this weekend

Jenner with Jonathin and my brother. Cabin, grill, trees, water=greatness.

After that I'm off to Santa Cruz for a night and a day with the gf. Shops, wine, food, girl, sunshine,=perfect.

24hrs...

Punk with Emma and Dempsey last night at the parkside. Perks=free hot dogs. I think I had six...and then the farts.

Lunch with Becky. I think I'll get the pulled pork..or maybe a salad if I'm feeling good.

Bike ride, bike ride, bike ride.

Other songs that take me back...

My brother and I jumping on beds...

Insert The Gap Bands 'You Dropped a Bomb On Me, Baby' here.

Chris McKenna, my orange living room carpet, splinters, popscicle stick daggers, running away and for some reason packing our backpacks with rocks...



My brother and I, post sunday school...



Thats all I can think of right now.

Summer Camp 1990

Oh man, I was playing a shared itunes at work and this song came on. This takes me back. Its funny how a smell or a sound can, in a flash, take you back years and years.




Just like that I was back in the lodge at camp Ravencliff. I am maybe ten or eleven years old. It is the dance night and I am wearing some stoopid button up, short sleeve, greenish shirt. I am dancing with the only girl that existed, Nina Mohan. Its a slow dance (I know, slow dance to Metallica=What??!!??). But it's a slow dance and my hands are around her waist and hers are on my shoulders. This was actually more awkward than it sounds, for she was seventeen or eighteen. We're dancing right near the front of the lodge, near the trading post. We're just rocking back and forth and holding each other. I could've died right then and there. She was, at the time, all there was to life. I mean I was obsessed with this girl. My crush lasted a whopping six years. I would write her name in all my journals, over and over. I would write her all kinds of love letters and everything I did I did for her. It's funny thinking back, how childish it was. But this song, this song always stayed with me as the song I danced with Nina Mohan to....Metallica.

Night 8/28/2007

Things that happened after work.

My amazingly pretty gf picked up my door from the hardware store.

I measured the door and guess what....the frame doesn't fit. Becky's dad assures me that this is not a problem and that he foresaw this happening. phhheeeeww.

I was in a bit of a mood last night (I only found out that it wasn't a problem this morning) about my door not fitting so I decided to combine some of my favorite things and rode my bike to my gf's apartment. We went on a walk with her big, fat, arthritic dog and played in the park. I was happy...the happiest part of my day, hands down.

I met up with Dempsey to do a little night ride. Coming up Broadway I was shocked, stunned and a little thrown off by my inability to tell the difference between the girls hanging outside of bars having a cigarette in between beers and the ones hanging out waiting to sell themselves. Girls look whorish in that area. Oh, and then I was almost killed by some idiot vale threw his door open came with in mere inches of me. I was glad when I heard the guy who was picking up the car yell at the guy to watch it. My general opinion of this kind of thing is that as long as there is no harm than hopefully that person was spooked enough to think before they go flying car doors open again. Hopefully. I did flip him the old bird though.

When we got home we drank a bottle of cheap wine in my room and talked about our good fortune.

Becky got home, stumbled and fumbled with her keys, the lock on our front door, and her pride for about five minutes before being able to let herself into her own apartment. This was apparently, as I learned this morning, a post hanging out with my brother John at the Fly bar and being served FREE drinks by Orth, Becky. She was a bit trashed. It was fun...lots of hugging ensued and undertones of heart to hearts to come.

It was a good night.

University Falls

I have a book of Northern California natural swimming holes. So far I have only been to one (which I knew about even before I had the book). University falls. I believe it is called that because UC Berkely's dept. of forestry owns/operates/does something up there. I believe the real name though is Pilot falls. Anyway, due to the request of one of my favorite people, Britt, we planned a trip for this passed Sat.

Things got off to a bit of a rocky start as people kept joining and flaking and rejoining. We also ended up having to rent a car due to a lack of car ownership that is common in San Francisco. From the get go it was the makings of a good day in the sun.

We stopped at a market in Davis (I love this little town). Where Britt and I proceeded to relieve the fruit sampler tray of all its goodies. We then wandered the isles in awe of the wonderful assortment of healthy, low priced, beautifully placed foodies. I ended up opting for the cheapest thing I could find, as per usual (thanks John for the phrase), a crumby breakfast burrito. Which I later would decide had too much bacon. This is not a decision that I make easily, for me and meat go way back and for there to be too much of it....well, lets just say that that would have to be a lot, lot, lot of meat. Anyway, I met a nice woman who worked behind the deli counter and told her that l bet her Spanikopita wasn't as good as my Moms. She totally took the bait and offered to cut me a piece. I was visibly giddy and this made her smile. It was better than I thought. It had plenty of Feta, which l find is usually lacking, which nicely balanced out the bitterness of the spinach. The nice woman then offered Brittany a piece, which she declined, even though I was ordering/commanding her not to through my gritted teeth. I then scolded her in the same manner. We later made a deal that if anything is ever offered to you, take it, because the other one of us will probably eat it....

