Ending One Minute At A Time

I feel an overwhelming urge to banter. The problem with that is that I am alone. You sort of need someone to banter with. It's the whole feed off of what someone else is saying. Sadly, there is no one to talk to at this time of morning.

I want to write. I know that is a general thing. I want to write in some capacity for a living. It would be great to get paid for inane monologue-ing.

This weekend has been weird, at best. Granted there hasn't been any sort of major drama or anything of the like to really complain about. Mainly, it was just a lazy weekend. I never did celebrate my actual birthday, and this weekend was the last chance really.

I sort of hate my birthday to a degree. It depresses me. There is always expectations with a birthday, and I never feel like I live up to them. There was one birthday when I had a party and did some ridiculous shit, but I don't remember doing half of it, so it doesn't count in my head. That birthday is also the reason I don't drink too much anymore. I had a habit of drinking vast quantities of hard liquor that have since subsided. I personally do not like blacking out. I don't care how fun I am with others while in that state. At least I am a happy drunk.

Still, I rarely make plans for my birthday. I sure as hell didn't do anything this year. I turned 30 and just left it at that. I am grateful to everyone that wished me a "Happy Birthday". I am even more thankful for those that went out of the way for cards and/or gifts. I don't really expect much. No one knows what to ever get me anyway. I usually shop for myself when it comes to fun things, like music or dvds. What I should have requested was mix cds. I did get one of those. I still have to listen to all of it. (Getting through 5 discs is tough sometimes without transferring all to my ipod.)

Friday night was rather tame. I spent the evening over a friends place watching the Olympics. We didn't do much. I didn't drink much either. A fair amount of people showed, and I left around 1:30 when everyone decided to head to bed. I just spent the rest of the night watching wrestling that I recorded earlier. Saturday was lazy as well. I woke up late and finally made it out around 7:30PM. I headed to the Gamestop to reserve a couple games for my nephew's birthday. I picked up something for myself as well, whenever I get a chance to play it. The worst part was parking, as there was no spots at the store. So, I walked for a couple hundred yards, or what felt like it anyway. After getting home, I spent the rest of my time watching episodes of The Guild on my Xbox 360. It's funny, and Flecia Day is heart-fully crush worthy. I wound up going out around 11PM.

The bar was fine tonight. There wasn't many people,b but a good time was had regardless. I spent the night talking with my friend, Joe. I also started to open my eyes to the bartender. She works there most Saturdays, but I'm not usually there then. Still, she was a cute. It didn't help matters that there really many other girls in the bar at all. That could have been a major point for my attention towards her. Still, the sole other girl at the bar bought me (and everyone else) a couple drinks, for which I am thankful.

Thank God. The hiccups went away. That part sucked. Apparently, I become the stereo-typical, cartoon version of an Irishmen while drinking. If only I had bubbles or something surrounding me, it would complete the appearance along with the hiccups and red nose.

Well, that's all I got for the moment. I guess the writing desire has passed. Maybe inspiration will hit me when I awake. I wouldn't hold my breath though.

Suck Hard (that doesn't sound right)

I should be sleeping. I have to work many hours on Wednesdays. Here I am, though, toiling away at nothing.

My birthday, as a day, sucked hard. I wanted to murder many people. It was filled with every troglodyte and ridiculous person I could imagine (with a possible exception of a few named evils). I worked alone the entire day. My boss was off down in Baltimore securing mounds of product support for an upcoming project. This is something i am not looking forward to. It's the defeatist in me. I'll go more in depth at a later time.

What didn't help matters is that my normal relief couldn't show. I understand why he wasn't there though, so I don't blame him. I just account for it under my horrible luck for the day. His main job has been calling him away for overtime to get their on project done ahead of schedule. When he called me around noon, he didn't sound good. It was reinforced when he told me he was at work till 8AM.

I was hungry, tired, achy, and nearly on my last nerve. I actually called our other store just so I could have a voice to complain to that could display a modicum of sympathy... even if it was faked. My back has been hurting or a few days due to some unknown reason. I think I am sleeping wrong, or now my bed is trying to torture me. I wouldn't put it past my bed. It did come from a witch, and may be a delayed spell. I have been taking some meds to make it through the day. I just hate doing it. It also aggravates me that my butter fingers are more prominent when it pains me, physically, to pick up something I dropped.

I have a lot on my mind right now, and I am trying to sort through it all. It's one of those things where nothing is really important, except to me. If only I could split myself like Multiple Man and get some shit done. Sadly, there is only one, now 30-year-old, me.

I wound up picking up the new DC animated movie, Justice League: Crisis on Two Earths. It's really good, and I will go more into it later. I want to check out all the other extras with it. I would recommend it to anyone on the fence.

