Is anyone surprised?

the weak breeze is a raider

Well. That's one pretty large-scale schooling that the Raiders endured. My condolences to Raider fans. It does make me feel a little better about the Niners getting trounced by the Bucs earlier in the season. That defense is just stifling. These kinds of defeats are always easier to take than close losses anyway, so there's some consolation there. Well, one more football season dead and gone. Niners all the way in 2004!

One thought occurred to me as I told people where I was going to watch the Superbowl. I told them I was going to watch it with a bunch of people from church. That was true, but the way I referred to them stuck out at me for some reason. Aren't these people from church my friends? Many of them are; I mean, the party was so big (over 60 people there actually) I couldn't be friends with everyone, but I knew everybody and the hosts are my friends. So why don't I just say a couple of my friends are throwing a party? Why do I separate "people from church" from "friends" when I talk?

i can't find my remote, in its place a ransom note

At 7:45 this morning I was woken up by my alarm clock. I'm pretty sure I turned it off by reflex, because it was only about ten minutes later, as I was watching SportsCenter, that I thought to myself "why am I awake? I could be sleeping right now." I then looked suspiciously at my alarm clock, checked the time it was set to go off, and realized it had woken me up ten minutes earlier. Ahh, the fog of the morning brain.

Every day this week I've received calls to sub - Monday through Thursday. And I couldn't sub any of those days, I had a student already. So I figure I might get a call for Friday, the day I usually get calls for. But no! No calls for Friday. Ah well. I've got an hour of tutoring set up at 3.

This weekend should be good. Saturday I'm playin' some flag football, which I haven't done since Thanksgiving. By the by, if you're in the area and you wanna play some flag football, we're playin' at 10 in the am on Kennedy High's field. Sunday's the Superbowl of course, which is good in and of itself. It's only made greater by the fact that there's a local team involved, and it's a matchup of the number one offense versus the number one defense. Good times, yo.

And on a final sports note, Cal continues its romp through the Pac-10 and how 'bout them Warriors?

i'm not bitter anyway

I've put together a little slideshow/article/whatever thing about my first attempt at making a smoothie. No vouchers for its quality, but it was a fun way to kill an hour. Besides, this means that I have content!

And check out this flash. Hehehe.

glenny glenny glen, he is no woman

The last couple of days have been pretty good. Having a student three days instead of two made it feel more like a job, and I had more of a regular schedule for a few days, getting up and going to work, all that. I've also started to eat differently - healthy - and it's taking a little getting used to. I'm finding that it's not impossible to resist eating 'bad' food; I've had more than my share of opportunities in the past few days but I haven't taken 'em. I mean, it sucks, but it's not like some huge struggle of willpower that makes life crappy.

I do have a bit of a headache though, I've had it since yesterday. From what I've read it could be "bad carb" withdrawal, since I haven't had bad carbs in a few days and they probably comprised most of my diet before then. So anyway enough about my eating, even though I know you love to hear about it.

The past few days were also cool because Laura's partner in crime Cali (pronounced Kaylee for some reason) was in town from Vacaville. Because of them, on Wednesday morning I woke to this. It actually started my day off on a good note though, because it all started over a kidnapped Jack-in-the-Box ball, which I was then able to mess with a little bit. So - Cali's a lot of fun, it's been a good past few days.

Other good news - at the end of March I'm flying down to San Diego to preach at the Bridge. I've said it before and I'll say it again - the people down there rock, so it should be fun, even if it's only for a weekend. I need to work out a longer stay with Jesse or somethin' too.

On a final note - the David Crowder Band is stellar, and Come Thou Font is, to my ears, one of the most beautiful worship songs ever.

aztec revisited

I think we can all agree that the Pontiac Aztek was one of the stupidest looking cars ever. Well, it now has some company, with the Honda Element. It looks like some kind of stunted offspring of a jeep and SUV. Yech.

