Saturday, June 28, 2008

Cat Burglar



This is a photo of the culprit who broke into my apartment. I arrived from my new apartment to find this guy sitting on the couch, looking serene. He was a very friendly kitty and I figured he was somehow attached to my roommate. I texted my roommate and while waiting for a response I took a shower.

It turned out that my roommate didn't know the cat. In fact, he wasn't exactly sure how it got into the place. I managed to take a decent picture of it with my computer and then I picked up the cat to leave it outside. One of my neighbors told me that the cat had been around a couple of times before. Maybe he had been casing out the place. I managed to carry him just a few feet when he decided that a human sedan wasn't his style and he jumped out. I left him, figuring he was a cat and could figure out how to get home.

We had breakfast and walked back to the old apartment. After we got into the building we heard a jingling noise, and saw the cat coming down the stairs. This time we managed to get a hold of the owner and subsequently dropped the cat off at his home.

I kind of liked playing kitty delivery service. I like animals, and this guy was a real adventurer. He had decided to sneak into my apartment to see the great unknowns contained therein. He was nice and soft. I kind of wish I was a cat and could spend my days wandering the neighborhood exploring things.

Friday, June 27, 2008

On the Move

I have been moving my things into my new apartment all evening. Yes, we found a place. I'm too dog tired to write much about it here tonight. I'm going to relax by playing my Wii. Later.

Thursday, June 26, 2008

Overnightscape

It has been another exhausting day. I signed a lease for an apartment so I have been drinking some champagne to celebrate. I'll talk more about it later.

I wanted to tell you about a podcast I have been listening to since December. I am on a constant quest to find good podcasts to listen to and I think The Overnightscape is one of the best. It originally attracted me because of its long episodes. I was working 12 hour shifts and I could use all the distractions I could handle. I was drawn in by the variety of topics being discussed. The podcast is hosted by Frank Edward Nora and is a monologue most of the time, although he does occasionally have guests on. I enjoyed hearing him broadcast from the streets of New York City (literally, you can hear the cars honking and the people talking). He describes what he sees, his past memories and sometimes even his dreams. Product reviews are a frequent addition to the show. You see life through his eyes, and although it is colored by his own experiences and biases it only serves to make the view much more unique.

The Overnightscape Underground consists of Frank's various adventures, from distant malls to tunnels and street fairs. It perfectly encompasses the feeling of a journey because he records all of the ambient noise you might encounter had you taken the journey itself. Despite the fact that this is audio and not visual Frank summons a more than adequate description of his surroundings to enable you to see where he is in your mind's eye.

This podcast is a great piece of contemporary culture that should not be missed. It has inspired me to experiment with other media to express myself. Hopefully when my life has calmed down some more I'll be able to do more. In the mean time, check out The Overnightscape here.

Wednesday, June 25, 2008

Did You Fill Out Your Cortisol Diary?

Just a short entry for now, to keep with my promise. I am tired but I wanted to talk a little about the study I just participated in. It was about couples.

Ok, that's all I'm putting for now. Although no time will pass for you, between this line and the next I'll have gone to bed, woken up, and began typing again.

I have returned. The study took about three hours to complete. They measured us using electrodes and heart rate. They also took our cortisol levels several times throughout the night. The scary thing about cortisol is that too much of it can kill cells in the hippocampus, which regulates the amount of cortisol in the first place. In that way, even more cortisol can be produced, exacerbating the whole predicament.

I'm interesting in knowing how everything turned out. There hasn't been much studying with gay couples and I think more should be done. They will be checking back with us in a year to see if we are still together. I will be interested to see where our relationship is at that stage as well.

Tuesday, June 24, 2008

Disappearing Cars

I was on my way to work this morning when I noticed a man walking along the side of the road. This being the freeway I was sort of confused. About 100 feet in front of this man a street-sweeper busily worked. I had no idea how he would get around that and dodge the stream of cars flying by him at the same time.

It did remind of several dreams I've had in the past. They begin with me driving in a normal fashion, but as time goes by more and more of the car disappears until there is nothing left. I'm running on the road, pretending to be a car. It's a strange feeling because it is something I've never experienced in real life. I have never walked down the freeway.

I have heard that being on a motorcycle gives you a much different perspective on the road because you are not encased in metal; you are free to look in many different directions. That freedom gives a more tangible and distinctive feel of the road and everything you pass by. I like that concept. I would like to be able to engage in mundane activities in new ways. Walk down a road instead of drive. Take all the furniture from the living room and set it up in a field. Blindfold myself for a day. I think the world is so complex that even the things we think we know all about have extra dimensions we haven't yet discovered. I noticed this the other day when I walked down the sidewalk on the opposite side of my apartment. Although I had seen the view dozens of times, the slight difference in being on the West side of the street instead of the East made everything look different.

I think that man walking along the freeway must have been experiencing a completely different scene than myself. He would have seen the heat wafting up from the asphalt, felt the swirl of air as cars went by and seen the patterns of cars as some would were allowed through the stoplight and others not.

I want to find something new like that in something old. I'm going to start looking soon.

Monday, June 23, 2008

Dinosaur Cheerleaders

This evening has seen the end of yet another day of searching for apartments. Joey and I made a goal of moving out by the end of June and so we have been tirelessly searching for a place. We have walked through around ten apartments and have looked at online and called infinitely more. At this point all of the ads are starting to look the same.