I just hope tomorrow is better. It is looking like a big week for new comics, which means the shit will hit the fan and I may just be aggravated in the morning as well. The boss' daughter is working with me in the evening, and she said she was going to bring cupcakes to celebrate my birthday. That's at least one positive to look forward to.

I still have no plans concerning birthday celebrations. For the most part, I just want to have fun. Snow is looking to be a hindrance. I believe I have a new fluffy, white nemesis.

Happy Birthday to Me!

Today is my birthday. I am now 30.

I have no idea how to celebrate my birthday. I'm not really one for grandiose plans. Most of the time I try not to plan things because plans have a tendency to fail. So, at the moment, I have no real plan to celebrate another year of my birth.

I didn't do anything this past weekend for it. Nothing looks to be in the books for this weekend. All I know is that I will probably be working by myself all day. My boss is taking a trip to Baltimore to meet with some Games Workshop heads for lunch. Knowing my boss, it will be some long conversations. There may be a chance that I have some relief in the form of my co-worker, Gregg. I don't know if he's coming in or not. He has a real job that actually supports his family, so he may be off doing that.

So, I may be all by my lonesome. My bosses daughter trumped my own birthday with bigger news. I don't think I should go throwing it around the internets. Let's just say it's good news for her. She also told me to call her to come into work if I am, indeed, alone.

There is a lot of change lately. It seems odd. Work is going well. We seem to be doing a bit better after last week's annual sale. A guy came in asking about our store, because he was opening one across the way in the mall. It's a sports collectible store, so it would only compete with us in the bare minimum of ways. In fact, my boss will stop carrying sports cards in general, if the guy doesn't carry game cards. It's really not that big a deal for either store. Sports cards are only in our store for the kids that just want a pack of cards.

I also found out that one of my friends from EB was let go. It sucks that I won't be seeing him as frequently. I guess I will just have to try and keep up with him as he kicks my ass in Xbox.

I think more change is on the way. Things are just shifting.

I have no expectations for gifts for my birthday, just like Christmas. All I know is that I get to buy stuff for myself afterward. I am going to Suncoast to pick up some DVDs though. I get an extra discount on my birthday. A chance would have it, the new DC Animated title Justice League: Crisis on Two Earths, comes out today. I love all the DC animated stuff, so I will probably buy the most expensive copy that will work on a regular DVD-player. I haven't gotten into the whole Blu-Ray thing. No High Def TV at home.

I will now throw together a mix to use a a draft. I want some new things to listen to at work.

Enjoy your Tuesday.

Challenge complete

I'm still awake, and I am sort of bored. This amounts to me writing more stuff. I have to get tired somehow.

My birthday is the 23rd. For me that's two days from now, but chronologically, it would be tomorrow. I will be 30, and I have no idea what that will mean. So, in honor of me feeling old, let me go self-flagellate.

So, many people know that I was seeing someone way back in November. Her name was Alicia, and we had a few dates. It was fun. It got to be around Thanksgiving and things were quickly falling apart, apparently. This will be a abbreviated version of the whole ordeal.

We would talk nearly every day. There were times our schedules would conflict. I would tend to be leaving work when she is normally going to sleep. So, it makes sense that we would sometimes not communicate. The last time I talked to her was the Wednesday before Thanksgiving. It was a brief talk. With the hectic family craziness of he holiday, we didn't talk on Thursday either. I wound up heading into downtown Philly for the big meal. My brother was getting married at a hotel, so he offered dinner. In my mom's hotel room, my call reached voice-mail. My call hit voice-mail again on Friday while I was waiting for the wedding reception.

I wound up watching my brother's place the next week while he was on his honeymoon. He lives in Havertown, which is where Alicia originally hails. She knew I would be watching my brother's place, and we were attempting to make plans to eat at a place around there that she liked. I didn't hear from her all week. The last thing I got was a text message about how she was busy and would call me the next day. She never did.

I tried one more time to call on the following Saturday, got the voice-mail, and gave up entirely.

It was annoying trying to explain the situation to people. With ,many other relationships, there tends to be a reason for them to end. I felt like I really didn't have one. So my response was constantly, "I don't know what happened." The terrible thing is that when I started seeing her, it seemed like the knowledge that I was dating someone spread like wildfire. Almost everyone I knew seemed to bring it up. Unlike that, when we weren't seeing each other anymore, no one got the message. So, I had to explain the whole situation a thousand times. It was excruciating.

So, fast-forward to January. Wounds are pretty much healed. I am just going about enjoying a typical Friday night at my usual watering-hole. Lo and behold, who walks in, but Alicia.