Nooooooooooooooooooooooooo!

the cloud goddess is ripe with rain-babies

Be very afraid. Today I spent money on groceries and stuff like that. I bought crappy things like nonfat vanilla yogurt, raisins (apparently they don't just come in cookies), something called "whey protein," and a greenish substance I'm told is broccoli. Here comes life change people. Watch out.

I had a fairly busy day today. My first day with my new student, who had jaw surgery. Small world, he lives on a street I used to live on. He seems like a cool enough kid, it's pretty nifty that he goes to the same school I did. He also has Economics with my old Econ teacher, Mr. MacLeod. MacLeod was one of my favorite teachers in high school, and I stopped by to talk with him today. It was really cool talkin' to him, and I gave him my number so I can sub for him. Hopefully through MacLeod I'll get some more subbing jobs and have an in at Washington. Overall it's been a good day, I'd say.

And the Simpsons episode tonight is classic. The one where the kids get caught at school in a snowstorm...er, a Class 3 KillStorm.

back to the future

Today I got my Christmas gift from my sis and her family - they got me the Back to the Future Trilogy DVD set. Awesome gift! I watched the first movie today and started watching the second - it's bedtime though. Anyway, I wanted to mention something I noticed that I thought was pretty nifty. In the beginning of Back to the Future 2, Marty McFly is in a cafe in the future, where he shows two little kids how to play an old video game. One of the kids looked familiar, and I checked the credits - sho' nuff, it's a little Elijah Wood! Who knew that little boy would grow up to be a hobbit?

What's that, you say? What do I think about the 49er game? They didn't show up to play. It's frustrating. But hey...at least the Raiders won. I can root for them now...

argh of the moment

Anybody who's been around me for any extended period of time, or really not even that extended of a time, is aware of the fact that my car squeals like a stuck pig every time it starts up. Especially in cold weather. The squealing is loud enough to wake everyone with semi-functional eardrums in a radius of three city blocks. As the weeks have gone by this noise has become progressively worse, to the point where the car would periodically squeal even after its initial warm-up. I knew it was a problem with the car's serpentine belt, and figured the belt just needed to be replaced.

Well today the car made a *new* belt-related noise and I popped the hood to discover the belt was incredibly loose and needed immediate replacement, lest my car stop working altogether. I give my ever-so-helpful bro a call and he comes down to where I am to give me a hand. Initially I wasn't too upset, the cost of a new belt would be $17.17 plus the frustration of putting it in. Unfortunately Dave discovered upon his arrival that not only was my belt frayed beyond use, but the tensioner was broken. That's the thing that, in case you hadn't guessed, keeps the belt at the right tension.

How much do tensioners cost? Around $130. Dave ferried me about town to gather the necessary parts and I dropped my car off at Mowry Automotive. On the plus side, they finished it today and I'll be picking it up momentarily. On the down side, today I'll have shelled out 250 unexpected bucks on my car. On the plus side, I had the money in the bank - so no more debt.

Oh well, at least the car won't squeal anymore. It better not anyway, otherwise I may have to change its name from the "Party Saturn" to "Squealey McSqueal" or "Piece of Crap."

Yeeeeeeaaah. Shoulda gone.

a great mystery

Answer me this please. Why why WHY WHY WHY are there blueberry truffles in my box?!?! I defy you to show me the human that would rather have blueberry filling than wonderfully rich chocolate, engaging raspberry, or smooth coffee!

i know you are, but what am i

You may heretofore refer to me as "The Man," for I have acquired and connected the necessary cords and adapters to record any kind of media onto my MiniDisc player. This development makes me very happy and displays my mighty technical skills. I only needed to call my brother two or three times. Bow down.

It seems I'm not the only person demanding that others bow down, however. I saw it earlier today on ESPN.com but can't seem to locate it again. Apparently Jerry Porter of the Oakland Raiders told the Jets to "come get their whoopin'." The two teams appear to be engaging in a bit of what passes for verbal sparring among football players.

