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Atari, Taco Bell

Thought I was dead? I feel the same way sometimes.

I haven’t been writing for a few reasons, mostly apathy. I’ve also been trying to get the next 15 chapters of Summer Rain done before the end of the month, and I work on them during lunch. It doesn’t look like I’ll make it, but I have a lot done now.

Marie is visiting on Friday, for a week. It’s going to be cool and I can’t wait to see her again. All’s well there except for the fact that she doesn’t live in Seattle yet.

I’m very tired. I bought an Atari 2600. I want to go to Taco Bell, except I know it will make me sick. My throat’s a little sore, but I’m taking a bunch of vitamins and gargling salt water at night to keep from getting sicker. I need to clean my apartment, but maybe I won’t because I don’t think there’s anything I could do to scare Marie. I haven’t drank any soda all day.

That’s it for now. Maybe I’ll write more when I’m feeling creative.

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Tracking down a VCS

Still alive. On an agressive schedule with the edits to Summer Rain – I am trying to wrap up the 15 chapters that make up book 2 before Marie shows up on 10/2. It’s a mess, but it’s slowly falling in place – I’ve written about 60,000 words – the first fifteen chapters were like 84,000 words. So I might make it, especially if I don’t sleep this weekend.

I’m listening to Shadowfax – their fourth album, The Dreams of Children. I just bought it tonight, and I think that completes my collection. It’s a shame that Chuck Greenberg, the group’s nucleus, passed away a couple years ago. I really like their stuff, and if there’s one band I listen to the most while writing this book, it’s them. (Chick Corea is second; Pat Metheny might be in third.) Their compilation What Goes Around is pretty much the soundtrack to Summer Rain, partially because it’s something I listened to back in 1992, and every song is imprinted heavily with those memories.

Not a lot is going on otherwise. I’m counting down the days until Marie shows up again (15) but having this self-imposed deadline to beat is really making the time fly. I also have a lot going down at work, so it’s been busy all around, with nothing interesting to talk about. I guess I have been spending some time on www.ebay.com, trying to track down Atari 2600 crap. I just bought a VCS and a bunch of games and I can’t wait until they get here. It was pretty cheap, and I just want to have an old-school, self-contained unit to play with. Games are cheap – usually about a buck each. The video quality is bad, but they don’t make games like they used to – it’s not just a rehash of mortal kombat or mario, there are some real playable titles out there. Plus, with a fifth of vodka and a friend, it can be a really hilarious evening. So if you have a bunch of Atari shit in your closet, let me know and maybe I can give you a few bucks for some of it.

Like I said, nothing else. I better keep writing before Conan. Later.

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Godzilla parody

I ate breakfast today. It was a pretty weird experience, even though it was just cereal and grapefruit juice. And for lunch, it’s salad and a bunch of fresh fruit. Maybe if I keep this up, I might shed a couple of pounds. I’m trying to give up red meat, fast food, and most processed sugar. (famous last words).

I am writing a Godzilla parody. I’m thinking of writing a bunch of skit ideas and sending them blind to Conan O’Brien. I’m reading a book about “black” planes and browsing another book about military hardware. (Marie left both here for me – I told you she was the perfect woman for me.) I haven’t gotten back into Summer Rain yet, but maybe I will soon. And figuring out what I should and shouldn’t eat is taking up a lot of my time, but I guess that will cool off after I get used to it. Oh, and I’m messing with the C-64 a lot, but mostly just reading about it – it’s still in the closet, but maybe I’ll drag it out soon.

Nothing else. I am obsessed with Coke Slurpees. I have two obsessions in my life, and that’s one of them. It’s probably temporary – the other’s more permanent, and doesn’t contain caffiene (except when she’s drinking coffee, I guess.) I need to finish my lunch now.

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visit

What a weekend. It’s hard for me to talk about things, not because they went bad, but because there’s a lot to cover and no matter how much I typed, I wouldn’t do the weekend justice. I also don’t want to seem all sappy and stereotypical about it.

Marie visited. She was even better than I expected. We are in love. I now have an incredible girlfriend. And the only problem is that for now, she lives in New York (but that will soon change). I really think she’s the one, and I’m not worried about the distance. I’ve never met a person who matched me this much, and I love everything about her – waiting a few months for her to relocate won’t be a problem. So that’s the synopsis.

We didn’t do a lot this weekend – at least in terms of the touristy, Labor day weekend stuff you’re “supposed” to do. We spent a lot of time in the apartment, and went to a few places around Seattle, mostly to eat and do some very minor sightseeing. It was still very cool though, spending time with her in person, just watching TV or whatever.

A couple of stupid bad things: I hit someone in the VW. It didn’t do anything to their car, but it bent up my bumper and has me paranoid that my front suspension is going to fall apart or something. The next day, my gas pedal broke while we were in Snoqualmie. I managed to Macgyver it with a piece of shoelace, but it was still a fucked up little adventure. Luckily, these events were minor enough and didn’t offset the otherwise cool time we had together.

I’m trying to get my diet back in order. I just went shopping and bought mostly fresh fruits and vegetables and stuff. I’m trying to quit red meat, fast food, and high-fat items, eat breakfast every day, and stop drinking anything but water and the occasional apple juice at work. The lack of sugar from all of the 7-Up I drink really took a toll on me today – I almost passed out during a meeting I was so tired. But I’m sure it will all balance out eventually.

Speaking of food, I need to finish dinner – I got a late start today. More later.

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Chinese food, Gary Moore

Eating Chinese food, listening to Gary Moore, and taking a break from laundry and other miscellaneous cleaning. It’s a beautiful evening out, but I can’t really feel the cool breeze from inside my apartment. My stereo just freaked out – it makes this weird popping noise about once a week and then there’s no volume until you power-cycle it, then all’s fine. This time it popped and jumped to max volume, which freaked the shit out of me. Looks like it’s about time to pick up a new receiver. I don’t want to retire this one, because I love it – but it’s been 9 years, and I guess that’s a lot to expect out of a piece of electronics these days.

Marie will be here tomorrow. I have to go to work, but I’ll be on this boat trip all day, so it’s pretty much like Friday for me today. I guess this is the last time I will write in here before the big meeting, and I feel like saying something profound, but all I can think of is what I need to get done before tomorrow. I’m not nervous about meeting her, but I’m very anxious. I don’t even think I need to do all of this cleaning, because I’m sure she won’t really care about the state of my kitchen linoleum or whatever. I think I’m pretty safe with this one. But it feels weird, like I’m on the eve of something big, like when I was sitting in my mom’s kitchen in 1995 with a U-Haul of my shit in the driveway, knowing I’d be rambling across the country in a few hours. It’s an odd sensation. But not bad.

This food sucks. I got over my cold, for the most part, but I think the overdose of vitamin C has turned my tongue into mooncraters or something. I guess that’ll heal up fast enough. I’ve got a lot to do, so I better get to it. Don’t expect any updates until after the holiday weekend. Until then…