On this day in 1984 - Elton John and Renata Blauel were married. The marriage lasted for four years.

1984 - Elton John and Renata Blauel were married. The marriage lasted for four years. <- Wow I had no idea that he was ever married. Her gaydar must have been serverly out of wack.

For a bit of history about today. if your going to hate or love today, you might as well know why it is that you hate or love it.

Of course, today is Febuary 14th. Also know as Saint Valentine's day. It should be noted that while I'm writing and thinking about this entire post, I've been and will be listening to Norah Jones. At any rate, I didn't really know what I was going to post, nor, did I really know what I wanted to post. But, I've come across some interesting things. This guy has a unique monkier, calling today, "Singles Awarness Day." Bethany prefers to call it Very Important Friends day. Some people just choose to not even acknowledge today at all. Or, if your this guy you think that setting up an online suicide pact is a good idea.

A while ago I I talked about how comercialized it was, how a month before, we are bombarded with the seas of red, and forests of hearts. Hearts in all sort of manners, ballons, candy boxes, anything and everything. I will be the first to admit, I did buy into it, I bought the roses and a few little things. However, you should never need a special day as an excuse to do something thing for your significant other. To let them know how important they are to you. To let them know, everything good about you, you owe to them. And it's not about the candy and the flowers and fuzzy cute little teddy bears. It's about the true and undying love.

Many, may have thought I might be inclinded to say, how much I hate today, and today sucks, or, things of that nature. Trying to turn something very beautiful into something very nasty. As, I said before, you should never need a special day as an excuse to do something nice for the person you love. But, in using that thought process, you shouldn't really celebrate anniversaries. I always liked, making today a special day for someone, having the night planned, or the night planned for me. Being able at dinner to peer into those eyes, that just made me melt. Looking, how beautiful, how she effected everyone around her. She and our love were beautiful, and I can't do it... I can't... I can't bring myself to turn this day into something ugly and mean and bitter.

No longer being romanticly invovled though, doesn't mean, I can't do something special for the people that are in my life, and are special to me, and have been here all long, keeping me sane, making me smile, making me laugh, giving me a shoulder to cry on, crying with me, and when it was all over wiping my tears. To all of you, thank you. Thank you for being supportive in my times of need, and thank you for putting up with everything. You all mean the world to me, and with out all of you, I would still be lost.

"Love is a many splendored thing" it can make us happy, crazy, angry, and sad. As well as all the rest of the colors under the emtional rainbow. Stories like this one, tragic as they maybe, remind me the nature of love, that no one can ever describe it, no poem, no picture, can give it words or justice, it's something that must be felt. And when it takes ahold of you, it commands your will, and overcomes reason. And, there is no doubt in my mind that, yes, love can break a heart.

I rarely ask for things, I want friendship, family and happiness, and there are no material things in this life that can bring those, however, I would mind being given this sometime.

So, what... so what does this all mean. I really have no idea, this was at first a well thought out post, and it's begining to turn into somewhat of emtional monster. But, I suppose that is to be expected, as I said. Love commands your will, and will beat reason into submission. But, I bow graciously to love, for, I would gracefully asume the role of an igorant pauper, if it were to allow me to feel the grip and power of a love I once knew.



"Love, if you ever find me I wonder

Will you try me I'm so different than before"

That first kiss on the bench...
so innocent, so right... and later that night,
A love began, undescribable by words, only to be seen,
in the eyes of lovers so young.

Life aged me, made me wise, and took my innocence
but I still believe in the power of that night,
when we sealed our fate. Happiness is yours, take it.
forgot not though, the bench that night.
-AC 2005

Golden tan bodies will only bring melanoma...

Lyrics to "Everybody is free to wear sunscreen"
by Baz Luhrman

Ladies and Gentlemen of the class of '97,

Wear sunscreen. If I could offer you only one tip for the future, sunscreen would be it. The long term
benefits of sunscreen have been proved by scientists, whereas the rest of my advice has no basis or
reliable then my own meandering experience. I will dispense this advice....now.

Enjoy the power and beauty of your youth. Oh, nevermind, you won't understand the power and
beauty of your youth until they've faded, but trust me in 20 years, you'll look back at photos of
yourself and recall in a way you can't grasp now how much possibility lay before you and how fabulous
you really looked. You are not as fat as you imagine.

Don't worry about the future, or worry, but know that worrying is as effective as trying to solve an algebra
equation by chewing bubblegum.

The real troubles in your life are apt to be things that never crossed your worried mind: the kind that blindsides
you at 4pm on some idle Tuesday.

Do one thing every day that scares you.

Sing.

Don't be reckless with other people's hearts; don't put up with people who are reckless with yours.

Floss.

Don't waste your time on jealousy. Sometimes you're ahead, sometimes you're behind. The race is
long, and in the end, it's only with yourself.

Remember compliments you receive; forget the insults. (if you succeed in doing this, tell me how).

Keep your old love letters; throw away your old bank statements.

Stretch.

