Seems like ages since I last posted anything. So much has been going on and I barely make time to go online much, well at home anyway. Work has been so boring lately I have accomplished most of my online fun at work. I do need to search for a doctor so I can get my shots for my trip to India. It's not needles that I am afraid of as much as the idea of injecting vaccines into my bloodstream.

I dodged a promotion at work a few weeks ago. It would have meant running half of our offices, dealing with employees, schedules, doctors, patients, phone calls at night and on the weekends, all for a couple thousand dollars more. All in all not a good deal for me, especially if I want to finish school. Which leads to the question of whether or not I want to finish school... I do want to finish and move on to teaching again. So I have to get my ass in gear again once I get back from my trip.

Something is bothering me and I can't quite figure it out. I have an eye twitch again, only this time it's on my left eyebrow. Last time it was the right brow/eyelid and I am positive thats what lead to the uneven receding hairline. So I guess it's about to become symmetrical unless I can relax and get it to stop.

The other day I was out having dinner with my good buddy and as we ate I listened to the song that was playing,it was "Missing" by Everything But the Girl. I was overcome by a sense of sadness and longing. Back in the day when I was about 22 and was just in the beginning stages of dating my future ex, I would leave work late at night and drive to her place which was just around the corner. I would walk down this little sidewalk past her window and see the warm glow of candle lights and I could hear "Missing" or some other such song.

The funny thing is that my phantom memory was not longing or missing her in anyway. But rather that fresh feeling of being in love. Of having passion in my life and expressing it. Lately I have become more convinced that is one of the reasons why I just seem to exist rather than live. It's like a numbness, I don't seem to feel much pain or joy. Frankly it scares me and makes me happy. It's nice to just "be" and not have to have drama in my life. But it also saps me of my sense of purpose if I can't really enjoy life.

Obviously having a girlfriend would help, but I don't know that I want that either. I really do like my freedom and the ability to do as I please. It is so easy to get wrapped up into someone else's life and have their agenda take over your agenda. I also feel like I am on the brink of something great happening. As the year draws to a close I feel more and more as though I am closer to exiting this neutral wilderness and finding my path again.

I went to the Orange County Fair last night and saw Chris Isaak in concert. The man is such a great performer, he always puts on a great show. I saw him perform at the Fresno Fair when I was living there, and I was really impressed. It is funny how different some fairs can be. As Orange County continues to urbanize and lose the last vestiges of agriculture the fair loses it's flavor. When we were kids we used to always go to the LA County Fair in Pomona. Why would we go there when the Orange County Fair is so much closer? Because the Fairplex in Pomona has horse racing and the Orange County Fairgrounds don't. Of course it is only a matter of time before the LA Fair loses its agricultural flavor too. More and more farmland, dairy land and ranches are being sold to build more monopoly houses and Walmarts.

I suppose this is progress and my resistance to change. I have these same conversations with my friends who disagree with me and think that such things are positive. I certainly can see how people would think that with the bursting population and the need for growth. But I think that people lose sight of the fact that as the population grows, so does our need for food and as a result, our need for agriculture. The idea that we should depend solely on the Midwest for our food is as crazy as it is irresponsible. The more dependent that communities become on other communities, especially those farther away, the more vulnerable a community becomes to actions they have no control over. The concern for immediate gain ignores the need for long term planning with regard to how these changes will affect the future.

More crazy talk I guess, but I feel the same way about the closing of so many military bases and the dismantling of our defense industry. I could go on and on, but I won't, at least for now.