It was mainly just awkward. I never called her back because I felt if she wanted to deal with me, she had to make the move. I didn't hate her at all. She probably had her reasons for what she did, and I understand that. I wasn't going to go say anything to her. Instead she came over to me.

She wanted to explain herself. She gave reasons of the holidays making everything crazy, work getting busy and weekends of skiing. They all made sense. Two of my friends were present and participating in the conversation, one good and and bad. The good friend, B, was exceptionally cordial. She got Alicia a seat, so she could sit and talk. B even asked the guy next to me to move over when Alicia was forced from her previous seat by a returning patron. B was nice and friendly. The other friend, J, wasn't that nice. She would would rub my back (which just felt creepy) and whisper in my ear, "She's fucking lying, don't trust anything she says." That type of remark was just getting me pissed. I was more annoyed by my asshole friend than I was with the girl who ignored me while we were dating. J has since apologized for what she did, after getting told I was annoyed by others.

In any case, I talked with Alicia for the rest of the night. After telling her that I write a blog, she challenged me to write about this night. I didn't really want to do it. We talked about what's been going on. She told me about skiing and showed me pictures of snowy mountains. She said she still has the stuff I got for her for her birthday, and even my copy of True Blood season 1. She wanted to get it back to me, but I told her she should watch it before she does. It was the reason I gave it (borrow... she refused to let me buy it for her) to her in the first place.

The night ended with some goofy antics. B was posing with Alicia's fur coat. Alicia said we should get together for lunch or something, so she can get the dvd back to me.

We haven't talked since.

So, there you have it. I wrote about it. I am going to attempt to write more often. I have been greatly slacking for various reason, and really none of them good. Hopefully, inspiration will hit him in the coming days.

Filling in Sunday

I am being a giant nerd right now. Granted, I can't really escape the whole nerd thing, but I am overdosing at the moment.

I am listening to a Dungeons & Dragons podcast, flipping through a rule book for Warhammer 40K, and attempting to think of what models I want to build. I spent a good portion of last night discussing these things as well. I didn't even do it at work. Most of it was talked about at the bar.

The current D&D podcasts I have been watching are a good intro for people who would like to play the game. They are video podcasts, and involve a mixed group playing. The Dungeon Master (the guy who runs the game) works for Wizards of the Coast (D&D's publisher) as a creative director. All of the players are the writers of Robot Chicken from [adult swim] on Cartoon Network. One of the writers plays the new version of D&D, and another has played earlier versions, the rest of them are experiencing D&D for the first time.

I have a weird fascination with D&D and role-playing in general. Much like many of my other interests, it is something I like to know about, but rarely experience first hand. I don't play any RPG (role-playing game) currently. I have friends tat play, so I get the stories and happenings from them. It's a good conversation if you understand the code language. I still struggle with the people that attempt to discuss computer online RPGS (affectionately called MMORPGs). Terms like DPS and aggro are still foreign to me.

One of the funny things about the Robot Chicken D&D podcasts is that they are now coming with DM commentary. Much like a director's commentary on a DVD, the DM commentary is a voice over to help explain things that are going on. It's funny re-watching the first video and finding out that the initial planned game had to be scrapped and a new adventure needed to be created in hours. It's pretty interesting because the DM gives tips on how to run a game. Rule number 1: Wing it.

The Warhammer 40K stuff comes mainly from work. I have been at my job for over 7 years now. I don't have a set army for any of the games we sell. I haven't even played a full game, with the exception of Lord of the Rings. Fun fact: LotR is the game I personally have the least amount of models for, but have played the most (at 2 games). I do have models for some of our other games. Many of the younger crowd like talking about the games, and want me to play. Friends of mine outside of the shop are even playing 40K. So, I think it's about time I actually do something about it.

So, at this moment, I am glancing at the Olympics, listening to Smodcast (Kevin Smith's audio podcast... specifically the Too Fat To Fly episode), and trying to think of what army I want to build.

More Dreams May Come

I didn't want to get out of bed this morning. Of course, most people don't want to get out of bed in the morning. Very rarely is there proper motivation to start the day. Still, this morning was because of a dream.

I like dreaming. It is pure escapism. I was sort of happy in my dream last night. It dealt with normal things. I don't often dream about extreme stuff. Not many zombie apocalypse or flying dreams for me. Most of the things I deal with are situations that could be probably considering the elements involved.

I had a dream about a girl I had a crush on in grade school. I know, that was a long, long time ago. I doesn't help matters that I spent the majority of my scholastic life with her. Grade school, high school and even college were all the same places for the two of us. I wouldn't say we were really great friends, but we were definitely friendly. We never dated. Would I do something for her if she wanted? Yes, I would. Would I ask her to do anything for me? Probably not. I tend not to ask any body for anything. That's not a good thing.