Don't feel guilty if you don't know what you want to do with your life. The most interesting people
I know didn't know at 22 what they wanted to do with their lives; some of the most interesting 40 year
olds I know still don't.

Get plenty of Calcium. Be kind to your knees -- you'll miss them when they're gone.

Maybe you'll marry, maybe you won't. Maybe you'll have children, maybe you won't. Maybe you'll
divorce at 40; maybe you'll dance the funky chicken on your 75th wedding anniversary.

Whatever you do, don't congratulate yourself too much or berate yourself, either. Your choices are half
chance, so are everybody else's.

Enjoy your body: use it every way you can. Don't be afraid of it or what other people think of it; it's the
greatest instrument you'll ever own.

Dance...even if you have no where to do it but in your own living room.

Read the directions (even if you don't follow them).

Do not read beauty magazines; they will only make you feel ugly.

Get to know your parents; you never know when they'll be gone for good.

Be nice to your siblings: they're your best link to your past and the people most likely to stick with you in
the future.

Understand that friends come and go, but what a precious few should hold on. Work hard to bridge the gaps
and geography and lifestyle, because the older you get, the more you need the people you knew when you
were young.

Live in New York City once, but leave before it makes you hard.

Live in Northern California once, but leave before it makes you soft.

Travel.

Accept certain inalienable truths: prices will rise, politicians will philander, you too will get old; and when you
do, you'll fantasize that when you were young, prices were reasonable, politicians were noble, and children
respected their elders.

Respect your elders.

Don't expect anyone else to support you. Maybe you have a trust fund, maybe you'll have a wealthy spouse,
but you never know when either one might run out.

Don't mess too much with your hair or by the time you are 40, it will look 85.

Be careful whose advice you buy, but be patient with those who supply it. Advice is a form of nostalgia;
dispensing it is a way of wishing the past from the disposal--wiping it off, painting over the ugly parts, and
recycling it for more than it's worth.

But trust me, on the sunscreen

Lina has put parts of this song in her profile recently, and I said, wow, I forogt how good of a song, or more speech, or whatever it may be. And she replied, yeah, now that we are older it means a lot more. And I had to take a step back for a second, because, I've always felt I've "understood" what he was trying to say. But maybe I didn't, now that I've gone through many things, I don't understand it any more, but, I do appricate what he is saying a great deal more. I think that maybe, we should all, every once in a while take a step back, and listen to something like this, realize, we aren't as fat as we might think, or maybe, we should just be enjoying things a bit more, enjoying the fact, I'm a 20 something with my entire life infront of me. Life as so much to offer, we all need to make sure we are getting the most of out it. I hope one day, I can speak these same words to a grandchild, and know, I'm not just saying them to be said, but it's because, yes, this is what is important in life, remember it, live by it. Download load to listen to it when you need, Here.

*** WARNING: Impromptu trips to NYC can be good for your Health ***

I think i should disclaimer this post by saying. Yes, I have been pysically in NYC on 2 occasions, but, for all intensive purposes. I really haven't been to NYC. When my family lived in NJ, we went only to Ellis Island to go in the Statue Of Liberty, and when our music department went there for a competition. ANd while, it would at first seem to count as being there, I don't really remember anything.

So, Bethany IM's me sunday early evening and tells me that there is a Open Casting Call for royal carribeaian cruise lines. So, after giving her some slack and a well needed swift kick in the ass, she deicded that she was going to go to this casting call to really give some honest effort to purusing her dream of being singer. Knowing that she was kind of nervous and I, never really havening been to NYC along w/ the fact we were planning to go sometime in the near future. I was like, well hey, you said you would like someone to go with you, I'll go. So, by 6 I was pack and ready to go, because i was hoping to catch atleast the last half of the super bowl, which worked out pretty well, since, both, I don't have cable to even watch anything, and the fact that i got there right before half time. (for her blog entry as to why she went and her overview of the day click here.)

Admist Bethany being a psyco, I was able to really appricate the MP3 player I got for xmas, I loaded it up with all the music Bethany had leeched from me in the first place, so it was all good (I wasn't going to be happy being stuck with Rent musical sound track! haha ). Em (from forp.net in my very post) tends to name all of her electronics, her iPod has a name, her iBook has a name, some how I feel that maybe I should give my mp3 player a name, maybe if I had an iPod I might, but, I think for now, my nice little 512meg PNY Vibe Mp3 player, shall just be refered to as my MP3 player. With 512 megs there was a lot of room to play with, however, Bethany hasn't leeched ALL of my music (atleast not as of yet) so I was limited somewhat in my selection, however, I was still able to fill it with all very good music. So, by way of Becky, my sister's former roomate, who then asked Elana a girl down the hall from where my sister lives, I was finally able to find the name of the person/group who does Vegas lounge style of popular songs. His name is no other than.... Richard Cheese. At first I compared him to Jamie Cullum, but with edge and a sense of sarcasim. Now, I just think, he a funny guy that puts his own touch into lounge style version of popular songs. Right now, I think his version of Hey Ya is by far my favorite. Along with Mr. Cheese, had to throw some Joss on there, a few Norah songs, and of course all the Acapella. Soo many great songs in that folder I can't even begin to descibe how much I love that stuff. Speaking of Norah, I think I've decided to tear into my Disc Change and reclaim my prized fav. CD's.