My love affair with wikipedia.com continues to grow as I seem to spend more and more of my free time following twisting and turning paths of links from one subject to another. There seems to be no end in sight as I voraciously devour the information at my fingertips. I must have tons of bookmarks on subjects that I have not finished researching. Recently I was walking down the road of the Bhagavad Gita and I realized that one of the reasons for my stagnation of the past few years is that I lack passion in my life.
That is one of the reasons I need to get back to teaching as I knew that was my calling in life. But also, I don't feel the ups and downs of life as I once did. I have a balance and steadiness now that quite frankly bores me. I went out three times this past week and had alcohol, much to my regret. Not that I drank lots and lots, no just a few beers each time. Rather, I just end up feeling uneasy and "off." I have never been much of a drinker, I refused to drink until 21 and then did so for most of that year and then swore off alcohol for a couple years after that. I saw the effects of drugs/alcohol on some people I cared about and remembered why did not like to lose control or poison my body.
I think that I am now at that point again where I no longer with to dull my mind and poison my body. I have far too much work ahead of me. With all this expensive dental work I have been getting, I have begun to get back into working out and taking better care of my body. My sister has initiated a trip to India that will include herself and her husband as well as our father and me. I am pretty excited about it and have decided to brush up on my Indian history to better appreciate the visit. Also ordered some books on learning Hindi to make communication much easier.
I should be able to finish up school when I return and get everything set to go back to teaching by Fall of 2006. The lure of money and comfort still leads me to believe that I should stay in the corporate world and move up the ladder and jump to bigger and better companies. But all in all that would only provide me with temporary happiness by providing me enough money to afford distractions and entertainment. None of those things would help me help contribute to helping society progress as it should. Long ago I knew the path to take and I need to continue to work back to that path, though it may not be as comfortable and easy as the current path, I do know that the destination is a much more worthy place to be when the journey ends.

One of the things I miss most about my youth is the music scene. I had quite a few friends who were musicians and we used to go see their bands play all the time. And then of course there were all the fun concerts to go to. I really enjoyed the local music scene. I met my friend Rich when I was 20 and I just started at this telemarketing job for a timeshare company. Rich had been there awhile and after some time we became friends and hung out a lot. Then my friends and I would go see his band play local venues. He was a good friend in many ways and was one of the few friends that I looked up to. I think he was maybe 28 or so at the time and we would talk about our issues and what not.

He got me hooked into the poetry circuit for a couple years. This consisted of hanging out at several local coffee houses on their open mic nights, drinking coffee or in my case iced tea or hot chocolate, and talking to all the regulars who also followed the circuit. It was a lot of fun, other than the usual pretentious folks. But even they were enjoyable to watch as I could respect someone for being creative and expressing it. Though at times much of it was just a cry for attention. Of course, what isn't?

I miss him and wonder what ever became of him. He was a really great guy, who also had some problems. But I look back on so many friendships that I valued then and value now, but I didn't continue to nourish or cultivate. I suppose that is just the way life is. Nothing is permanent and the best we can do is enjoy and appreciate what we have, while we have it.

Father's Day is this weekend and I have already bought a present. Tonight when I was at the store buying groceries, I looked for a Father's Day card, something that I always have trouble with. Take a look at most of the cards and they are either all corny or overflowing with sentiment. My dad doesn't golf or fish, so all of those cutesy cards just never interested me. And looking at the pictures of these blonde or brown haired dads with their kids on the cards never felt real to me. Even when I was a boy, I saw very few people that looked like my father and looking through these cards each year always feels odd because of it. And then of course there are just my own emotional issues to deal with.

We had a very up and down rollercoaster sort of relationship for most of my life. It's like the first 7 years of my life and the most recent 7 years are the ones where we get along great. Its the middle 18 years or so that were confusing. Sometimes I just don't know what to make of it. I wonder what I will do when I get my chance at fatherhood. And I know that I learned so much from my father, good and bad. I am very proud of him and love him a great deal because of what he has given me, both intentionally and unintentionally. As I grow older I fear I will miss out on the chance to impart my father's teachings to future generations. Aside from the basic biological need to procreate and continue the forward progress of my genetic history, there are other, more spiritual, intellectual and emotional things that I want to pass on. And many of these are things I learned from my parents. Many are things they meant to pass on, others are things I learned from observing and making my own decisions based on those observations. Parent-child relationships are so complicated, that I won't even continue going into this.

But all I can ever think of on Father's day is that I hope I can make my children as proud as I am of my father. Because of who he is and who he helped me to become I love and appreciate all he has done for me.