So far, no luck. We did find a place that we really liked, with lots of room and a cool fireplace, but so did several other people. We weren't picked, and I kind of feel like I've just been rejected. For several days after we got the news we weren't getting the place I felt like I should go see the apartment and yell at it, or ask it to give us a second chance. And then I came to the conclusion that the best revenge is living well. When I run into the apartment at the grocery store, I will look so confident that it will feel bad.

Finding a good apartment (or anywhere to live, for that matter) is a lot like getting into a relationship. You have to make sure that you will enjoy being in the apartment for the long term, not just now. You can't be dazzled by superficial good looks; you must look deeper. There is another apartment we have in mind and we have turned in applications. But, we are looking at a few more too. It's good to play the field.

The other half of moving in is moving out. I have begun the seemingly herculean task of sorting through and boxing everything. I am glad that I don't have very many things to pack away, but I do have plenty of big objects. I had to go through my collection of origami I've folded over the past few years and decide which ones to keep and which ones to recycle. It was like Schindler's list...without the Nazis. Every day my apartment looks more and more bare. All of my things, which gave the place a certain feel and personality are going away. I like to think that I will leave a lasting legacy on this apartment though. I did paint. Hopefully the next person who moves in will leave their fingerprints too.

Please wish me luck. We hope to apply for a few more places while we wait to hear about another place we've applied for. With a little bit of unicorn blood, we can make it happen...

Sunday, June 22, 2008

Do I look like a homeless person?

I was helping my friend take down a sign for the governor when I noticed it was broken. The metal part holding the sign itself up was coming apart (it was hinged) so we decided to take it to get fixed. For some reason we decided to stretch it out as far as we could and then carry it through a neighborhood, confusing the people and kids playing. We walked into a lesbian bar (which was a total dive) and my friend got distracted by a girl whose left arm was much bigger than her right. He attempted to flirt with her, but I knew it was useless because she was a lesbian.

While I waited in the bar (which was very small and at the end of a long, narrow hallway) I tried not to make eye contact with anyone. Finally, a woman wearing a dumpy sun dress with a floral print walked up to me. She at first tried to give me money, but then looked confused and stopped. I thought she may have mistaken me for the bartender. Only a few seconds later did she hand money to me, eleven dollars. I refused several times, but she insisted that I "needed" it. She turned to someone and said to them how much I looked like a homeless person. I thought, "Do I?" and looked at my tattered clothes. I was embarrassed to realize that I did. I thought then that I should write a blog post about the whole thing.

And then I woke up. It was a strange and lucid dream. It merited a blog post, in my opinion, and it helped me to kick of my latest endeavor. In order to pump some life into my dying blog I have decided to write an entry every day. I know that doesn't sound like a major accomplishment, but I think it will force me to think of things to write about. Or, I'll keep having wacky dreams. Either way is good for me.

I may start looking indigent soon. I'm down to one good pair of jeans, which I wear entirely too often. My other pair began to get holes in unholy places and I retired them. I wouldn't wait so long to get new pants, but I don't really like shopping for clothes. I can handle shopping for shirts (extra small) but I appear to be the last guy with a size 28 waist. I can fit into 30's, but only when the waist size gods permit it. Those bastards have had it out for me ever since I crucified the man capri messiah they sent to Earth. Assholes.

I haven't had time to look either, what with looking for a new place to call home (or Daphne, whichever suits the space). What I really need to be able to do is be on speaking terms with someone who can do alterations, or grow my own pants. I have a garden...

Goodbye normal pants, though I never knew you at all...

Despite my exhaustive perusal of google, I could find nothing about growing pants. I did find a website about people who like girls who wet their pants (or I saw the link, I didn't click it) but that was the best I could do.

Thursday, June 12, 2008

Soda pop review: Dublin Dr. Pepper



This is the first of my video posts. It's pretty shabby but I'll get better with time. 


Wednesday, June 4, 2008

Soda pop review: Fizzy Lizzy Yakima Valley Grape


Where I got it:
 I found this soda at Liberty Heights, which is a little market specializing in local and organic food. It looks to be in an old garage because the entrance is gigantic (and therefore is probably a garage door). This place is great; in addition to the soda I bought some heirloom tomatoes, onions, zucchini, and pepper to make a veggie sandwich. It was delectable. I would suggest visiting this place if you haven't already. 

History: Fizzy Lizzy is actually the name for several drinks produced by the company. Inspired to mix juice and seltzer water, inventor Lizzy Morrill began selling the drink eight years ago. It is touted as being healthier than soda, with no extra sugar or corn syrup added. The drink actually has 40 calories less than the drink I reviewed last week, as well as 11 grams of sugar less. Curiously, it has slightly more sugar than the Dublin Dr. Pepper. 

Appearance: The label is clear plastic with a design on it. On the front there is a girl (Lizzy?) who looks maybe Turkish or slightly Middle Eastern to me. The lettering also conveys that idea. You could also describe it as looking Art Deco. On the neck of the bottle it says, "Gently shake my hips before placing bottle to your lips". Awesome. 

Taste: The flavor was unmistakably grape. I don't usually like grape sodas, but this one has a sharp and rich taste. The seltzer water instead of carbonation made the drink less fizzy, but still with enough zing to make it fun. It didn't feel as heavy as the other drinks. I didn't get a sugar buzz from this drink, so I also didn't get the corresponding crash. 

Verdict: This drink is definitely healthier than soda. It contained 51% juice, which is a step up from traditional soda. I don't know if Coca Cola would taste as good with seltzer water, but maybe they should give it a try. I would recommend this drink for someone who wants something healthy but still fizzy. The drink would be good to take for a picnic on a hot day.