprehension, and was able to be myself and enjoy everything around me with the worries of adult life so near.

Suffice it to say I had a great birthday. I came across a marinade that I switched around a bit to reflect my tastes and soaked two tri-tip cuts for about 24 hours. I threw them on the grill along with corn and both cooked up fantastically. My parents stopped by as well as one of my brothers and his son. Ramden (Riley) was in good form.

Then there were the presents! Northern Exposure, sixth season, Metallica Death Magnetic, Two spidermens with glowing web, a new Tool kit to replace my aging one, and $50 at target (Which of the three games coming out soon will I buy?!?)

Times are hard and money is tight, but really just being around family was the best gift I could have. So what makes a good memory? I'd say good feelings, something that we need more of during such hard times.

How to make the awesome cake.

Wedding in Washington

2008-09-11T07:30:00.000-07:00

Trip Statistics

Miles (round trip): 1612
States Traveled: California, Oregon, Washington
In car arguments: 0
Funny jokes: Too many to count
Consumables: 1 bottle of yummy mead, some strong lemon aid.
Notable observations: No rain, no longer an agriculture checkpoint for passenger vehicles, hills in Seattle are just as bad as in San Francisco.

Summary: I drove, I saw, I conquered.

Wordy summary:

It's been a long time since I've traveled to Washington. I believe I've made three trips total to the area. A trip in Jr. High where I visited the lovely city of Carnation, celebrated 4th of July, and helped row a boat out on duck lake. Visited Seattle center and had a gang sign flashed at me at the top of the space needle.

Two other trips, one of which was another 4th of July where the urban streets looked and sounded like a war zone with all the fireworks and projectiles flying through the air. This time I visited the great cities of Puyallup and Sumner, took a quick trip to an Indian reservation that netted me firecrackers that lasted a good seven years. The landmark I remember most on this trip was Snoqualme Falls. Unlike Beale Falls, AKA Shingle falls there is not a huge hike to get to the waterfall. You can feel and taste the spray as soon as you get out of your car.

My recent trip to Washington was mainly to attend a wedding in the city of Bremerton. An interesting town opposite Seattle through Puget Sound. Thanks to a ferry, we were able to access Seattle without much of a headache, and I didn't have to drive through city traffic.

All in all I had an excellent time. I stopped at a pirate shop in Seattle and got some booty, had a nice dinner at a seafood restaurant overlooking waterfront park, saw what all the shops had to offer at Pike Place Market, then returned the next day for some excellent smoked salmon chowder and scallops n' chips from Ivar's Seafood.

After the sight seeing, I got all gussied up and watched two friends that I've known for a year (but had not met in person) get hitched to each other. We had some pretty good times and were a bit silly, but as we all know meeting Internet friends is serious bidness.

The Story of the Wolf

2008-09-09T11:58:00.000-07:00

I collect wolves. I could think of stranger things to collect. They are beautiful animals, and deserve protecting. How long have I collected wolves? Since high school at least, so for those of you who suck at math, 14 years. So it's no surprise that on my many trips to Oregon that I managed to find my way to Wolf Creek. My first visit was probably around 10 years ago, and was sort of an unplanned spur of the moment event. I saw the word wolf in the sign and adventured to the on-ramp to see what it was all about. I found a small gas station that had connected shops. Looking for a souvenir of my trip, I came across a quaint shop called Circle of Wolves, where I picked up one of my first small statues that I have in my collection. As I was exiting, a large wolf next to the door caught my eye. He was beautifully crafted and colored and I instantly fell in love with him. The price was much too steep for my pathetic wage earning prowess. I've probably visited the shop over a dozen times on my various trips to Oregon and Washington, and every time the large wolf statue called to me.

Fast forward to my recent trip, I discovered that the old shop where I remember Circle of Wolves being was filled with various junk and a paranoid-looking 60s throwback. I was sad that I'd reached an end of an era and never had the chance to take the wolf statue home with me, since it had been a promise to myself from ages back. I turned around and looked up to the inn, and saw what looked like a gift shop next to it.

Sure enough they had moved into a larger area, and once again I stood facing the large wolf statue that I came to visit as part of my ritual. I later discovered that it is replaced every time one is purchased, but I think of that statue as their town mascot.

After a bit of internal strife about whether or not I should get the statue, I eventually decided that I would finally call it mine. So now in my home, I have a little bit of Wolf Creek Oregon.

It has been a number of months since I've purchased anything wolf-related and last week made up for it. This trip also signified the first time that I visited Pike Place, and although crowded the sights and smells were awesome. There was so much going on there that it was almost sensory overload. The new statue joins other wolf statues on my mantle, and adds a bit of unique flavor to the room. (the one on the right)

I'll have more information on the trip, Mary and Chris, as well as pictures of us all together later on when I get time.