Another one of those days where I drive home with a million things on my mind and so I don't even want to begin to babble on. I came home from work and watched Trekkies and Trekkies 2 on Showtime. WOW. I was scared by some of these people. Denise "I Quit" Crosby hosted these documentaries about Star Trek fans and the conventions. It's funny because I have always loved Science Fiction and grew up watching the Star Trek reruns. I may even have my old posters of Spock and the Enterprise. But these people really are scary. Harmless, but scary. blah blah, we all have our hobbies and such, but c'mon. I am impressed by how much effort some of these people put into their love of Star Trek. And it really is cool in a way that the conventions and such have lasted so damn long.
I think what may be more sad is people like Denise Crosby and Michelle Forbes who made the great career decisions to quit Star Trek. I have so much respect for actors who have the brains to milk something for years and make money at it. Hopefully they do it well and the shows are still fun to watch, like the Simpsons. anyway, so these movies are interesting at their look at how much people get into Star Trek. The worst part is the people who try and justify their love of it, by talking about how smart it is and how its about science and such. Granted my love for Mr. Spock influenced me in some ways, but I am not going to say more than I enjoy Star Trek and leave it at that. It's fiction and many of their stories have deeper meaning, etc. but it's also fantasy. A few months ago our CEO was whistling the theme song to the XFiles and he asked me if they still made them. Uh, no it's been a long time since it was cancelled...For some reason he asked this question two more times, as though I was either lying or mistaken. He told me he recently watched season 4 on DVD. Yah thanks, for not running the company while you watch tv, asshole. Then he asked me if they still made Stargate. The inner geek in me woke up and said oh sure, in fact they are heading into their ninth season, and they have a spin off, Stargate Atlantis, which is more serious... He cut me off to tell me he doesn't like spin offs. Which is funny because I never knew him to have any principles he would stick to. He then proceeded to tell me how much he enjoyed Stargate because it was "Smart and the science is good." Now I love the show, it's fun and very entertaining. But I will never justify it by saying it's smart or some such shit. Anyway, so I told him about Battlestar Galactica and how they made a new one and he should watch it because it rocks. By this time our General Manager walked out of his office to see what in the hell we were talking about. A few other people walked by and gave me an odd look that also told me they were freaked out that the CEO and I were talking about Stargate. Hell even I knew how odd it must have looked. Two of my friends were in the GM's office and overheard this exchange. They told me that they looked at each other and both were like "WTF?" So now I just joke with them that on Fridays the president and I hang out and watch Stargate.
It just goes to show you, something. I don't know what, but I suppose it must. I was going with a whole thing on why he would justify watching it, or how things like that bring people together. But I think it just proves what a geek I may be.

For some reason I have been blessed and cursed with having seen two women that moved into my top ten most beautiful women list. And just last Friday, I had luck turn my way for the first time in a very long time. As anyone who really knows me, hmmm does anyone really know me?...Well anyway, most people who know me know what a picky bastard I am when it comes to so many things. Especially women, which is semi-funny considering some of the choices I have made. But when taken in the context of going against my instincts as well as following my heart rather than my brain and eyes, it makes some sense that I could be so picky, yet make the decisions I have. So at the beginning of this year, I detailed my first sight of the year, a friend of my sister, who has a prior engagement. So that is out of the picture. But that still doesn't detract from being placed in my top ten list, one need not own or possess something to have it be appreciated. Then last month, I was in my car waiting to turn left into my office complex when I looked left and saw this young woman/girl shaking her head and singing and basically grooving out to whatever she was listening to. I laughed to myself, but I couldn't get a good look at her face, so I didn't think much of it. Then as I turned left, with our windows open, our faces were less than 3 feet apart, and we looked into each other's eyes. I was struck by her beauty and I am positive the look on my face let her know just what I thought. But they were not thoughts of lust, rather I felt rewarded with a vision of such spectacular and breathtaking beauty, that I could only feel a serene excitement wash over me. She met my gaze and I physically felt my heart jump in a way it has not in many many years.
I was of a mind to turn around, but it was too late. I should have stopped the car as I passed her and just got out, damn the cars behind me, and just asked her out. But all I could do was drive on and go into work to tell my tale to my friends at work, who not having my discerning tastes could not care one iota.

