Tusk-esque

While standing on the corner of 2nd and Stewart tonight, Nicole and I saw the weirdest thing, USC Marching Band marching south on 2nd in full uniform. I was like a flashback to a Fleetwood Mac video. Former University of Colorado Marching Band Member nicoel, remarked that she would have never been allowed to do that. Apparently it wouldn't have been becoming for their band or something. It was really cool to see something random and unexpected. I carry around my digital camera all the time hoping to document something special and I see something truly sureal and my camera is sitting at home.

Reunion

Warning: This post has nothing to with a hideously bad yet entertaining show on Fox.

I was rather nervous about attending my 10 Year High School Reunion last night. Initially it sounded like a grand idea but as it approached I found myself trying to convince myself that it was an ill-conceived idea. That I didn't need to go. That I was above all that. And when Misty (AKA Headstart), my best-friend and ride to the reunion, had a crazy day that delayed our departure I thought "hmmm, maybe we should see that as an omen and just scratch the whole thing." But luckily the $85 dollars I had already paid to attend (later called "the most overpriced cover to a lame club ever")compelled me to at least get some of my money's worth. It turned out to be a freaking awesome time. Sprizee you totally missed out on an excellent event.

On the way there Misty and I got into a retro mood by listening to Frank Black's Teenager of the Year, which I must have listened to about 600 times during my senior year and remains one of my Top 5 albums of all time. We arrived well after dinner which by all accounts was horrid. Immediately we ran into Zac and he was as crazy, fun, and intense as ever and I knew this was going to be a great night. Most of the people I hung out with a lot it high school, people like Kingston and Gabe, where not there but It was great to talk to all sorts of people. With the exception of once really creepy dude, it was particularly enlightening to talk to people that I knew I high school but wasn't particularly tight with. After staying past last call at the official reunion we retreated back to Nikki Gross's parents house (they were out of town! How fitting). Here are some pictures and anecdotes:


Travis, Anne, Sean Berg, and Misty
My old AP history nemesis Travis was a real delight. He has mellowed considerably of the years and is now a TV news reporter in Spokane. Sean Berg is still Sean Berg, which was reassuring in away. I did not hear him try to argue that Star Trek physics were plausible last night, which he did memorably do in physics class a decade ago. At one point, I heard someone say that "Who new that Sean Berg would be such a hottie!" Which frankly really freaked me out. I guess the lack of mullet can do wonders. Anne seems to being to doing great is now attending the UW's iSchool to get her Masters of Library and Information Science degree so she can be just like me! Or maybe its to be like her parents, I forget.


Karen and Misty
It was really awesome to see Karen. Misty and Karen reminisced about old times and Karen showed us a picture of her lovely daughter. I never knew Karen that well after Misty and Sprizee informed that I was not to talk to her anymore in Junior year, but she has turned out really great.


Amy
The last time I saw Amy was about 9 years ago and I was at her house in Tacoma on acid and my brother was making me cry by badgering me with a puppet Amy had made out of a Band-aid box. Amy remains one of the sweetest and nicest people I have ever met.


Misty and Zac
Zac was crazy kid in school with big dreams. And for the most part he is living exactly the life he wanted. And he's the manager at Shorty's, how cool is that! He was kind enough to retell the famous "Ruben Sandwich" story and the saga of his marriage, divorce, and forth-coming remarriage was inspiring stuff.


Rob, Morgan, and Misty
The five minutes Misty and I talked to Morgan was probably the highlight of the evening. Morgan was completely sloshed and was the same sincere honest asshole that he's always been. He extolled the virtues of being the boss and putting people to work and explained what a complete loser he thought our president was. Morgan Handley was in a word awesome.


Josh and Pooh at the after party
I've run into Josh at the Croc and at Shorty's several times over the years. He's always been fun to chat with and he seems to be really enjoying himself after breaking with his former band The Spits. Josh told me about one reunion possibility that would have been truly awesome if had managed to go down. Josh's friend Allen, who I knew slightly in high school, is now a producer for the Playboy Channel and is dating porn star Ashley Blue. Allen had intended to come to the reunion with Ashley and raise all holy hell. Josh also told me that he overheard that some one in our class had become a female-to-male transexually but he didn't catch the name.