Greetings from Washington

2008-09-06T10:32:00.000-07:00

I'm just hanging out in a Bremerton hotel waiting to get breakfast.
The trip has been great, including two trips to Seattle some Pike
place action and some very expensive fish. I met up with some wow
friends that I have known virtually for over a year and they ended up
being great folks.

This is the last day before the long drive back home. I've always
loved this state and have not been disappointed on my trips here.
Here's to the last day of my vacation.

If I had a dollar for every wedding...

2008-09-02T12:39:00.000-07:00

I'd have at least $2. Two weddings in two months, between school and my parent's house almost burning down, it's set to be pretty busy this week.

Some friends of mine from WoW are having a wedding near Seattle, and I'm packing up the suitcases and headed on vacation for a week. I'm looking forward to the time off since I haven't had any in an extended block for awhile. I'm going to try to squeeze my schoolwork for the week in tonight so I don't have to worry about it the rest of the week.

Speaking of busy, this weekend was spent prepping for both weddings. A trip to Men's Warehouse netted me a suit for the Washington wedding, as well as my fitting for the Tux that I'll wear to Dan's wedding in AZ. This is the first time I've bought a suit and I'm looking forward to trying everything on tonight to see if it all fits.

Then there's school. This is my last week before finals, the classes were exceptionally difficult and my reading assignments were near Law school-worthy. I had to read through a huge book on software security assessment, and I thought the Microsoft Press Books ran large. After next week, it'll be about 7 months before I have my Master's degree. Six measly classes, time really flies.

On the news front, quite a bit is going on here in the area. There have been quite a few gang-related shootings. A fire near my parent's house, that pretty much burned around the property's perimeter, some of our long-time neighbors had their homes reduced to just a smoking chimney stack. It was quite sad. I read about the fire online this morning, and after my parents didn't return my phone calls, rushed to their house. Everyone was fine, and I went into work smelling like smoke. All's well that ends well.

Fall looks like it is going to be impressive for upcoming video games. I wondered whether or not PC/Console gaming was dead, after this last year's non-impressive releases. But up on the horizon we have Dead Space, Left For Dead (I'm a huge fan of Valve, so this horror shooter should be most excellent), Fallout 3, and of course Wrath of the Litch King. I wish publishers would stagger their games through the year, so that we didn't have a huge glut right around Christmas time.

I can't wait to be home at the end of the day to start my vacation. Work has been slowly digging under my skin, and a well-deserved escape will do me well.

College Lawsuit

2008-08-30T08:31:00.000-07:00

I came across this interesting story today. College hit with age suit. I remember Lynda and the stress she went through as she was pretty much forced out of her position. The last time I met up with her to fix some computer issues in the department she was stressed out with no real help to figure out what direction she should go. This pretty much mirrored my own situation where I tried to no avail to have the problem of the IT Tech area's moldy leaky roof addressed by anyone who might care. I went to the union, but they appeared to be disinterested in the situation as their hands were tied for safety enforcement.

I finally brought the complaint up officially and the following things occurred. Sent a guy in with a mold sensing device who "certified" that there was more mold outside than in the office. (The mold was crawling out of the ceiling and he didn't even put the device near the areas). The ceiling leaked when it rained. The facilities department cut a chunk of the ceiling out (probably spreading more mold around) and placed cardboard over the hole. They put some kind of instant cement over an area upstairs that they thought the water was coming from.

Then rains came and still there were water leaks, next to the power conduits no less. Next thing I know water started building above my head and bulging the ceiling underneath my desk and work equipment. I moved everything to my workbench so I wouldn't come to work one day and find all my papers and computer flooded. I stopped complaining at that point, because it was obvious that no one cared beyond doing the legal minimum to address the problem. One of my co-workers had a trash can specifically for catching the water above his desk. It was surreal.

So I have to say that I side with Lynda. If you aren't within a specific clique at the college i.e. making more than $100,000 a year, you're pretty much hosed. I remember when I was working on getting new computers out for the instructors, and I was pulled off the job to help the President of the college set up some hardware in her office. Priority was never given where it belonged. In the case of this lawsuit, I hope it goes well for Lynda. I know it won't change the mentality of the college administration, and small-minded people will complain that she's only out for the money. But at least one person will benefit out of the non-caring administration that has become the college.

As for Al Alt and his cracker jack diploma, people might not be so critical of you if you knew how to do your job instead of fighting against the people you're supposed to help. The college truly knows how to take the word human out of human resources.