Then came last Friday.

When our office was in Irvine we used to have lunch about once a month or so at this local ethnic restaurant, which had the same name as one near our Costa Mesa location. But sometime during our time there, the Irvine restaurant changed their name. So we figured they must have either been of the same ownership and were sold off or else they were different owners and had copyright name issues. Well we kept going there and the one waitress they had was absolutely gorgeous as well as just having this super nice quality about her, I could see it in her eyes. Then about 7 or 8 months ago she wasn't there anymore. Even after our office moved, my buddy and I would still go there rather than the one in Costa Mesa even though it is closer. I argued that the food was better, but being a good friend he pretended to accept that argument. Though I still contest that the food is better and they do have slightly different menus.
At the beginning of that week I told a coworker about my tendency to wait in situations like that until windows of opportunity are lost. I related how I was very attracted to this waitress and how she no longer worked there. My coworker asked me why I never asked her out, but I just would feel like a jerk for asking someone out when they are at their job trying to earn a living. I wouldn't want my girlfriend bothered by guys all day, so I just figure its respectful to not bug someone like that. Not to mention I wouldn't be the first guy to ask her out. I dunno. My coworker and I discussed the whole ring thing. One of the first things I do is the ring check, see if they are married or have a promise ring.
My coworker told me that her friends go out and put rings on so they don't get bothered, which is funny because nice guys like me will look at that and then leave them alone. But the assholes out there will either not see it or just ignore it and bug them anyway. So it's pointless unless all women want is for jerks to ask them out.
Anyway, so time passes and last Friday my friend said he wanted to go there, I thought he meant the one in Irvine as he used that name. But he meant the one in Costa Mesa. I wasn't thrilled as I still held the food was better, but it wasn't worth it as my girl wasn't there anymore. So having given up, I didn't care. Well we saw the usual blonde stripper waitresses they have there. Seriously its like they hire women who are strippers, I haven't seen such selective hiring since Fuji's burgers near Goldenwest College in the early 90's.
It was a long wait so we seated ourselves and waited for service. As my friend and I were talking, out of the corner of my eye I saw a pair of jeans to my side and I turned and looked up so I could begin to order. Well as the buildup must have clued you in by now, yes, I looked up and saw her. I stared in shock and amazement and pointed at her and began to stammer as she said yes, she used to work at the other place and of course she recognized us. I was so speechless it was amazing.
Needless to say, I didn't say anything to her.
So stupid. Life gave me another chance, granted a chance to be rejected, but damn it, a chance to take a risk I was sorry I didn't take previously. I tell myself next time I go there, I will at least formally ask her name and make some small talk about seeing her there being a surprise.
But I also rationalize not doing so by saying it's busy and she has to work, or that she doesn't want to be bothered at work.

The only saving grace is that I am so picky, I'll find some fault of hers and feel much better about the whole thing.

Time for my monthly post again...I have taken this month off of school, and will likely take some extension classes at UCLA as two of the classes I need are wayyyy cheaper there. I also have to sign up for the CSET test next month. It's a new test they give to teachers and it tests them on their subject matter knowledge. I already took one of these about 7 years ago and now with No Child Left Behind, they have changed all their damn tests. Of course, I usually test well so I am not worried, but they focus on each subject that a social studies teacher would teach. So a whole subtest on economics doesn't sound good to me. But eh whatever they want to do is fine by me.
I still don't know which path I will eventually take, but either way it will work out. I'd just really like to be set on one path and stick to it so I can buy a home and build a life for myself. Nothing fancy, just a small old home with character that I can fix up and enjoy being in. Like a 1930's/1940's Craftsman style near the beach. Ah that would be perfect if even the rundown ones didn't go for nearly $1 million or more. Of course I could always choose to go live in the desert somewhere for next to nothing, but that would mean living in the desert. And after 3 years of Fresno, that just isn't going to happen.