Anyway, the reason she probably showed up in my dreams is that I see her occasionally. She is still in the area. I passed her at my mall when I was out of the store getting something from CVS. Still all smiles and happiness, she never fails to make my day a bit brighter.

Oh, I should mention, I dream about mundane things. This wasn't a wet dream or anything. In fact, I rarely have those. The whole point of the dream was revolving around her losing her car and her mom or some maternal figure had an option of two for her. The other was going to go to me for some strange reason. I mainly didn't want to leave because I just wanted to spend time with her.

See, the sad thing is that I believe she is married. She occasionally passes my store, like twice a year or so, waiting for her former boyfriend, now husband. He reads comics. I have no idea who he is. I just think it's funny that she wound up with a guy like that.

I don't know. Maybe it's Valentine's Day. Maybe it's the mortality thing that my 30th birthday is next week. It could be just about anything. It definitely doesn't help that I'm listening to Blues right now.

I just figured that I should write something. I don't typically like putting names to things. I highly doubt she will ever read this, but on the off chance she stumbles by, no need for her to feel... whatever. I should sleep. I have a long day ahead of me tomorrow.

Maybe my dreams tonight will be pleasant.

Snowpocopylpse Part 2: Ramifications!

What's this typing thing? I have no idea. OK, where was I?

Well, it's been a while since I have written anything. I am a lazy bastard. It's late at night, or early morning depending on when you keep track of time. I just watched the new Star Trek for the first time. I am finally listening to a mix I got from a regular from work. It's eclectic, and 5 discs, so I have a lot ahead of me. On to the show...

Snowpocopylpse Part 2: Ramifications!

When I last wrote here, it was a Monday night, and the previous afternoon, I left work for a few hours due to evacuation. I haven't written for a while for various reasons. Some of them for sheer procrastination on my part, and others for lack of having the computer access to do it. Despite all my attributes, I cannot type in the dark. I am a glorified hunt-and-pecker.

So, Tuesday was interesting at work. It was the only day in a span of six that the mall was open all of it's hours. Part one shows days one through three, Wednesday was closed due to snow and Thursday was a late opening. Tuesday was interesting because of the conversations created by little ol' me.

As I was handling my typical work stuff, (I can't remember exactly what it was, all I know is that I was behind the counter) my boss calls over to me. He said, "Kevin, I have to chastise you." He didn't say it with any malice that I could determine, so I was just confused. He was on the phone and talking with someone...obviously. He is usually on the phone, so it could have been any number of people on the other end.

When he got off, he walked towards me and stated, "This is me chastising you." Still puzzled I wondered what I did. He said that apparently my statements on my blog were incorrect. At first I thought, why is my boss reading my blog? Then I thought, what did I write that was incorrect? Most blogging is personal and opinion. Facts don't really come into play a lot when it comes to personal voice. My boss then told me that it wasn't him that read it, it was Aubry, the Marketing Director of the mall where I work.

It is at this point where I want to greet my new reader. Hello, Aubry. I didn't think this thing had any legs, but now it is creating stirs at work. If only I could direct this in some advertising capability I could ask your advice.

It turns out that apparently, Aubry has a program that sifts out any mention of the mall. The program is through Google, and since this blog site is run by Google, it only makes sense that it would get priority in selection. The mall took a huge hit with the press over the last week. With two evacuations in as many days, there was quite some negativity being thrown about. With today's access to the Internet, just about anyone can voice their opinion. Like me and this here blog.

It was then time to try and determine what the hell I said that was false. I couldn't think of anything off the top of my head. Most things I write tend to just end their life on the screen after I successfully purged it from my brain. My boss asked to see the blog, in an effort to find the culprit. He was.

Granite Run Mall's management is completely inept and has no real proper response to an emergency.

This is what I could come up with. Now, I fully understand that the mall has an emergency response plan. I have seen the papers handed out to the stores with the proper routs and such for an evacuation. The problem is that, the mall didn't implement any of this when the mall was evacuated.

So, I hold true that inept is a proper description for the mall management. I was evacuated when a firefighter came to my store and told me to leave. No mall representative was there to tell me anything. Even if the evacuation was called by the township and not the mall, since the mall falls within the township, the mall should have announced the evacuation.

My guess is that the mall just wants us all to die so it can loot our bodies.

Even when speaking with other managers of other mall stores, they didn't think any mall emergency plan was enacted. And if the carbon monoxide is false, that's what other news sources are stating it was. It could have been just diesel fumes, which could injure people just the same. Still, it was something that the mall knew about and took their time in letting anyone else know.

No mall representatives speaking of the incident that caused the evacuations. My boss tried to get answers, but they just clam up.