Also Nikki would probably like me to note that the large number of stuffed Poohs in this picture were are going to be given aways to kids at Children's Hospital and that no one in here family has a creepy Pooh obsession.


Aaron and Misty
Aaron was our Homecoming King (although he was really more of the anti-Homecoming King). When I knew him sophomore year he was a scrawny geek that constantly recited scenes out of Ren and Stimpy and the movie UHF. He obviously got a lot cooler by senior year and has turned out to be a really great guy. He was heavily invloved in the Dean Campaign and now runs his own business designing and supporting websites for progressive causes.


Travis and Zac circa 4 AM
Not long after this picture was taken we finally went home. What an excellent evening! A big thanks to Nikki for being such a great host!

Go Pale Hose!

The Mariners sucked yet again this year and the ever-likeable Red Sox are out of it but that doesn't mean there's no reason to what this years baseball playoffs. Personally, I'm rooting for the White Sox and Astros to make it to the series under the reasoning that if all the other teams that have one it all win then eventually the Mariners will get their shot. And I would love see to the White Sox take it all.

Although I find it strange that the coverage Fox is mostly ignoring the legitimate Curse of the Black Sox that has kept the White Sox championship free since 1917. While they constantly hyped the comparatively bogus Curse for the Bambino and Curse of the Goat in recent years when the Red Sox and Cubs were involved.

Anyhow, I love this picture of White Sox outfielder Scott Podsednik getting punched in face by a Yankee fan. Yankees, grrrr.

Second Cutest Dog Ever?

This is my friend Nicole's new dog Duke. He is an adorable Dachshund. I have teased Nicole about Duke being a rat-dog but that's really just silliness. I haven't met Duke yet but he is freakishly cute and Nicole should be proud.

I have always wanted a Dachshund ever since I saw The Ugly Dachshund on the Disney Channel as a kid. Remember when the Disney Channel was all cartoons and old school Disney movies starring Fred MacMurray and Dean Jones? I was really into Mousterpiece Theater.

Oh and if you were wondering the cutest dog ever is still Jackson.

Grizzly Werner

I caught Grizzly Man this evening with Ben. What a film! Of course, I am total Werner Herzog's bitch so this is in no way an unbiased review. The footage of Timothy Treadwell and the bears is staggering and it would have been an interesting film even if Treadwell hadn't been eaten by a bear, but it Herzog makes it an even greater film through his deft editing and limited but pointed narration. Herzog goes so far as to directly criticize Treadwell's choices rather than using a talking head surrogate or other technique.

In a lot of ways Grizzly Man is the anti-penguin movie. Nature is not presented here as cute and harmonious but nasty, chaotic, and brutal. My few experiences in the raw wilderness of Alaska that I had growing up let feeling the same thing. Civilization protects us from nature and left alone in the wilderness we are fucked.

Fishstick Kitties!!

By request a pictoral Tribute to Cabin Boy


Chris Elliot as a Fancy Lad


"Would you like to buy a monkey?"


Andy Richter dances like a harem girl


Fishstick Kitties!!


Fishstick Kitties served with love.


The proper reaction to Fishstick Kitties

Harriet The Justice

Nice to see that the new Supreme Court Nominee Harriet Miers has a blog. Too bad its not really her's though. My favorite post is the one hoping to hook up with the also unmarried Justice Souter.

She seems a weird pick for the court. Not clearly conservative, not clearly qualified, clearly a Bush crony, but ultimately more palatable than some of the alternatives.

Wedded Bliss

I went to my cousin's wedding this weekend. It was a pretty swanky affair up in Everett. I realized I had never actually been to Everett before, making it the largest town in the state not to have been previously graced with my presence. It was good to see my mom's extended family. Mom was in top form loving every minute of the cermeony and spectacle. It was also great see Mom's old friend Lele who is now dating my stepfather's brother Mark. The bride and groom's first dance was to the Cure's "Love Song" as covered by 311, which I found rather apalling until my brother pointed out that they probably had never heard the Cure original. I also have to ask are all wedding DJ's douchebags? If I'm ever so lucky as to be married the iPod is doing the DJ duties.

The New Successlessness

I'm back from my self-imposed blogging sabbatical. I hope this break will prove to have reinvigorated me. I hope to post much more regularly than I did this summer and with higher quality posts as well.

More to come tomorrow. Really.