Of course I could just sell all my worldly possessions and move to some tropical island somewhere and just live out my days in peace and serenity. With more money that would make it more fun, island girls to feed me pineapple and mangos as I lay in my hammock on some white sandy beach overlooking crystal blue lagoon. That would be a very nice way to spend my days. Until global warming causes the ice caps to melt and we all get washed away. In which case I might be smart to buy up that desert property now, before it becomes expensive ocean front property.

Maintaining my now once a month post is not making me feel good. I have to set time aside to post more. If only I had more time. My class is going well, I am on my third one and presented a lesson on Wednesday. It went well of course, I mean I rock when it comes to teaching history. But I do get a bit nervous presenting lessons to my peers. Partly because they know what to look for, but also the dynamics are so different. With students they are in the class and depend on a grade from me, as well as they learn material in context. With peers, they could give a crap who I am or what I say and they don't have the previous lessons to provide context. So it tends to be a bit dry and they aren't responsive.

The good thing is that I got my promotion, a raise and a chance for more advancement at work. The bad news is that this further complicates the decisions I have to make between choosing career paths. Until I win the lottery that is.

There is so much more I want to say, but I just don't have the time. I have some files to put away and bills to pay before I watch Bill Maher at 11pm.

I am feeling restless again, tired of standing still as time moves forward. Today was such a beautiful day, the weather was perfect for sitting outside somewhere in the sun and relaxing. Not spending the day inside an office with artificial lights and recycled air. At times it feels like a sentence. How did mankind progress to this point? Is any of this progress?
I watched Gentleman's Agreement tonight and thought about how we still have so much of it all wrong. I have probably talked about this movie before, but it really moves me and stirs my passion for the things that this country should stand for. If you have never seen it before try and see it. It stars Gregory Peck as a journalist who is assigned to write a story about Anti-Semitism. So he pretends to be Jewish and we see the injustice and bigotry that is out in the open. But more importantly we see how the complacency of decent people allows bigots to dominate others and oppress people for no reason other than small minded prejudices.
As Edmund Burke said "All that is necessary for evil to triumph is that good men do nothing."
And nothing could be more true. People are all to often afraid to rock the boat and give up their comfort for the sake of that which is right and decent.
While the movie's style may be old-fashioned, it has that Capraesque quality that stirs the emotions and prepares the audience to go out and fight the good fight.
As Wolrd War II has just ended it seemed important to look at how America was drawn into a worldwide conflict that got it's start in Anti-Semitism and good people allowing Hitler to come to power. And while Anti-Semitism may not be a taboo subject for us to tackle today, it was a risky move in 1947.

It always strikes me as funny when people get riled up about what's so important about certain issues like Anti-Semitism, or gender or age issues, or even racism. They hide behind some kind of indignation at politically correct language or attitudes. They act like stopping ignorance and outright hatred is wrong. That defensive bullshit never ceases to amaze me. Especially when you break down "who" they are and find the thing that would put them on the train to a camp. They don't see how their indifference to these issues could be turned on them in the future.

I see it with people I know who hold racist, sexist and otherwise ignorant views. And yet in some way they belong to a minority that other people would just as well discount and disrespect. At times I wonder if we have progressed. Especially when Ashton Kutcher can star in Guess Who and mock an important film that had an important message at a crucial point in American History. When the hell will people stop putting him in movies? And when will Ashton, Rob Schneider and Adam Sandler star in a movie together? They could remake 3 Men and a Baby only it could be a talking monkey or an alien.
I can't wait.