So, after a short interlude of me singing the richard cheese version of Sublime's wrong way, at the time of my lungs no less, I was told, I would NOT be allowed to sing as such on the train, oh well, it was then off to get some infamous c-store chicken cheese steakes and cheese sticks. I was highly impressed w/ the new layout, since the last time I had been there was 3 years earlier, when I then again, had cheese sticks. the almost high of the night had to be though, almost getting tea cooler all the way in NJ, though they had Swiss Premium Products they were out of tea cooler for the evening, Lemonadie had to sufice. Anyhow, watched the overly safe half time show, and watched the Eagles screw the pooch, which, of course being a steelers fan is kind of a mixed blessing. I didn't want to see the Eagles win at all, but now, New England is now encroaching into the Iron Currtain of the 70's Steelers legacy.

Then, EV came home... wow.. I hadn't see her since the last time I was in the C-store there. It was funny, I had to give her a hard time about Nichole and her leaving me to talk to the security guard, since THEY were the smokin' up. I will forever remember these words "Yeah, I'm really sorry about that." hahaha... ya gotta love her, she usally just a heart beat away from coma, but... was actully on sunday night a few hear beats away.. hehe the most talkative and excited i had ever seen her :P though i've only never meet her twice, so i'm not sure what I say could ever really matter. But she is a very cool girl none the less, and I hope that I get to chill w/ her more often.

Sleeping on the flip and fuck wasn't so bad, it was actually quite comfortable, but for some reason, just wasn't able to get to sleep. Not all was lost though, I had the privledge of hearing EV talk in her sleep. haha. So somewhere around 3 or so i was finally able to get to sleep. 5:15 rolls around and the alarm goes off. Oh well... sleep is highly over rated anyway :-P It was funny though, Bethany was like trying to be so quite, and didn't turn on a light or anything, and was trying not to step on me, but, i think she about killed herself in trying to do so. Luckily everyone came out unscathed.

So in tradtional Alex style, I of course didn't wear a jacket/coat what have you. But, damn, it was cold out in the morning. By the time we got to NYC at Penn Station though, it was turing out to be quite the nice day out. Now, I've been on the DC metro, which i guess counts as a train. But, I've never been on like Amtrack, or any type of "real" train. So, we pull into the NJ Transit parking lot at Hamilton. And find a parking spot 2232 (not sure why, but that number just stuck in my head). So Bethany stood in front of the pay booth kind of looking a bit clueless and this guy was kind of standing there, so she let him in front of us. Woah damn, was he wearing way too much after shave, and i knew then, it was going to be an interesting group of people on the train. Anyway, the pay booth, was almost the same as the one at the IUP parking garage when I went to visit Jen, so after some guidance, we were all paid, and on the way to getting train tickets to Penn Station NYC. It appeared that the ticket station weren't accepting credit cards, so cash it was, and luckily i had enough on me. It wasn't long before our train arrived, and bam, there we were on the train. I sat in the very first seat so i could see everyone else in the car.

Now, I was kind of approached this whole day into NYC as just kind of like a fly on the wall.. just kind of wanted to see what it was all about, and just take it all in. The actually train and the train cars were much nicer than I thought thought they were going to be. But the first thing that really stuck in my mind, was the smell. Just so much aftershave from all the business men, and perfume from all of the women, though I tend to think it was more of the men and their aftershave. It was also much quiter than I had thought it was going to be, I mean the train it's self was fairly loud, but in Pgh people were always talking on the buses, or there were be someone singing along to songs in their head phone, or something but no. There was none of that. Which, in my mind is actually quite amazing. It's amazing to think, how many 1000's of people every day take the train into the city to do their jobs, but you take into account the cost of the train, the fact that even on the express train that we were on it still took an hour to get there. It's just amazing that those 1000's of people that travel together everyday, that you don't have converstaion, or get to know people that are always in the same routine that you, yourself might be in. But, with that aside, it was interesting just to see the mix of people there were on the train to begin with, a majority of them I would say were business men (and some women), funny to see the sterotype, trench coat, scarf, gloves, Wall Street Journal. But, it was quite the melting pot of people on the train, some poeple sleeping, some people reading, and others... just staring off into nothing. I wondered then, what those people were thinking. If they were actually thinking anything at all. I mean, I can't imagine, 5 days a week sitting there for an hour, not really talking or anyone, or doing anything. I think, those people must wonder, wow, i'm just part of this herd mentality. I get on the train, like a drone... sit here like a drone... go to work like a drone.. and come back like a... drone. Some of them just had lifeless looks in their eyes, like, there wasn't really anyone there, it was just a shell going through the motions. Just as interesting though, was seeing all the different papers that were being read. New York Times, Wall Street Journal, papers in Spanish, Arabic and Korean. I also got a fair good kick out of the ticket collector, just like one might imagine, blue uniform w/ the cap. He was also very handy w/ his hole punch. Though, i guess if I were getting paid to punch tickets, I too, would be come fairly handy with a hole punch. I had really wanted to take some candids of people on the train, I think it would have been really remicident of some of the great street photographers. I had only brought my small digital camera, and people tend to take you less seriously if you not carrying a large SLR camera. Though, It couldn't have hurt to ask, i think it would have embarrased Bethany. Which, that is a whole seperate issue for another time.