People aren't going to the already struggling mall with new like this. Hell, it really doesn't help that employees of the two video game stores in the mall were sick and couldn't open the stores. This was even Tuesday. I didn't see one of the workers there until Thursday.

Thank God, the mall is across the street from a hospital.

Snowpocolypse 2010 Pt. 1

Well, work has been interesting over the last few days.

I wasn't there from Friday around 5PM till today (Monday) at noon, but interesting stuff happened between now and then. To start things off, Snowpocolypse 2010 Part 1 shut the whole mall down on Saturday. Talking with my boss, they left a message on the mall office phone line to tell everyone. Schools get broadcast over every airwave. Malls get a phoned in recording that may decide to not take your call.

This is par for the course for Granite run Mall. I know when I first started working there, there was a huge snowstorm one morning. I even was taking the bus into work. All public transit was so delayed that the bus I got on 20 minutes after I thought I missed it, was actually the one before my usual bus. I was dropped off at Springfield Mall's parking lot, to await my actual bus. It came careening towards me, fish-tailing through the snowy goodness. It was an exciting trip. It took the mall a few hours to close.

See, for Granite Run Mall to close, and probably many other malls, it takes the anchors to close. For Granite Run, there are 3 anchors, so 2 need to close. Sears is always the holdout. JC Penny or Boscov's usually break first. For Saturday there was an unprecedented prior closing before anyone was actually there.

But, that isn't where the fun stops. Not only did we lose sales for Saturday, but Sunday was hit as well.

After only being open for about an hour or so, an alert was passed through the mall for evacuation. I say passed because the mall doesn't make any announcement over a public address system or anything. Some one hands to go to each store and tell the to leave. For Sunday, there was a reported carbon monoxide leak in JC Penny. It was spreading through the mall, and apparently people were getting sick. The mall closed for the rest of the day. So, there goes the entire weekend's sales.

The mall was already open for two hours when I showed up at noon on Monday. Shortly after starting work, I received a phone call. My brother's girlfriend's father... let's just shorten that to my roommate's father works for Sears and listens to the emergency response calls in the area. He overheard something about there being another leak of carbon monoxide at the mall today. This was at noon, there wasn't an actual evacuation until 2PM.

I knew it was coming. I warned the boss. Close to 2, I could see people funnel out of the mall. No one came to say anything to us until after I noticed many other stores, including Sears, already closed. Granite Run Mall's management is completely inept and has no real proper response to an emergency. I sat in my car for a couple minutes until the initial wave of panic and anger passed through the crowd. Then, I went home. My boss stayed for a bit to try and get answers. He didn't get any, despite the futile anger towards the firefighter who was just doing his job.

I sat at home, greeting my brother as he showed up at 4PM. I didn't know if I was actually going back to work. I typically close on Mondays. After a phone call to his girlfriend's father, my brother told me that the mall opened an hour ago. So, I went back to work. I even beat my boss there, who only lives 5 minutes away. I then worked the remainder of my hours, only losing 3. I didn't walk through the mall, but people were telling me that nearly 30 stores/kiosks didn't open when the mall reopened. It also didn't help matters that the mall left it's doors open to ventilate the place. It was positively frigid in the later hours.

The store didn't do too bad for a single day, even being closed for 3 hours. It just didn't do well for 3 days including a weekend. The problem that rises is that there is another storm coming, and a repeat could be in the cards.

On comes Snowpocolypse 2010 Part 2.

If we are closed Wednesday, which is highly likely, I will lose another 13 hours in one shot. This will not be fun.

Plent Hulk DVD

DVD review time.

I haven't been doing much, but I have watch something new. So, instead of ruminating on my boredom of being stuck inside all weekend, I will write about something I watched.

Marvel's last animated giving is Planet Hulk. It's feature length adaptation of a Hulk story-arc from the comics a couple years ago. In fact, it's a Hulk story I feel every one should read. It presents Hulk in a great manner and really tells a great story throughout. The movie wasn't too bad in that respect.

With the desire to change mediums, some things are lost and/or added to any given story. Something that can better help the flow. Overall the movie was good, I only had a couple problems with it.

They did a good job with the intro to the story. They summed up why Hulk had to leave Earth in the same way it is done in the comics. Even the guys that did it are all there, Iron Man, Dr. Strange and Nick Fury. Most of the important stuff is there. That Hulk can be beaten being a main factor. Hulk isn't as tough as he typically is when he shows up. Oh, and there is no Banner.

The thing that bugged me was that there wasn't a couple characters that should have been involved. Even ones that had a pretty important impact in the original comic. The Brood is nowhere to be seen. She isn't even mentioned, even though there are a few brief cameos by other cosmic characters, like Gamorra and Starlord from the Guardians of the Galaxy. I can sort of understand why she isn't there. Her main contribution was sort of taken away when they didn't follow through with Meik's entire story. Meik never matures to the Alpha native, which defeats the usage of the comic ending.