Last week I began my first real class towards finishing my credential. In January and February I had to drop the online classes they signed me up for. January they didn't send me my login information in time. And then the class for February I couldn't find out when things were due or where the assignments were. It was ridiculous. So I told my advisor that I wanted real classes from now on. The current class I am taking is filled with a lot of theories and methods relating to Language Development, specifically geared towards bilingual education and working with English Language Learners.
It is pretty interesting and informative. But there is a lot of work to do in the space of roughly 25 days. So I have been a little stressed about it. Plus I have been vacillating between the teaching career path and some private sector money making path. It's the old argument of being a teacher and doing what I enjoy and have passion for, but earn little money, or else struggling to build a corporate driven career that will allow me to make money and buy a home, but likely feel miserable.
And if those pressures were not enough, ever since this class started, in addition to the stresses mentioned, I have the added strain of not getting one night of decent sleep. I keep remembering my damned dreams and nightmares. Part of it is the stress from taking a class, part of it is dusting off my neurons and activating my brain, which causes more dreams, but worst of all it is dredging up old memories that I thought I had put behind me. However, since I am moving into teacher mode and trying to recover my teaching mindset, I associate it with the last time I was taking classes and the last time I was teaching. Yes my good old days in Fresno. And by association, my ex. The funny thing is it's not feelings, it's just memories and of course dream like situations.
I am the type to look back and see turning points, and I keep playing some out in my head as I sleep. Oh, If only I did such and such or I should have...blah blah.

Hopefully that will pass, but the stress is bugging me. I am glad that my mind is active to this degree again. I have always continued to read and educate myself, but this is different and I do feel better. So I am focusing on the positive aspects and my immediate goal is to finish two classes and look into getting an emergency credential so I can quit my job anytime I want.

That sense of freedom will be good to have.

I love Frontline and Nova.
I just watched this excellent piece on Frontline tonight about the 8th Cavalry Regiment stationed in Iraq. Wow. It was pretty intense. During the war I saw a lot of the coverage from the reporters in the field and with other units. But this is very different. Being able to get a ringside seat during planning of missions and speaking with Iraqis is something that we just don't get enough of. The special was very moving when they showed just how affected this unit was when one of their team was killed in action. Mainstream media just does so much to not show the emotions of soldiers, and I think we need to see more of the reality of war and what it does to the people we fight and the people we ask to fight.
Next week on Frontline is a piece that looks like it is about how soldiers deal with the effects of combat, specifically killing and being in constant danger, called The Soldier's Heart.
It would be nice if more people watched such things and had a better idea of what goes on in the world. And whether someone is for or against our war in Iraq, I think it would open a lot of eyes to see some unpleasant things that most people tend to avoid thinking about.

Finally a prominent politician comes out with a reasonable stance on the Abortion Debate. Hillary Clinton has voiced what should be position taken in regards to abortion issues.
It's amazing how many people still don't get it. I remember not long ago, before the election hearing someone actually mention abortion as the number one issue in the election, as though George Bush was going to force this woman to have his baby if he won. Get over it. Over 1000 dead American soldiers and unknown number of dead Iraqis in a war based on bogus reasons, might be slightly more important. The government sanctioned use of torture and illegal detainment of prisoners might be a more important issue.
Clinton's speech was dead on and is the right approach. Reactionary liberals and reactionary conservatives will of course miss her point and stick to their die-hard stance. But most people will see it as common sense approach to a tough issue.

• Tell kids not to have sex. Abstain. I agree, promote it, 16 year olds dont have the brains to cope with sex. Aside from either abortions or unwanted pregnancies, we may see a drop in the number of STD's out there.
• So some kids won't listen, if so then use condoms AND the pill. Again we'll see less abortions and less unwanted pregnancies as well as fewer STD's. Plus when kids and adults act responsibly in regards to sex, they may actually begin to wonder how clean their one night stand might be.
• So some won't abstain and others won't use birth control. Or may the gods help the poor bastard who has a condom break or a girl who skips a pill. But aside from those there are the more serious issues of victims of sexual assualt and serious medical problems that may endanger a woman's life with a pregnancy. In these cases, well it's still legal so no worries.

The point is to narrow and reduce abortions. Make them few and far between. Bring back morals and responsibility to sex. A pack of condoms is still cheaper than a pack of diapers. And for those who argue "it breaks the mood" or "it doesn't feel the same" with a condom, well a baby screaming from his crib breaks the mood too.

Between Barbara Boxer taking on Condoleeza Rice and Hillary Clinton staking out a sensible platform on abortion, I am beginning to think some Democrats do indee have the backbone necessary to revive the party.