So, Penn Station here we come. I was actually very surprised w/ the lack of trash and homeless people at this station, though i suppose since it is such a high profile station, and maddison square gardens is directly atop of it, they would probably tend to keep it a bit more clean than the other stations. I must say, i'm a fairly laid back person, and after being there now, I think NYC and I could get along, though, it is such a face paced city, and i'm a fairly laid back person. If your not moving a mile a minute in NYC your going way to slow for them. Which is fine, but it just surprsing to see EVERYONE in the city be so fast paced, you would think there would be a since of balace or something. Nope, it just one city with fast on their mind. So, if i recall we walked down 8th ave towards 47th street, and I was like Bethany, I think we are on Porn street, the entire left side of the street was all Adult DVD shopes and Peep show signs, I found it kind of odd, all of those were so close to times square. It was also somewhat odd, just to see business men in their Trenchcoats with breif cases walk into these store along w/ the skeevy slimball types. But, I guess the Porn inudstry isnt' a multibillion dollar industry for no reason.

So, we arive that the New Dance Company, and there was already a group of girls there all waiting and they had already made a sign up sheet and the works. All of them seemed very nice, and there was a group that had driven all the way from virgina to try out. Very starving artist if you ask me. So anyway.. Bethany and I just chill for a bit, talking and both listening to our MP3 players, and then someone came and opened a door, and way the all went, and I went and explorered what i could of NYC(which wasn't much as i did it all on foot :-P) I was about a block away from Times Square, so I headed in that direction. For those of you that have seen "Lost in translation" I very much reminded of the scene where Charlotte is walking around Tokyo for the first time by herself. It was just totally amazing to see the amount of money and energy put into the adversting there. CRAZY, I personaly liked though the cadailac front end sticking out of the bottom of the tower by Olive Garden. So i walked all up and down and remember that Hershey had just recently opened a store there, it is in Times Square, but i was somewhat disapointed with it's location, it was kind of on the outer edge of it, and i guess, all the good spots had already been taken, from the outside it looked fairly cool, the inside was nice too, but almost an exacty copy of what "factory works" is now at Chocolate world. So that was slightly less than exciting, but it was kewl to see it none the less after working at chocolate world for so long.

The entire time I just took some fairly random pictures, my digital camera is great, i love it to death, but, for NYC, it just does't have the reach of the lense i would have used on my SLR, so the pictures i took all for the most part look fairly "toursit", though, i plan to spend some time in photoshop with some of them, and make them "mine." I also had some really kewl ideas had i been able to get to a higher place to take pictures, but that didn't seem likely. Perhaps another time. Anyway, shortly after seeing the Hershey store, I got the ring a ding from Bethany that she was done. So, I meet back up w/ her at the place, and then we found our way into central park. Wow, it is huge, and the squirles are awesome. check out the pictures and video clips. So we wondered all around the park and pretty much got utterly lost, and then we decided that we were hungry, so we found a Uno and ate there. I had never been to one, the food was fairly good, but.. there was something slightly off about our waitress... can't really explain it, but... there was somethign odd about her. Anyway, while sitting there, we noticed there was a Bombay imports store across the street, and with my desire to decorate in somewhat of that style we headed over there, there were some interesting things there, a few interesting end tables, and other nick nacks. Then I feel it would be a good idea to go to the Finical Distric. So, we take a bus all the way down to 13th street, thinking there was nother stop pass that, we both just sat there, the only ones on the bus, and then the Bus driver turns back and says, this is the last stop. So, we are like oh haha okay, and we go to the door in the back of the bus, and the don't open, and then bus driver is like.. you have to push them open. So, after making totall asses of ourselves on the bus, we are way downtown. And we are walking around and such, sort of looking for Wall Street, but not really finding it, we come arcoss an east asian imports store. WOW. This place was absolutly amazing, mostly they just had really really kewl ornate Amroirs, evrything in this place was HUGE though, I mean, like it was made for Giants. It was so sad though everything was so expensive. But... perhaps one day. It's good to know... things that I like are out there though.

