I've Been High

I did something I haven't done in quite awhile and it felt pretty good. I had a nice 10 mile run this afternoon. Yeah it was about 28 out with a nice 10+ mile breeze. Once I got going I felt fine. When I was done I definitely had that runner's high going. Is been awhile since I ran that far and you know what -- it felt gooood! There is something about the solitude that you get on a long run that is lacking in other areas of life.

Random Oscar Commentary #3: Halle Berry is lookin' fine! She's from Cleveland ya know ;)

Well I saw Jerry Seinfeld on friday. It was a good show. It wasn't roll on the floor funny, but I'll give it a 7.5 out of 10. My biggest concern was that it would be a rehash of his old stuff and initially that's what I thought. He did his bit on being out: "We're all out you know. This is what we need to do, go out. Someone calls you up and says 'we gotta go out. now.' we're not doing anythng but we're out. Then at some point we gotta go back." And so on. But after that it was all new and his normal observations of everyday life. He had a nice little quip about TV and how "we had a nice little run." That was his only acknowledgement of the show, but it was done in a classy way. The thing that really stuck out to me was that every once in awhile he would throw a swear word in his bit. Seeing him on TV, we're just not accustomed with that so I was a bit taken aback by it.

Random Oscar Commentary #2: One hour into the show and The Aviator has one 4 Oscars already...I can go to be right now and hedge my bets on that movie; And one of the guitar players from Counting Crows has an "I love Scarlett" shirt on -- props for that one.

Back to Seinfeld...great show. I'm glad I got an opportunity to see in a live setting a legendary comedian. The one thing that bugged me was that the women sitting in front of me had a big head and even bigger hair. I had to sit a bit uncomfortably to see Jerry. Stupid big-haired woman.

Random Oscar Commentary #3: Is this bit with Adam Sandler and Chris Rock supposed to happen? Can we say "awkward."

OK time to kick it and relax.

I’m A Driver, I’m A Winner

WHOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!
My dorm had a drawing to win tickets to go see Jerry Seinfeld tomorrow and I won baby!
Who's the big winner at the casino tonight?
I'm frickin' psyched man!
I've only got one ticket, but who cares!?
This means I can get all dolled up in a shirt and tie and look good, go see my man Jerry Seinfeld, and have a blast.
This rocks!

When the Moon Hits Your Eye

Chalk this one up under things you don't see everday (or will ever see again)...
So I'm walking to class. First thing off the sun is out and it seems unusually bright. Maybe its the fact that the shine of the sun is reflecting oh so radiantly off the crystalline snow...but I really had to squint and wish I had my sunglasses. I meant to grab them on my way out, but like the idiot I am I forgot. I think that since I live in the midwest where the sun seems nonexistant during these dark winter months, my eyes need to get reaquainted with el sol. I digress, back on topic. So I'm walking to class and I see this squirrel off in the distance and it looks like he is carrying a dirty sock. A big dirty sock. So I'm looking at this squirrel as he comes toward me and its not a sock -- he's carrying a piece of pizza. And I'm not talking about one of those slivers where the pizza guys miss-cut the pie; no, its legitimate full-fledged large slice of pizza. He's carrying it, stops & takes a little nibble and then moves on. Funniest thing I've seen in quite awhile. Don't ask me where he found the pizza, cause really who lets pizza (or food for that matter) go to waste? Not me says this writer. Of all the times I wish I carried a camera with me....

Here by Intervention, I Want Your Attention

Its been quite awhile since I list did up one of these things. I've got an hour to kill until class so here we go. This may be lengthy as there are multiple things on my mind here.

Yes it is snowing outside. And its those big wet snowflakes. Its right around freezing so the snow isn't really sticking. It was kinda fun walking to class as the big lofty flakes fell to the ground. I saw several (more then one) snowmen outside of dorms. Apparently some students have too much free time on their hands. Anyway for whatever reason I'm enjoying this snow. Funny since I can't stand the stuff and really wish i was somewhere it was hot and sunny.

Oh by the way, Happy Birthday to my little sister -- 22 years old! (ha ha, you have no more birthdays to look forward to.)

File Under: I don't need to know this
Of course when you title something like that, people (whoever actually reads this thing) are going to continue, so don't say I didn't warn ya.
I was studying for a quiz this morning and the call of nature beckoned. I was down in the cafe so I had to use the "public" restroom. Well the one stall they have was occupato -- I had to turn around. This meant collecting my belongings (I was done studying anyway) and making my way back to my room. This took several minutes and nature beckoned more. As I'm walking to the room I'm thinking "I bet someone will be in the shower." As I approach the room I hear running water praying it isn't my shower and just my luck -- the suitemate (odd kid, but that's for another time) is in the shower. So this means I drop my stuff, turn around, and walk back downstairs to the BASEMENT to use the facilities. By this time I'm really rearing to go (no pun intended). Luckily there are 2 stalls down there and I sat on the porcelain throne and did my business. And what business was conducted! He he, ok I'm sure you've heard enough.