Have you ever heard of Brian Loritts? He spoke at a Campus Crusade conference I went to a couple years ago, and was stellar. So if you've heard of him and know a way to get a hold of some of his message tapes I'd be much obliged.

the last word

I read this on ESPN.com regarding the NFL admitting its refs made a mistake on the last play of the game. All those who would tarnish the 49ers victory by mentioning the bad call, read this:

"Giants spokesman Pat Hanlon said the team really didn't care.

"At this point, unless someone tells us to get on a plane and go to San Francisco to replay the final play or replay the game, what difference does it make?" Hanlon said Tuesday. "It's unfortunate the guys (officials) made mistakes at the end of the game, but that's not the reason we lost the game."

So there.

lousy blogger, lousy html

I am aware that my previous post went up twice...unfortunately due to the nature of blogger and the fact that I messed up an html tag I can't fix it. So you're stuck with two of that post. Terribly sorry. Read it again or something.

Stellar writing from someone else's livejournal:


What’s a Meantime Girl?

She’s the one you call when you’re bored because she makes you laugh. She’s the one you talk to when you’re feeling down because she’s willing to lend an ear and be a friend. She’s not the one you call when you need a date to your company’s Christmas party, or to go dancing with on a Saturday night. She’s the one you spend time with between girlfriends, before you find "The One". You know, the one who you keep around in the meantime.

She’s not one of the guys, not a tomboy, but you don’t look at her as a "real" woman, either. She’s not bitchy enough, moody enough, or sexy enough to be seen in that light. She’s too laid-back, too easily amused by the same things your male buddies are amused by. She’s too understanding, too comfortable – she doesn’t make you feel nervous or excited the way a "real" woman does. But she’s cool, and nice, and funny, and attractive enough that when you’re lonely or horny and need intimate female companionship, she’ll do just fine. You don’t have to wine and dine her because she knows the real you already, and you don’t have any facades to keep up, no pretenses to preserve. You’re not trying to get anything of substance out of her. She’s not easy, but you know that she cares about you and is attracted to you, and that she’ll give you the intimacy you need. And you know you don’t have to explain yourself or the situation, that she’ll be able to cope with the fact that this isn’t the beginning of a relationship or that there’s any possibility that you have any real romantic feelings for her. It won’t bother her that you’ll get up in the morning, put on your pants, say goodbye, and go on a date with the woman you’ve been mooning over for weeks who finally agreed to go out with you. She’ll settle for a goodbye hug and a promise to call her and tell her how the date went. She’s just so cool . . . why can’t all women be like that?!

But deep down, if you really think about it (which you probably don’t because to you, the situation between the two of you isn’t important enough to merit any real thought), you know that it’s really not fair. You know that although she would never say it, it hurts her to know that despite all her good points and all the fun you two have, you don’t think she’s good enough to spend any real time with. Sure, it’s mostly her fault, because she doesn’t have to give in to your needs – she could play the hard-to-get bitch like the rest of them do, if she really wanted to. But you and she both know that she probably couldn’t pull it off. Maybe she’s too short, or a little overweight, or has a big birthmark on her forehead, or works at Taco Bell. Whatever the reason, somehow life has given her a lot of really great qualities but has left out the ones that men want (or think they want) in a woman. So she remains forever the funny friend, the steadfast companion, the secret lover, and you go on searching for your goddess who will somehow be everything you ever wanted in a woman.

You’ll joke to her that she should be the best man at your wedding, and she’ll laugh and make a joke about a smelly rental tux.

She doesn’t captivate you with her beauty, or open doors with her smile. Mainly she blends in with the crowd. She’s safe. She doesn’t want to be the center of attention and turn the heads of everyone in the room. But she wants to turn someone’s head. She wants to be special to someone, too. We all do.

She has feelings. She has a heart. In fact, she probably has a bigger and better heart than any woman you’ve ever known because she’s had a front-row seat to The Mess That Is Your Life, and she likes you anyway. She obviously sees something worthwhile and redeeming in you because although you’ve given her nothing, absolutely no reason to still be around, she is.