Oh, and there is no Silver Surfer. Apparently, there is some legal reason why he's not there. They instead substitute Beta Rey Bill, of Thor fame. He's not a bad addition, and they definitely make him tough enough. Bill really is a bad ass. He has the power of Thor for Christ's sake, a Norse god.

The ending was cut a bit short compared to the comic as well. I can understand why. In the comic it is definitely a sad ending, with less room for openness. With the ending they chose, the story can really go any way they want it to. The comic directly leads into World War Hulk, and I don't think that is in the cards right now for the next feature animated movie.

It is definitely something worth seeing if you like the animated comic book stuff, especially if you like the Hulk. I think it is one of the better ones Marvel has come out with, but it shies in comparison to the DC stuff. DC just has a better crew designing and developing their animated projects. The extras are pretty cool. I haven't checked out the commentary, but watched the featurettes. They have one that talks about creating the movie, which is how I found out about the Silver Surfer thing. Also, there is another that talks about the comic. They didn't do a whole Hulk review, just the stuff about Planet Hulk. There are a couple motion comics, that just seem weird to me, and a episode of Wolverine and the X-Men featuring the Hulk.

Overall, I would greatly recommend the comic. If you watch the movie first, and liked it, you will probably enjoy the comic. The same goes for the inverse. Planet Hulk is a comic I can sell to anyone looking for something good to read. It is a solid story. The movie is good, but not great.

I want to apologize for this entry. I am tired and under motivated to write right now. It's nearly 4AM and I have work at noon. Also, something is making me feel like my creativity is being sucked out of me.

Not Motivated

I am very lazy this weekend. I haven't really thought of anything to write. I also missed writing for a day yesterday, not that many noticed.

The run down of Friday consists of mostly work. There was a part that involved my boss telling me I didn't have to go into work on Saturday because of the impending snow storm. Too bad I don't work Saturdays anyway. The whole day at work was reflecting people's fear of the snow. The morning was crazy with people. Many people had to get to the store, or mall, just to get their supplies for being sealed up in a house all weekend. Since we are an entertainment destination, we sold a few boardgames and plenty of comics.

This snow has ruined many things. I was supposed to head to a party on Friday night. Two of my friends share a birthday, so they were having a party at one of their places. All of that was destroyed when the snow fell. Suddenly, roads were getting slippery and unnavigable. It didn't help matters that I needed a nap.

I didn't make it out. I instead watched wrestling, Burn Notice, the end of Robin Williams stand-up on HBO, and Bio-Dome. I guess I wanted to finish up the night with some torture. Nothing really stands out as memorable. Burn Notice was good, but next weeks episode looks better. I did learn how to make a microwave into a bomb though.

I haven't even stepped foot outside today. I was supposed to clean my car off, but didn't get around to it. It just looks like a pile a of snow in a rough car-shape. I'll just have to do it on Sunday. I also keep forgetting that Sunday is the Super Bowl. I have nothing invested in the game. I don't even know where I will watch it. I'll probably just watch it at home.

Doctor, Mr. MD.

OK. Time to play catch-up. I missed a day of writing and feel pretty guilty about it. My car trip home from a party can only drag out so many words. It was a solo story after all. I had no dialog. I doubt people would want to read me talking to myself... even though that is kind of what I do when I write these things. It's just not aloud.

I passed out early last night. I got home from work, and promptly passed out as I attempted to watch ECW. Turns out there won't be an ECW in about 3 weeks time. WWE is changing the show to NXT, because they ache to be hip, and fail miserably at it. Anyway, I didn't see the end of the show because I slumped in my computer chair with the blog in one tab and video game stuff in another. I awoke 2hours later, and thought it was best to get the trash out instead of trying to force myself to write some inane gibberish. So, I pushed that gibberish off till today.

I needed to wake up early today anyway, so sleep was a good thing. Typically on a Thursday, I don't usually have to be up until work, and that's not till 5PM. I usually sleep in and claim that I am trying to catch up on sleep. In reality, I just like dreaming. Still, I had a doctor's appointment at 11Am, so I needed to be up well before I normally am, but late enough for me to get some extra hours sleep.

I had to see the doctor because my mom is worried about me. She is a mom after all. I have been having some stomach problems over the last week, so she made me an appointment to see the doctor. Luckily, she works in the doctor's office, so I had an easy in.