I must say I look pretty damn good today (aside from the hair). I'm sporting the whole wool-sweater-with-white-collared-shirt-with-collar-over-sweater look today. I mean yeah I know I look good, but when random unknown girls smile at me the only reason I can think of is that they find me hot to trot and are thinking to themselves "what a good looking guy, *sigh* he probably has a girlfriend". Also a coworker of mine last week said I was cute. Let the record show that I know I'm not hot. I lack certain physical attributes (ie muscles) to ever be deemed hot, but I'll take cute. For me that means a lot more then being hot. For what I lack in hotness I make up in cuteness and personality. Call these correction factors that boost my overall attractiveness. Of course you single ladies out there who read this are probably thinking to yourself "who is the lucky girl?"
Ladies, important announcement from Metamorphisis Of Life forthcoming:
This man is single! Applications are now being accepted!

And on that note, I'll call it a day. :)

The Bar is a Beautiful Place

Lakewood to Ban Smoking in Bars?

When I first heard about this back in December I thought it was a great idea. Its not specifically the smoking that bothers me -- after all my years of frequenting bars I've come to deal with the fact that smoke is just part of the experience; its the smell that becomes part of you. How many of us hate the fact that after a night out socializing with our friends we come home reaking of smoke. The smell gets inside clothes and your skin and your hair. There have been many times I've showered the morning after a night out and smelling the smoke evaporate off me. Not enjoyable. I've got friends in New York who just speak wonders of the smoking bans there (they are state-wide). So I figure this would be a good thing?

Well this article really puts a strong point as to why the band SHOULD NOT happen. Many people I know talk about how Lakewood is "going down hill." My heart will always be in the city. I want it to continue to be a diverse and successful city. The bars are part of it. Lakewood more or less has a monopoly on west side alcohol consumption. If the ban takes place and the truths in this article hold true, my only question is -- where will people go? Most of the other suburbs have few bars/alcohol permits Fairview has a fair amount; River maybe a couple; Westlake a few; Bay none; North Olmstead some. But the thing is none of these cities have nearly the number that Lakewood has. And you know what? I hardly see River or Westlake picking up the slack. Face it, they don't want those crowds in their cities. Are all these people going to head downtown or to Tremont or to Ohio City? People go to Lakewood bars because 1) its cheap, 2) the variety of crowds at each bar, 3) its cheap, 4) the close proximity of the city, 5) its cheap, 6) bars are within walking distance of each other, and 7) did I mention how cheap it is to drink there? Right now I just think the economics take precedent over anything else. We'll see what happens.; I'll be keeping my eyes on this topic.

With Their Blood Lust Feast

I gave blood today. I'm up to 3 gallons. 3 gallons of my own blood have gone to help and save numerous people. I don't understand why more people do not do this. Its a simple procedure. I was in and out in under a half hour, by far my quickest trip ever. There is a little prick and thats all. 10 minutes later or so and you are short a pint of blood. Blood that is valuable for all types of surgeries. If you are reading this and don't give blood, go out an give it a try -- someone's life may be depending on it.

In other goings on, Ken Jennings, king of all things Jeopardy has sold out. He's doing commercials for Cingular now. Although the commercial didn't bug me. From anyone who ever saw him on the show, you know he is a genuinely nice guy. It's hard to dislike a guy because he's nice. I'm anxious to see him in super tourney they are doing on Jeopardy sometime this spring. Now that will be intense.

The Debt Collector

Its wednesday...be ashy?

The title of last night's post would have been so much more applicable today. I love being back in school, don't get me wrong. I'm really enjoying the stuff I'm studying here and being back on a college campus is nice. The thing I don't like is being extremely poor. I went to get a transcript today and they tell me, "oh there's a hold on your account -- you owe $xxx.xx." Oh great I say. I kinda need a transcript for an internship I'm applying for that is due on oh....TUESDAY! So what to do? This same thing happened last semester and I went crying and groveling (no not really) to financial aid and they upped one of my loans. Well it worked once, why not twice? I'll give it a try tomorrow morning and hopefully I'll be able to get my transcript. If not...well its back to working the street corners for me.

I've been on a total Smiths kick this week. Its an unfortunate thing that the only CD I have of theirs is Louder then Bombs. I should really buy an album proper of theirs. Of course if I was actually depressed or something I'd probably be bawling to this record, but the fact that I'm really kinda happy makes the sad songs that much more enjoyable. Does that quasi-circular reasoning makes sense? Listening to their lyrics, its seems that the Mozzer put a lot of Emotion into his lyrics. Emotion....hmm...that's kinda funny. Twenty (and more) years ago, it was just music, but these days they (whoever they are) would throw it into some genre of bands that have no business being grouped together. Bands and singers have always put emotions into their songs; there's no need for a non-existent quasi-genre that no one respects.
/end rant.

I kinda veered off topic there. Oh well, such is life. Time for bed or something like that.

Oh yeah, the Smiths should never reunite.

In the Midst of Life We are in Debt

Its tuesday...be fat!

