Pseudo-Pod

Less than 24 hours ago, I bought a fake I-Pod. And frankly? I have no idea how I've been functioning in civilized society without one all these years. Of course it's supposed to hold 1000 songs, and I choked it with 243 songs because of some "technical difficulties" in downloading. Because I was "left to my own devices" (pun intended) while attempting to download music from my seven year old computer to my pseudo-Pod (trademark pending) with no direction at all from the family tech guy. Hopefully that tech guy will do something about this situation after the YSU - OSU game today.

But here's the cool part I didn't understand: the isolation. You can just ignore the world, as well as any moran in your vicinity, while you're plugged in and going about your business. And while you're in your personal autonomous think tank? Songs that you love with your whole soul are being injected directly into your central nervous system. As loud as you want. While you live your life. While you fold laundry. While you tinkle. While you get dressed. While you stroll around in your life. While you tune out the rest of the planet.

How cool is that?

Projekt

Overheard Projekt Revolution Weekend 2007:
Recorded faithfully August 16-19:

Upon arriving in C'bus...
Me: Well, I'm here. Let's drink.
Roomate #1: How come my mom never says that to me?
D: I don't know, Mom...did you mother ever say that to you?
Me: No. But Pa did.

In the car driving to the Arena District...
Me: Did you know horses are herd animals?
D: Yeah. I knew that.
Me: Do you know what you are if you're not a herd animal?
D: Uhhh. No. What?
Me: A predator.
D: Well what about wolves and lions? They're both predators and herd animals.
Me: Well now you're just making sh*t up.

At Ted's American Grill...
Darling Young Waitress: Do you want more Coke?
D: Yeah, I'll have another one, thanks.
Me: Are you sure, baby? The movie starts in fifteen minutes.
D: Mom, I'm going to be 22. *rolls eyes*
DYW: What movie?
Me: Harry Potter.
DYW: Oh, you'll love it! I'll be right back with that Coke.
Me: You better bring me another beer.
D: Dear Lord...I'm almost 22, I'm on my way to see Harry Potter with my mother and she's calling me baby in public and limiting the amount of pop I'm allowed to have before the movie.

While getting ready to leave for the concert...
Me: Well we're off to do some head-banging.
Roomate #2: Watch out for the mosh pit.

Leaving the concert...
D: I just don't know how Linkin Park could have been any better.
Me: I do. If they started over right now and played the whole frickin thing again.

Driving back to Hooterville at 1AM, after a huge traffic snarl, with me still half baked and both of us exhausted...
D: This turnpike is so boring, it's like the same stretch of road over and over. It makes it tough to get any sleep while you're driving, ya know?
Me: I know baby.

At the first annual Put In Bay party at best freind's house, I realize I have a missed call. D has left the party to get a card game together in our garage...
Me: D?
D: Yeah.
Me: Did you call me?
D: Yeah. But never mind now. I went down to Dairy Mart and got beer.
Me: I'm confused. Why did you call me?
D: To tell you we didn't have any beer in the house.
Me: I might be half in the bag myself, but I'm failing to see how that could possibly be my problem.
D: Yeah. I realized that after I called. That's why I didn't leave a message.

Good times.

Upside Down

I went to work today with my shirt on INSIDE OUT.

Yeah. Top that.

It's a long sleeved t-shirt and it's tagless and the seams are all finished on the inside. I'm in the cafeteria getting coffee WHEN I MYSELF NOTICE IT'S ON INSIDE FRICKIN OUT.

I'd been at work for 45 minutes at that point. I'd been in contact with 45 coworkers by then. WTF??

So yeah. Is it any wonder I drink?

Bookmark

From the time my son was little until the horrible trauma of my parents both getting sick and then passing away in 2001, I read an average of two books a week, pretty much every week. I read detective stories, chick lit, best-sellers, some classics, a little bit of everything really, except fantasy. After my folks died, I wrote more than I read and I kind of lost my luster for reading what other people were writing, even though I was always reading something...I was averaging more like one book every month to two.

Then last fall my son was talking about this series that he's been reading for years called The Sword of Truth by Terry Goodkind, and I felt like maybe I needed to tackle this whole lack of reading issue from a completely different starting point. It's been a strange and interesting trip; this fantasy world of giant beasts and magic and wizards and warriors.

I'm on book four now; Temple of the Winds. True to form it's 500 pages of intrigue, blood and guts, plagues and monsters; and stuck in the middle? A receipt from a Speedway gas station in Youngstown dated 9/15/06, for two jumbo hot dogs and $26 bucks worth of gas, sold to guy named Glen by a girl named Angie. I've been using it as a bookmark.

And what do I know about Glen and Angie? Surprisingly, quite a bit.

Glen is apparently a regular Speedway customer with a rewards card, because there is a separate receipt detailing his balance of 15,973 points. He's probably earned his free dinner for two ($40.00 value) at Applebee's by now. I'm just saying.

And what do I know about Angie? Well I know she was obviously interested in Glen because she wrote her cell number down on the receipt. Which he apparently left in Temple of the Winds when he returned it to the Hooterville library.

I'm tempted to call Angie and find out what happened. Does she still work at Speedway? Did Glen ever call her? Does she even remember writing her number on his receipt? Are they in the process of living happily ever after together?

Every time I mark my place with that receipt I wonder if the fact that Glen left it in the book when he returned it means that he didn't care enough to even remember that he had her number. (Bastard!) Or had he already programmed it into his phone by then?

Now that's the stuff of fantasy.