On the way in, I decided to finally listen to a podcast that was on my iPod since early December. It was from Talkradar and was the roast of one of the hosts, Dan Amrich. Dan was also the host of another podcast I listen to called OXM. He had a good, nearly 3 hour, roast because he left his lengthy tenure at OXM for a World of Warcraft Magazine, and eventually left that when offered a job at Activision. Activision is one of the biggest video game companies in the world. Still, I enjoy the guy, and find him very funny. He even has his own parody band called Pallete-Swap Ninja. In any case, it was fun to hear accolades for someone I respect and has been in the video game writing business since 1993.

While seeing the doctor, I had to go over all the problems I could remember having. I know on Saturday I felt nauseous and feverish. After that though, I was feeling batter, and didn't want to see the doctor. The doctor still wanted to do some tests, and the final test was the most feared. The rectal exam.

Oh boy, that was unpleasent. I even knew it was going to happen. It was just wishful thinking that he would bypass it. He didn't want to do it. I didn't want it. It just had to be done. Thankfully, there was nothing negative on the test results. Turns out I am apparently on the recovery swing of whatever decided to attack me. I need to eat more fiber, to get me more regular. That's about it.

Afterward, I decided to treat myself to some shopping. I bought a couple DVDs and the Them Crooked Vultures CD. I consider it entertainment prep for the apparent Wrath of God snowstorm that will hit the area. I really don't want it to be that bad. I'm not even going to be at work for it. I just would like to go to my friends' birthday party Friday night.

Blinded by Nature

I am distracting myself with just about anything I can at the moment. I should be writing though. Here is my attempt to actually get some shit done.

Well, I guess I should talk about the trip home from my friend's LOST party on Tuesday. Me being me, I was one of the last few to leave. Such is the way of Kevin. I am usually afraid to leave too early for fear of missing something important. Still, I walked out some time around 11:30 or so. I'm not exactly sure on the time, but it was late. I know I was in my car around midnight on the way home.

So, the trip goes like this. There is already a slight snowfall on the ground. It's making everything look pretty, like a movie set. Warm glow of street lights, reflecting snow, creating hazy rainbows of comfort. After a brief turnaround realizing every street I crossed was One Way in the opposite direction I needed to go, I eventually found myself on the proper roads and on my way home. I even passed a couple cop cars that had some unfortunate motorist pulled over. It was when I was almost on I-95 heading south, that I noticed something. I am behind a salt truck. I hate being behind trunks in general, like most people. In this weather, I dread it.

My car is not the best one out there. I love it though. For what I paid for it, it has lasted me, and treated me extremely well. I have no real qualms about my car. It does have it's flaws though. One such flaw is that it's windshield washer sprayer doesn't work. I don't know what the actual problem is. I don't think it's the sprayer, but rather the reservoir that holds the wash solution. I have filled it a couple times, and it is usually empty. There is probably a leak. Anyway, it doesn't seem like that should be a priority in the whole "send car to the shop" department. So, to counter cleaning my windows, I always wash my windows whenever I get gas and occasionally, when needed, I use a spray bottle with glass cleaner. I used to use glass cleaner, now I use windshield washer fluid in the bottle. It actually works better.

While on the highway, stuck behind a truck, I decided to attempt passing it while on the double-decker bridge. I did, but there was a price. The truck's back spray coated my windows. If it was just rainy, especially a hard rain, it wouldn't have been a problem. My wipers would have held their own. It was the temperature coupled with environment that blinded me. The back spray of the truck created a mist of small droplets of water that held dirt. It was when attempting to use my wipers that created a frozen dirt shield on my window. My back window was clear as crystal.

I was in the far left lane when this happened, of course. Even with so few cars on the road, I needed to navigate as quickly as possible with limited visibility over to the right side most lane for an exit. I nearly hit the side wall, and various other walls as I made my ext down one of the off ramps. Thankfully, the exit I chose was near where I grew up, so I knew the area. In fact, the last time I was there was for a car breakdown. I pulled off the road into a parking lot, and washed my windows as best I could with the spray bottle. It worked to a point.

To keep myself away from potentially other scary moments on the highway, I instead decided to travel the back-roads home. It was a longer trip, but at least nothing bad happened, even though I did traverse through Chester.

I screwed up

To make it short, I didn't write anything on here last night. I passed out shortly after coming home from work. I needed the sleep. I had to get up this morning for a doctor's appointment.

So, as a place holder, and reminder, I will try to relate two stories tonight. That is if I can stay up and Burn Notice doesn't take all my attention. Be on the look out for my death-defying drive home from a LOST party and a trip to a Doctor's office. Granted, the doctor's office one will have about one cringe moment. I'll get to that later.

LOST Party Premier

My blog was brought up as a joke tonight. I thought that was actually funny that it was even used as a topic of conversation.