Technology....blah!
I had a nice playlist on WinAmp going. I was sitting here doing some work, minding my own business when it decided to conk out. Ok I do the whole Ctrl-Alt-Delete thing to end the program...its not responding..blah blah blah...don't send error report. Everything should be cozy, right? Wrong. WinAmp is still in my taskbar. I've "closed" it at least 5 times now and it is just sitting there like a bump on a log. I mean I didn't do anything. I just wanted to listen to some tunes. Hmmpf. Of course I'm headed to bed soon and I'll turn off the computer and all will be kosher, but still ya know? Its the whole point of the situation.

In other things I touched a dead body today. Yup. In my cadaver lab we moved on from playing with bones to looking at actual ligaments of actual dead and embalmed humans. Its a bit odd. Seeing the human body in a state that we are not used to. I think I'll get used to it after awhile. I'm still adjusting to the touching part. The instructors and TA's just go up to a body and are like "yeah here is this part and that part" all nonchalantly. And the smell isn't the best one -- mmmm formaldehyde!

Time for bed, I'm tired.

And if the Snow Buries My Neighborhood

I finally recieved The Arcade Fire -- Funeral in the mail...currently listening...this is amazing...living up to the hype...simply beautiful....more to come later

In other worldly events, there is some football game tomorrow. I will go out on a limb here and predict that the New England Patriots will defeat the Philadelphia Eagles by a score of 24-17.

I'm sitting here in my room looking out the window and all I see is blue sky, the sun is shining bright and it is 48 degrees out. Now 48 is not all that warm, but when single digits have dominated the past 3 weeks its practically shorts weather! There is something about the sun (mmmm...vitamin D) that just makes life so much better. Even though I've got part of my thesis proposal due on tuesday, not to mention another paper due on wednesday and a quiz on tuesday I'm smiling and just feeling good about life right now. Ahhh sun.

Grew a Mustache and a Mullet

Just watched The Grudge. It was stupid. It did nothing for me. Do not go see this movie.

In other news I was looking in the mirror the other day and its happening. In my never-ending quest to grow my hair long it has started to mullet out in the back. This happens every-so-often. Really its my refusal to actually get my hair cut. I'm stubborn, what can I say? To add onto my mullet-bud I'm making a futile attempt to grow a beard. Its a functionality issue -- with all these single-digit temps we've had here, I need some warmth on my face; especially when I go out running. In all reality, I cannot grow a full fledged beard. I can do the sideburns and I can do the goatee, but try to connect the two...nope, no dice. Then there is the area on my face where nothing will grow -- left side of my face just past the goatee area on my chin. I dub it my wasteland.

Then the fact that I actually have some mulletude in me brings up a whole other issue in my life, namely how this affects my love life (or lackthereof). Call me an idealist, but I like to think that if I do meet a girl and she finds me attractive when 1) I have a bit of a mullet, and 2) when I have a semi-hairy face then she appears that much more attractive to me. But in all honesty, who's gonna find me attractive looking the way I do? So do I get my hair cut and trim up my facial hair to give into these societal ideals of image that we have? Or do I stay true to my own personal ideals of image that I have? See these are the things I struggle with on a daily basis. And people say my life is easy.

I know I have some other not-so-witty observations, but for some reason its just escaping me. Oh well. I'm out.

In This Bright Future You Can't Forget Your Past

Now Playing: The Jazz Spectrum on the Impact 89 FM

There's some saying out there about how you can't escape previous events in your life. Well folks, I'm there. It started out so innocently about 2 years ago. A year after receiving my Bachelor's degree I found I had no desire for a career in the engineering field. Where do I go from there I said? I might make a good lawyer. So I gave money to the LSAC to take their test (does it really cost upwards of $100 to administer the test?). I did so well I thought I'd give them more money for a second shot at it. Scoring higher only fizzled my desire to attend Law School, not the mention thoughts of ungodly hours away from my future family. Nope, I didn't want that. And judging from my observations of Law students, I'm glad I'm not one of them.

That left me at another crossroad. At (almost) 24 years of age I'm thinking about what I want to be when I grow up. That led me to one thing I've always found solace in -- the sport of swimming. I got it, I'll become a swim coach! Hot diggity! I applied to various institutions of this great country of ours to see if they would let me into their schools. I was contacted by one faculty member who was intrigued by my engineering background. Biomechanics might be a good fit for you. OK, why not? If I can understand how the body moves better I can apply that to my coaching to get better & faster swimmers.

That brings me to this here & when. I've got a couple of big things on my plate: 1) I've got a little thing called a Thesis that I need to start planning for next year. This of course requires me to sift through pages of published research articles to form the base of my research. 2) I'm applying for a position with the USOC's summer intern program at their training facilities. As I read more into the literature, an all too eeire, deja-vu like feeling is coming over me. All these equations used to describe a swimmers motion are reminiscent of engineering stuff I've learned (don't get me started on fluid mechanics). And if being a coach doesn't pan out, I'd really gosh-darn like to research this stuff.

As much as I'd like to say I'm not an engineer, I still am dammit, and perhaps embracing that will help me in my future career.

In other events I'm picking the Patriots 24-17.

I'm out.