I figured out what my problem with blogging lately is. I get online and sign on to AIM and read and write emails too damn soon. So then I end up expressing most of what I wanted to say. I should probably just start blogging from work and make it easier.
I am such a nerd I joined a yahoo group for "Alias" and another yahoo group for "Lost" But what can I say, I am a fan of really good stories and characters. Plus the mystery elements always get me. That's what drew me into Twin Peaks so many years ago. And it was such a groundbreaking show in that it influenced so many shows today. Carnivale on HBO is another such show that I have to watch. Though I do get pissed at some of these shows that build mystery and contrived mystery over reality based characters.

Yesterday was my birthday so I got home late after a fun filled evening of good drinks, good food and good friends. There was some early talk of going to Tijuana, which thankfully didn't pan out. Then that gave way to talk of strip clubs and then that didn't pan out either. One of my friends had to split when his girlfriend called up to let him know her grandmother passed away, so he felt bad he had to leave. But I felt bad for them. Losing a grandparent really sucks.

Close to midnight I arrived home very much intoxicated and feeling like I was 22 again, rather than 32. But all in all it was a good evening. And then some.

Wow, I just got back from a great weekend in San Francisco. I woke up at the crack of dawn on the 31st and drove to my parent's house, then jumped in their car and continued up Highway 101 to San Francisco. See my sister was having this wedding, a small and intimate affair for immediate family only. So being immediate family we were invited and arrived in anticipation of the happy event.
I hadn't been to San Francisco since I lived in Fresno when I drove up there and picked up my sister and we drove to our parents place for Christmas 2000. So I was looking forward to the trip. Well not so much the travelling as much as the destination. But with my mp3 player and a good book I had much to occupy myself with in the event that I wanted to just relax and not communicate with my parents on the drive. It's really funny because some of my fondest memories are the family trips we used to take since we were babies. Things haven't changed much. It's pretty fun to travel with my parents, but sooner or later you need to just zone out.
For New Year's Eve we went to the apartment of my sister and her fiance. It's a cool place decorated very much in their combined style. The product of two very artistic and creative people. The evening went well and I had much fun meeting their friends and talking with some of the really cool ones. Like my sister's friend Dave who is an artist and painted this awesome portriat of her, check it out. Unfortunately for me just about all of them were couples. No single hot chicks at all. There was this one woman, who was without a doubt one of the ten most beautiful women I had ever seen. As always a quick scan of her hand told me there was some sort of ring on her finger that indicated I would not be so lucky. That and her fiance was there too.
Drinks, food and good company made it a very enjoyable evening.
On New Years Day we picked up the bride and groom and took them to the coffee house they had arranged to be married in. The story is very sweet....exactly 3 years ago on New Years Day, January 1st 2001 my sister's friend introduced her to her love to be in that very coffee house. The friend that did the casual introductions had the honor of officiating their wedding in the very same place that he introduced them. So there was a lot of symbolism and romantic attachment to the way things were set up. All of which are indications of just how in love and happy they are and will be.
The ceremony was very short, simple and yet moving and sweet. I have never seen anything like it. Certainly I have some bias, but objectively speaking it was unlike anything I had ever experienced before. After that it was off to dinner at this nice restaurant Farallon. If you are ever in San Francisco please do yourself a favor and check it out. Not only is the food excellent, but the decor is amazing. I was in love with the main dinning room as it was built above the old swimming pool of the Elks club. The ceiling is still the original ceiling with Greco-Roman style mosiacs. I could spend years wandering San Francisco looking at buildings and wondering at the history of each one. But besides the atmosphere, the service was first-class. Our waiter, Keith will be my butler when I am filthy rich. This guy had such a cool demeanor, was very unobtrusive and yet had the presence one would need in a butler. Like Alfred only in his early 40's. My father and I were very impressed.
After the dinner and cake ceremony we said our goodbyes to the newlyweds as they are on their way to honeymoon in Costa Rica.
And then today was lots more driving in the rain pretty much the whole way down the 101 from San Francisco right to my doorstep.
And tomorrow is more fun as I try to fix a few problems with my class I was scheduled to take. So more on that tomorrow.

This year willl be as happy as I make it.
May yours be happy as well.