This all happened while trying to find wall street, so after consulting a map in a CVS window, we needed up touring pretty much all the NYU campus, and still not finding Wall Street. So, we needed up in the NYC information office, get another map and are still on the quest to find Wall Street. We need up by the brooklyn Bridge and download police station. Still looking for Wall Street, we finally ask a very nice Police Officer where it is, and we were heading in the totally wrong direction. So... we finall find wall street... hehe and I must say, it was very lack luster. It wasn't really a street that you could drive down, it looked much more like an alley way, but it was interesting to see where probably one of the most importance places in world economics. But, not all was lost, because there were NYC offiers there in riot/S.W.A.T. geat with M16. I'm not sure if there was somethign going on, I tend to think not, because everyone seemed pretty normal about it, I think probably it's more of a preventitive measure since 9/11. So... that was pretty much the end of the day in NYC, headed back to Penn Station got on the train, and while Bethany was sleeping she missed out on all the action of them having to throw someone off of the train.

So, we get back, and wait for nichole to get out of class, and then the 3 of us went out and had a very nice dinner. So all in all it was a great 24 hours, and more impromptu trips like that should happen for everyone. Also, want to congradulate Bethany, on doing something about her dreams. We should all take a chapter out of that book, and do something about the things we have aspirations of doing. Regulardless of how crazy or unatainable they may seem.

Looking forward to going back to the Big Apple sometime soon, Hell who knows.. maybe I could even one day like it as much as I love Pittsburgh.

interesting series of pictures I took in times square, reminds me very much of my photography proffesor Mark Parot.










For the rest of the photos from NYC check out flickr.

OH I ALMOST FORGOT

I was able to finaly know what the whole fire company house, engine, lader thing is all about, so one of my life questions was finally answered :)

Wawa may not be visible in the cosmos, but apparently my personality may...

So, I said yesterday I was done w/ the daily posting of horoscopes unless they seemed to be overly applicable for the day. Well, low and behold, today's horoscopes maybe not just be a point in time horoscope but something I think that most people would agree would describe me. Since this is something that would seem to be a personality trait, perhaps this horoscope is more powerful and applicable since it's not a point in time thing.

February 09, 2005
There are lots of little-known facts about your sign, mostly because you're so private that you don't tell most people all that much about yourself. One of those facts is that you're really quite romantic -- once your attention has truly been captured. Whoever you're spending the evening with is about to find out just how romantic you are -- to their utter delight. Keep it a secret until the very end!
Romance Extended family could require extra attention right now. You and your partner should try to present a united front if someone tries to pull you apart.
Technical You're the one with the creative solutions right now, and you're sure to attract the right kind of attention from the right kinds of people with them.

The Wawa life philosophy isn't always visible in the cosmos...

I haven't been keeping up with this whole horoscope thing as well as I had originally wanted to, and because the excite.com portal gadet I'm using doesn't allow for looking back at past dates I've been SOL as to do backlog for the days that I miss. But as a general observation, I've noticed that while the entire overall horoscope is not always as applicable as it could be, there are often idea, or single lines that seem all too appropriate for the day at hand. It only further substantiates arguments of how objectively can't you rate horoscopes. I'm now picking on lines that have really seemed to describe the day. It would seem that is somehow me forcing it to fit into what the horoscope says, and on a subconscious level I very well could be. But after tonight, I think I will discontinue posting a daily horoscope here and rating it, and will resort to just putting one up that I feel are particular useful to me for certain days. At any rate, I would very much like to hear other people opinions on horoscopes/astrology/ruins/Tea Leaf Readings things of that nature. It should also be noted then, that I left purposely left out palm and head reading. Somehow I feel those are on a totally different plane of discussion, and aren't really what I'm talking about here w/ horoscopes. But then again, a horoscope is just a general term, how that horoscope was derived could be very different. Like I said, I welcome conversation and comments about the whole thing in general.



February 08, 2005 Rating: 5
You've felt this coming for a while now. Certain family members have been smiling smugly, tossing knowing glances around and exchanging meaningful winks. Now, if anyone loves secrets, it's you -- but only when you've been let in on them. Beg, if you have to. There's definitely something going on, and you deserve to know about it. After all, who's better at keeping quiet than you are?
Romance You're an expert at work with the material at hand, instead of holding out for an ideal. Get what you need out of your sweetheart.
Technical The workplace needs a thorough make over, and you're exactly the right person to instigate the change. Start working on it and you'll recruit helpers without even trying.

February 07, 2005 Rating: 10
You never bet on anything -- or anyone -- unless you're sure it's a well-calculated risk. The same holds true for today, with one exception: the universe is feeling exceptionally generous, so any risk you take will have a safety net built into it. Does this mean you'll win the lottery? Well, it might. After all, someone has to. Just don't get crazy. If you're really meant to win, one ticket will do it. Besides, some things are even better than winning the lottery. Not many, but some ...
Romance Ask for -- rather than demand -- assistance from your sweetheart. You'll catch more flies with honey, and your honey is the very sweetest.
Technical Subterranean tensions might burst out and create serious in-fighting among your teammates. You won't be able to stall or stifle it, but you can ignore it safely for the time being.

My thoughts on movies that don't suck...

I've been part of this BlockBuster Movie pass deal for few months now. Have the 3 out plan, just like I did with net flix. So, needless to say I've watched quite a few movies. People know that I watch quite a few movies, so I thought, on the sets of movies that I rent, I ought to just give a quick tid bit about my feelings on the movies that I end up watching. It should also be noted that I don't watch a lot of the movies that I rent. I often just end up making a copy of it, and add to the binder to either, just have, or to watch at a later date.