I am exceptionally tired right now. This rant may seem a little more incoherent than normal. I didn't get my usual nap after work on Tuesday. I came home aggravated at staying late at work. I ate some dinner that may not have been fully cooked chicken, and then I made my way into Philly to my friend's place for a LOST party.

It was good to get out tonight though. I saw some people I haven't seen in a long time, and a few I have never met before. It was a way to bring people together. My friend, Eric, threw the party. As per usual, he went a bit overboard with design. It doesn't help that he is an artist, professionally. Hell, I even looked at the book he is currently published in. It was surreal.

Tonight was the premier of the final season of LOST. This show has been a unifying point for my group of friends. Theories are typically discussed and surmised whenever any of us are together. Of course, that happened at a peak level tonight, especially during the 1 hour preview (read: catch-up) show preceding the actual premier. Smoke monsters and after the bomb segments were the highest point of discussion. What's funny is that this show doesn't really bring about arguments. It's more of an interpretive thing for whoever is watching. It is through discussion that all the ideas are thrown on the table and people start to attempt to see where the show is heading. Just about everyone is wrong in the end though.

I'm not going to talk about the actual show. Too many other bloggers do that with better detail. I'll just say that I enjoyed the show. I dislike that supposed major players are being brought in this late. I also thought the Tim Burton / Danny Elfman style beginning was much funnier than it was supposed to be. I guess the smoke monster costs a lot to make good, so the rest of the computer generated animation has to suffer.

The party had island food as well. I ate a plate of... I forget what it was called. It was rice, topped with a hamburger patty, scrambled eggs, onions, peppers, mushrooms, and other spices served with a brown gravy. It was pretty decent, but probably not something I would order in a restaurant. Some of the other guests brought food as well, there were plenty of cookies, including "fishbuscuits" (a LOST reference), sushi, ribs, pie, and appropriately labeled beverages with Dharma logos.

All in all, it was a very enjoyable night. Eric's daughter, Estella, is great. His one cat, Louise, decided to lay in my lap for almost the entire show. I had that after a movie bathroom feeling when I finally stood up. It was a pretty long drive home. Snow was starting to come down. I nearly got into a couple accidents on the way back on I-95, but I think I will save that story for tomorrow. I need some sleep.

NRA: Too Sweet

I got a membership to the NRA today. I don't even own a gun.

Granted, I have nothing really against the organization. I just wouldn't think I would be on their mailing list. The envelope came with a neat little plastic card and everything. At first, I thought it was a credit card. I was just thinking minutes earlier that I need a credit card. Rather, I would like a credit card. Need is an oftentimes over used word. Still, if it was a credit card, I probably would have accepted it. It would be funny to have an NRA credit card. I have a feeling that people at stores would probably be more cautious around you when you would use it.

I got exceptionally pissed off today with a single phone call. My brother called to ask me to pick up "the gray box switch thingy from Radio Shack.: What he was referring to was the AV Switch I use to change the input of the television between the cable, DVD and Xbox 360. He thought I should just go grab another. He didn't know, that it isn't some cheap piece of equipment and actually originally cost me around $30. My brother took some initiative and switched the faulty outlet where the television is connected. While reconnecting the plugs, the picture on the TV wasn't working. He called me, but I can't do electronic repair over the phone. I just hate that I was basically asked to just throw more money at the problem and maybe it would go away. I wanted to break something after I was on the phone with him.

My coworkers were slightly worried because I kept slipping the "f-bomb" while children were around. I usually restrain myself. I tried to squeeze the store's computer's mouse to death, but it didn't work. My brother called back a little later. Turns out the problem was just a loose wire. Go figure.

For some strange reason I got really tired, really fast around 12:15 tonight. I watched most of wrestling and still needed to write this, as well as fill out a few chances for the church's drawing. I still have to do that last one actually. Still, I fell asleep at the exact moment the final segment of wrestling aired. It was like pinpoint timing. I had to read the results on the computer. Granted, I could just re-watch the program to see the end, but that would take me fast-forwarding through 2 hours of TV.

So, tomorrow is February 2nd. It is Ground Hog Day and marks the moment when some rodent out in western PA decides if we have 6 more weeks of winter. It is also, probably more important, the final season premiere of LOST.

I am heading over my friend, Eric's, place for this viewing. Eric is a little obsessed with the show. The themed party will supposedly be catered with an island theme, complete with Lost style labels on things. Our friend, Ken, is even coming from NYC and bringing ribs for the occasion. Other than seeing good friends and watching a good show, having some of Ken's ribs would be reason enough to have a party. I have had them one other time, and they are delicious. The boy has skills when it comes to a rib-rub.

Well, I need to still go write out chances. I'm going to go do that while watching a podcast. I hope everyone (all 3 of you) have a good day.