Anyway, yeah. I’m a Meantime Girl. Been one more times than I care to admit. I don’t know the reason, really, and at this point I don’t even care. I just want to let every guy know who’s ever had the good fortune to have a Meantime Girl that we may be a lot of fun, but we cry, too. A lot. And someday we won’t be around.

++++++

I am not accusing myself of being a girl. Today was a bad day and I'm not sure why. Tomorrow will almost certainly be better. I'm waking up to go disc golfing with Jesse and Ang, two of my favorite people.

Stellar writing from someone else's livejournal:


What’s a Meantime Girl?

She’s the one you call when you’re bored because she makes you laugh. She’s the one you talk to when you’re feeling down because she’s willing to lend an ear and be a friend. She’s not the one you call when you need a date to your company’s Christmas party, or to go dancing with on a Saturday night. She’s the one you spend time with between girlfriends, before you find "The One". You know, the one who you keep around in the meantime.

She’s not one of the guys, not a tomboy, but you don’t look at her as a "real" woman, either. She’s not bitchy enough, moody enough, or sexy enough to be seen in that light. She’s too laid-back, too easily amused by the same things your male buddies are amused by. She’s too understanding, too comfortable – she doesn’t make you feel nervous or excited the way a "real" woman does. But she’s cool, and nice, and funny, and attractive enough that when you’re lonely or horny and need intimate female companionship, she’ll do just fine. You don’t have to wine and dine her because she knows the real you already, and you don’t have any facades to keep up, no pretenses to preserve. You’re not trying to get anything of substance out of her. She’s not easy, but you know that she cares about you and is attracted to you, and that she’ll give you the intimacy you need. And you know you don’t have to explain yourself or the situation, that she’ll be able to cope with the fact that this isn’t the beginning of a relationship or that there’s any possibility that you have any real romantic feelings for her. It won’t bother her that you’ll get up in the morning, put on your pants, say goodbye, and go on a date with the woman you’ve been mooning over for weeks who finally agreed to go out with you. She’ll settle for a goodbye hug and a promise to call her and tell her how the date went. She’s just so cool . . . why can’t all women be like that?!

But deep down, if you really think about it (which you probably don’t because to you, the situation between the two of you isn’t important enough to merit any real thought), you know that it’s really not fair. You know that although she would never say it, it hurts her to know that despite all her good points and all the fun you two have, you don’t think she’s good enough to spend any real time with. Sure, it’s mostly her fault, because she doesn’t have to give in to your needs – she could play the hard-to-get bitch like the rest of them do, if she really wanted to. But you and she both know that she probably couldn’t pull it off. Maybe she’s too short, or a little overweight, or has a big birthmark on her forehead, or works at Taco Bell. Whatever the reason, somehow life has given her a lot of really great qualities but has left out the ones that men want (or think they want) in a woman. So she remains forever the funny friend, the steadfast companion, the secret lover, and you go on searching for your goddess who will somehow be everything you ever wanted in a woman.

You’ll joke to her that she should be the best man at your wedding, and she’ll laugh and make a joke about a smelly rental tux.

She doesn’t captivate you with her beauty, or open doors with her smile. Mainly she blends in with the crowd. She’s safe. She doesn’t want to be the center of attention and turn the heads of everyone in the room. But she wants to turn someone’s head. She wants to be special to someone, too. We all do.

She has feelings. She has a heart. In fact, she probably has a bigger and better heart than any woman you’ve ever known because she’s had a front-row seat to The Mess That Is Your Life, and she likes you anyway. She obviously sees something worthwhile and redeeming in you because although you’ve given her nothing, absolutely no reason to still be around, she is.

Anyway, yeah. I’m a Meantime Girl. Been one more times than I care to admit. I don’t know the reason, really, and at this point I don’t even care. I just want to let every guy know who’s ever had the good fortune to have a Meantime Girl that we may be a lot of fun, but we cry, too. A lot. And someday we won’t be around.

++++++

I am not accusing myself of being a girl. Today was a bad day and I'm not sure why. Tomorrow will almost certainly be better. I'm waking up to go disc golfing with Jesse and