Garden State - Shaun of the Dead - The Grudge

So, the run down.

Garden State was one of the better movies I've seen in a long time. It wasn't an action packed, nor a drama/epic. It was just a really good movie about a 20 something coming to terms with is life. When I first saw Napoleon Dynamite I really didn't like it, I felt it was 2 hours of my life that I could never get back. But Garden State, just really struck a chord with me, and I feel was a wonderful film thay I think a lot of 20 something could or can relate to. And it was somehow able to make me appricate ND a lot more, to the point, where I may rent it again, and watch it with this new mindset. The acting was great and the characters are well developed. Highly recommended.

Shaun of the Dead, at first would imply that it is a parody of the zombie flick dawn of the dead. And that is about where the likeness stops. Shaun of the Dead is a refreshing look a the zombie flick genre, and while it is of course more of a comedy, it was very well put together to cross the 2 genres together. Of course, some people are just totally put off by the whole zombie genre to begin with, but if you don't mind zombies, and just want a funny movie where Ben Stiller isn't falling into one ridiculous situation into another, then Shaun of the Dead might be the movie to pull ya out of your dull daily routine.

Which leaves The Grudge, I was hoping for same effect of The Ring, or the Texas Chainsaw massacre. But, I was thoroughly let down. No doubt there are some startling scenes. Many people liked this movie, and thought I was "refreshing." However, I just plain and simple didn't enjoy this movie.

Even the asymetricalness of Picaso's works has a sense of balance and evenness

As much as I really really love this new apartment, one thing has become painfully apparent. Carpeting was used to cover the unevenness of the floor below. My entertainment center is at least an inch and half off.. And it doesn't seem to matter how I posistion it, it continues to hit uneven spots in the floor. There is also the torche style lamp, that even though has a very small base, also seems to lean no matter which way I put it. And for the most part, I think it would be fairly easy to remedy the problem with some cardboard, however, that would look Oh so nice some hunks of cardboard raising up my entertainment unit. But, alas, I love this place, and I WILL make it work :-P

So, I went to blockbuster in Sinking Spring today to cancel my monthly movie pass, so that I can sign up on the 5th Street Highway location. Apparently though my monthly renew date is on the 2nd not the 5th like I had thought, so now I'm stuck driving into Sinking Spring until March 2nd. So... blah to that, but, I will have to make the best of it. hehe... It looks like my piracy will continue for a bit longer than I had thought :)

Finally meet my upstairs neighbor, she seems nice enough, though she is so quite, and I'm worried with my insomniac ways might be a bit disturbing. But... I made sure that she knew if I'm too loud that I don't mind being told to shut up.

So... I'm sitting here with writers block (much as a Sir. David Shrader) I knew there was a lot I wanted to write about. But... Suddenly. I have no train of thought as to what I had wanted to talk about. Oh well.. I'm sure it will come to me.

So... Moving along, DFAI, is by far the best movie... ever made. Though.... I probably shouldn't watch it... it only forces my mind to wonder. But... then again... is it really that bad if my mind wonders as long as it takes me to a better place.

"I saw no chemistry...i saw physics... i saw a negative and a positive."

"I don't want to be 60 years old some day and seemingly happily
married to a man that I know is my 2nd choice."

"Love David. Love, do you love her? I mean does the thought of her,
the smell of her, the touch of her make you quiver? When she's away
from you... do you think about her, wish she were in your arms making
love to you? When you see her after not seeing her for a whole day,
does she make everything okay?"

"Just remember one thing. Anything less than mad... Passionate...
extrodinary love is a waste of time. There are too many mediocre
things in life to deal with, and love shouldn't be one of them."

of course though, just about every line from the entire script is quoteable. But, those are the ones I've picked for now.

So, in talking with Bethany, she reminded me of what I wanted to talk about while I was having writers block. I was in wal-mart the other day (which BTW, their deli doesn't understand what chipped lunch meat means) and I saw Norah Jones 1st album for 9.99. Now, I've owned this album since it came out. However, it has been stuck in my 6 disc CD changer, in which I have no way to get my CD's out unless I were to disassemble it and take the CD's out(as I had to sell the head unit with my Celica), but, the way it's constructed, it would actually be a bit more complicated than it might at first seem. At any rate, I had been needing the healing power of norah as of late, and I stood there for a good 10 minutes comtiplating on whether I should buy a 2nd copy of the album or not. I decided not to, though, I very soon may change my mind.

And yes, 2/14 is 10 days away... ::sigh::




Horoscopes for the past 2 days:


February 03, 2005 Rating: 10
Romance, extravagance and nothing but the best, especially when it comes to flirting with a certain someone like they've never been flirted with before. That's your mission, and no one needs to ask if you'll accept it. You've been carrying on this behind-the-scenes infatuation for far too long. It's time to take this show on the road.
Romance Give in to an impulse and share the sweet results generously. Treat your honey to a special surprise.
Technical A business partnership or proposal may look too good to be true. That's because it probably is. Don't neglect to read the fine print, or your decisions could have real financial ramifications.