Jobs I've worked at

2008-08-28T07:13:00.000-07:00

What is it that we spend more time doing than waiting at stoplights (unless you are a truck driver)? Sleeping? Spending time with your family? Work! Okay so work times may vary from person to person and their career path, but to me its felt like I spend more time with people at work than I do any portion of my family.

Taco Bell:

First Position: Crew member
Duties: Cook food for a million people, then clean up after them.
Best known for: Slipping on the floor and messing up my leg.
Life lesson: Variable shifts suck, and not having a weekend off sucks even more.

Second Position: Shift lead
Duties: Making people do all the stuff I used to do.
Best known for: Parking lot races and sour cream fights.
Life lesson: No matter how important you think the tie is, it doesn't save you from digging goop out of the floor drains.

AM/PM:

Position: Clerk
Duties: Carding people for alcohol when I'm not even old enough to drink.
Best known for: $20 on 10, $20 on 5, $20 on 6!
Life lesson: Nothing rocks harder than working a graveyard shift with no one around, surrounded by food.

HP Printer refurbishing:

Position: Assembler
Duties: Clean metal plate, rinse, wash, repeat.
Best known for: Everyone yelling out lunch all at the same time.
Life lesson: When you do something all day for 8 hours, it's hard not to dream about it when you go home.

Second Position: Process lead
Duties: Didn't really change, neither did the pay.
Best known for: When you start on a new product, beware the sharp edges. Then buy band-aid stock. Wrapping myself in bubble wrap.
Life lesson: Responsibility doesn't pay.

Third Position: Graveyard Shift Lead (Building supervisor)
Duties: What a bizarre time in my life. Laughing while I tell people they should not pack themselves in boxes to spy on me.
Best known for: Having "lunch" at 3am
Life lesson: Graveyard rules, except when you try to go home and sleep during the day.

Fourth Position: Swing shift lead
Duties: Work three times as hard as the day shift lead, while trying to avoid getting in trouble for it.
Best known for: My impressive line tours for potential customers.
Life lesson: No one likes a productive person when it makes them look bad.

Fifth Position: Project/Process coordinator
Duties: Way too many to list quickly. Helping to make people's jobs easier.
Best known for: Fixing printers that everyone else couldn't.
Life lesson: I learned so much here under my boss. One of the few people who actually took the time out to help educate me.

Community College

First Position: Data Processing Technician
Duties: Everything that no one else wanted to do.
Best known for: Being practically invisible for three years.
Life lesson: If you do your job well, you'll be stuck doing that job forever because they won't want to promote you.

Second Position: IS Specialist
Duties: One step up from everything that no one else wanted to do.
Best known for: Winters dripping rain water next to electronics and electricity. Spring, water dries out and creates smelly mold.
Life lesson: Never trust the dangling carrot, and everyone is out for themselves and won't bother to help you.

Super Secret Job

Position: It's a secret.
Duties: I'd tell you, but then I'd have to kill you.
Life lesson: Never sign an NDA if you are a blogger.

Fall is on the horizon

2008-08-26T11:50:00.000-07:00

As I was driving to work this morning a brisk wind kicked around some leaves on the street. Dry dead leaves. I tilted my head back and took a deep breath, not quite the start of Fall but its getting close. Fall is my favorite season here in California. The days alternate between cool and warm, trees stop dropping leaves and if you stop to listen you can hear the wind and leaves work together in concert to create a crackling and scraping movement of relaxation.

Some see the coming months as death as bears begin to prepare themselves to sleep, and the trees shed their green canopies. I view the season as a time of relaxation, our land falling asleep so that it can come back in the Spring to start the cycle anew. Not to mention I greatly dislike the summer heat and this is an early promise that things will be cool for awhile.

Fall marks my Birthday, the start of school, new series on TV, and most importantly Halloween! That time of the year where we can pretend to be evil (instead of actually being evil), watch scary movies, and eat candy until our stomachs bleed. There was no defining moment when Fall became my favorite time of the year, my planet didn't turn, and I didn't have some sudden earth-shattering realization. There's just those things in life you know feel right to you, and this is one of those times for me.

Greeting from technology

2008-08-22T15:41:00.001-07:00

I've ditched my old blog software, after a considerable amount of time trying to figure out how to disable anonymous comments. Apparently annoying spammers have no shame. At the same time I came across some awesome features from blogger including the ability to consolidate my two accounts. What else? You may ask. I can update my blog via email, which means that I can add posts whenever I have my phone with me. I like it. Thank you idiot spammers!

Welcome

2008-08-22T14:59:00.000-07:00

Hi everyone!