February 04, 2005 Rating: 13
At the moment, you just won't be able to stand the idea of not getting what you want -- especially when it comes to the objects of your attention. Whether they happen to be a person whose eye you've been trying to catch, or an item you've been lusting after, you'll do what you can to have it. And you'll have plenty of help to get it. Call in some of those overdue favors. Don't be shy.
Romance Your instincts could be at odds with your romantic philosophy. Throw one or the other to the side and move forward with a clearer mind.
Technical Let a coworker or teammate take the lead on a new assignment -- you deserve the opportunity to decompress. Sit back and take it easy for a while

Using the smoke alarm as a food timer...

So, while I pretty much love everything about my new appartment. There is going to be one major adjustment that i need to make.... Electric Cooking. I've been used gas for pretty much my entire life. Electic I must admit is a totally different beast. Yesterday, I wanted to make grilled ham and cheese sandwich, a fairly small fair when I did it on a gas range. Well, 4 peices of carbonized bread later, I was finally able to get a fairly decent grill ham and cheese sandwhich made. My joy of cooking will have to wait for now until I relearn the basics on an electric range and stove.

Along those lines though, for the most part, everything in the kitchen is put away as i want it, there is soo much more curboard space at this place that I didn't know where to put anything, right now, it's probably not being utilized to it's fullest extent, so i may or may not change it before i become too acustom to it.

Snooping around in the "slop" room I found the 2 bottom curled hooks for mazagines for my mail box, so i put those on, along w/ the letter for CUTSUMBIS it's really starting to feel like a home here.

I'm also now typing this on my own comcast internet connection, they've upgrade the speed for free to 4 mbit from 3 mbit, and while i did some speed tests to confrim the speed upgrade there isn't a more "snapy" feelings to the internet experience. The tech also said, that they may be rolling out 7 mbit connections sometime in the near future. Which is fine and great, but that is all downstream, I would perfer to have a bit more upstream and lease restrictive use of the connection, i would like to (legally) host my own server. But, all in good time. I'm just glad i was able to work a bit of a deal for 3 more months (perhaps I'll have another post about comcast offers).

As for the living room, I now have a late 80's entertaiment center sitting in my living room, looking quite fugly actually. But I'm very grateful to have recevied it for free. I'm not sure how painting it is going to turn out... the black might work out well, but the gold trim also must go. There is a large glass door though in which i would like to do something. I would like to put some sort of celtic design on it, by either etching using my dremel (which i've been wanting to use for something like this for a very long time) or by frosting which would require the use of some very strong chemicals. Along the the same lines of design and decor, I have a great many other ideas of what i would like to do in the other rooms. For the mainroom(2nd living room) I want to do some sort of moraccan/morrish/indian/middle east/persian theme. There is a wide entrance from the one living room to the other... and to start of the transisition into the arbian theme, i want to mask off the entrace with an arabic style arch such as this or this. Of course i've never done any drugs, nor do i plan to, i also think it would be neat to have a hookah, and of course I would like some interesting accent lighting in the form of arab lanterns. There is a lot i would like to do, but we shall see, maybe i'll run into some extra money, and I can let my design desires to run away with themselves.

So, I'm very grateful to the Eden family for donating their old couch and queen size bed to my cause. But, i'm not sure how much i'm going to sleep in it. Last night i slept on my old twin mattress. The queen bed is very nice, and just as comfortable as my twin, if not a bit more comfortable. But it's quite lonely sleeping on such a big bed by myself. And with having his and hers closets in the bedroom, it just reminds me of how much I wanted to share this with a special person. But, as someone very important to me just told me... it does get easier with time. So, I hope miss snoopy that you are correct.

So... people are starting to ask me what I'm doing for the superbowl... and since my team decided to screw the pooch, I'm not sure if i even really care what i'm doing for the game. I'm planning on spending the next few weeks in ohio, visiting my mom, and her side of the family, and then off to visit the Greek side of my family for a while. But before that can happen, I need to get all of my taxes filed and the such, what a nightmare that is going to be.

So, probably about a week or so ago, I started to really look at my horoscope on my excite portal home page. Horoscopes, astrology, ruins, things of that nature I find increabilty interesting. I can honestly say, I would never like buy a lottery ticket based on one, or, let it be a predictor for my life. But, it's been very interesting to how applicable they've been to my day to day life. Now of course that brings up the obvious questions and arguments on how I'm able to judge the applicability of the daily horoscopes, but... i'm trying to be as objective as possible. All too often i think people see in them what they want, make a very tinny connections into very large ones. So, i'm going to try to be as honest as possible when it comes to these gradings. I'll be grading them on a 1 to 15 point scale with 1 being the least applicable for the day, and 15 being the most applicable for the day. There are 3 parts to the horoscopes that i look at, general, romance, technical. My gradings will be based on the general part of the horoscope. So here is the backlog since i've been keeping track.

And of course there are all for Scorpio.


January 24, 2005 Rating: 15
The stars are about to illuminate the tug-of-war you've been feeling lately about work and career vs. personal issues. It may be time to make a decision, but not to worry.
You're ready, you're willing and you have what it takes to get the job done. Don't worry about stepping on anyone's toes, either. If you're offered a position because they
dropped the ball, that's not your problem.
Romance If work becomes a problem, turn to a more social side of life to get some satisfaction. Your lover will support you regardless of your choices.
Technical Don't give up yet: All your hard work is about to pay off. The obstacles have been daunting, but you're almost there. Keep at it and the dividends will be yours to enjoy

January 25, 2005 Rating: 10
You're not ordinarily fond of all this attention. In fact, you tend to avoid anything that even remotely resembles the spotlight. At the moment, that may be tough to do.
Oh, relax. You'll get used to it. You might even like it. And if you hadn't done something praiseworthy, no one would be trying to praise you, right? You can go back to
hibernating later tonight -- which, no doubt, you'll be able to do with one of your new admirers. See? There's a high side to this.
Romance If a small difference looks like it's about to become a major power struggle, a sweet surrender could work nicely in your favor. Be sweet and agreeable to get your way.
Technical Your boss is on edge today, and so are you. Try to keep your head down and don't step on any toes. Flamboyance will not be rewarded.

January 26, 2005 Rating: 10
It's time for you to admit something: Your values have changed. What used to be important no longer matters. That means it's time to make some corresponding outward changes
-- some big ones. Fortunately, you're more than ready, even if it means saying good-bye to people, things or ways of life that were once primary to you. Don't worry about
it. You'll get through this the same way you get through everything. Bravely.
Romance You love having a secret -- and you love keeping this one from your partner. A little mystery goes a long way, though, so don't go over the top.
Technical Finally, you've laid the foundation. Now it's time to cash in on your efforts. There's plenty of business to go around, but after all the hard work you've done, why share?

January 27, 2005 Rating: 12
Okay, you're done. It's time to finally let go of all those intense feelings you've been dealing with. If you have some free time, you can actually spend it as you like
having some fun. Bet you're feeling better already, just thinking about how wonderful it will be to let go and stop worrying. Of course, if you really want to feel better,
you'll plan some quality time alone with a dear one. Really alone. Like, at your place alone.
Romance Combine old friends with your current relationship and pat yourself on the back when it all works out for the best.
Technical Your attention may wander during a less-than-scintillating presentation, but don't let it travel too far afield. You may need to know some of those boring details later.

January 30, 2005 Rating: 1
Ready to help unveil the surprise you've known was coming? Even though no one has officially told you about it yet? Bet you are -- and bet you'll be quite smug and happy
about it, too. Just don't do any of the talking. Let the actual purveyor of the message deliver the happy news. It's their news, so it's only fair. Besides, why would you
take away the chance for congratulatory hugs? You wouldn't.
Romance Your usually decisive mind decides to delay making a big choice. Don't let your partner sway your tactics, unless they've got a really terrific reason for the suggestion.
Technical There's no shame in self-promotion. Your talents are vast but unheralded. Make sure your boss is aware of exactly what you have to offer.

January 31, 2005 Rating: 5
There's something going on behind the scenes, and you've been privy to it for some time now. This doesn't mean you have a free license to let anyone know about it --
especially anyone you're sure isn't already involved. It may be tough to keep quiet, but you need to do it, and you'll be proud of yourself if you do. Besides, it's an
honor to be told a secret. Don't make the teller feel foolish.
Romance Bounce several ideas around with your lover to come to a solid decision. Reward your efforts with a private celebration.
Technical Everyone has something of value to contribute. Don't let the loudest voices drown out good ideas. Leadership is about letting every player have a turn.

February 01, 2005 Rating: 11
Everything you feel will quite literally be written all over your face now. Everything. So if you're angry, don't bother trying to hide it. If you do, you'll only end up
snapping at everyone you come into contact with. Instead of all that, why not just tell the person who's pushed your buttons exactly how you feel about what they've done?
You don't have to be mean about it. In fact, the calmer you are, the more firmly you'll make your point.
Romance Don't even try to hold yourself back. Unleash the full power of your intense emotions to get exactly what you want from your lover.
Technical You may be experiencing some dissatisfaction in your current job situation, but don't despair. This may be exactly the motivation you've been looking for.

February 02, 2005 Rating: 15+
Better fasten you seatbelt and put your table tray in the upright position -- because there's a bit of a bumpy ride ahead. For the moment, you can expect one of several
rather unusual scenarios to unfold: a) a new and unusual addition to your family; b) a career opportunity in an entirely different field; c) the chance to move to a place
you've always wanted to live or d) all of the above. See? Buckle up, now.
Romance Your vision for the future is more achievable than you think. Work together to make your dreams come true.
Technical You have more options than you realize. Don't sell yourself short -- one opportunity often leads to another. All you have to do is keep your eyes open.