We arrived in George Town around 11:30, maybe. Stopped at the market there for a pee break. I looked for some sunglasses, I had recently broken my loc's in a store front make out battle. None were to be found. Well, we ended up hanging out by the porta potty for waaaayyy too long (everyone opted to do their business behind it instead of inside....it smelled that bad).

Finally arriving at our location....well, almost our location, the fire road that is the beginning of our hour long hike to our final destination. We parked our cars at the entrance and then, after an hour of sunscreen/lubrication/dirty joked headed on down to the falls. Like I said, its about an hour long hike and there are plenty of side trails to help you lose your way. Back when I first started coming to the falls it was like a scavenger hunt. There were arrows made of tree bark that people would leave laying on the ground. Ribbons tied to trees marking the right trail, cool little things like this to push you on. This time there was none of that...bummer.

Some entertaining things on the trail. Gayatri twisted her ankle in an attempt to taste the trail...only a mild twist and a dirty front torso. I don't think anyone else at it. Oh, and Right before the falls we came upon an abandoned branco. It looked like some no toothed, hill billy tried to drive the trechery and failed. The abbandoned branco was full of empty bud cans and had been stripped of its innards....hill billies.

Arrival at the falls. When ever I bring people here I always get a bit nervous that they are going to not just be dissapointed, but be pissed at me for making them take the 2.5hr drive and the 1hr hike to get to this place. But no, everyone in the group was super excited. I think the beauty of the canyon, the smooth granice falls dropping, the crystal clear pools, and the mountains surrounding is just breath taking and it always wins 'em over.

We all layed out on the warm granit for a while picking up the heat and beginning to perspire. It only took a few minutes before we were up and ready to slide. The first fall is small, maybe 8'. The pool is a bit shallow, 6' or so, so be sure to bend your legs as you enter. Oh man!!! That water is cooooo-old. The exit isn't so graceful either. As you have to scramble/belly crawl along the mossy granit. Standing on the rock above the second fall you can feel your blood pumping warmth back into your arms and legs and back. Your lungs almost hurt and your face is stiff. You heat up quickly in a canyon made of granite and we were soon ready for the second slide. This fall as well as the next are both probably about 12'-15' tall. The pools are much bigger as well. The water in these pools somehow doesn't feel so cold. Don't get me wrong, its frigid, but it is borderline tolerable. But the heat makes that cool water a welcome jolt. These three falls are the standard, everyone does these. There is, however, a fourth fall. This fall is at the end of the canyon. From the first fall it looks like the granite just drops away. This fall is the coolest. The water slided over about 9' of granite before it is shot over the lip and drops another 8' into a pool not much bigger than an average hot tub. This 'tub' then spilles over and down about 100 or so feet of rock/pool/falls. From the top it looks like you are going to get shot gunned right over the edge.

Sliding down you can't help but think, "oh $hi#!!". When you land in the pool, not only are you thanking God, but you are deffend by the water crashing down all around you. To get out of this one you must swim to the lip where the water is spilling over and use a rope to help you scale up the slippery rock. Apparently only a few weeks ago there was a kid who had to be evacuated by helocopter from falling down the rocks.

We did this a number of time, with rests on the warm rocks to regain our heat/strenght, before calling it a day and heading back into the fog that we all knew was waiting for us back in San Francisco.

Highlights of the day...
-getting to be buddies with Brett again.

-getting to share this amazing place.

-great talks with Brittany about love, relationships, friendship, our crew, life, farts, farting in bed, etc...

-becoming totally lost following Gayatri in Oakland.

-Sleeping a much needed sleep and dreaming much needed dreams.

StoopidFun

Slap your guilty pleasures into submission, sit on their chests and own them.

I have come to terms with something this summer. I like to have stoopid fun. I like to go to water slides, I like to tell stoopid jokes, I like the Pussy Cat Dolls, I like to dance like a retard, I like to show my emotions when I'm enjoying myself...unlike the stoopid hipster mentality and TCFS and all that junk. I like acting the fool. If you want to make me seem foolish just let me be and it will inevitably happen...and I will probably have a much better time than you.

Here is one of the stoopid fun things I love doing...no justification, except that its super fun.

Dim Sum and Den Sum

Today I had six dumplings and some sweet bbq pork. Sui Mai, Ha Gao and some other stuff I couldn't decifer. All for the lovely price of $3.70

PS..Dempsey is going to start working at the SF Brewery right down the street from my work...this is going to be so bad for business.

My boss is cuter than your mom

My boss just came into my office with a kinda flustered look asking "Where is the DVD player??? Have you seen a DVD player around here??" My other boss was finally like "Do you mean the stereo with the CD player on it??" Anyway, she is cute and calls CD players DVD players.

Boxes of snails and teenage mutant ninja turtles

I don't know about you, but I used to be into the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles. Stoked on them. I remeber one christmas when my brother and (does anyone else constantly accidently spell nad instead of the word and?? This also happens with the word rafting...I always end up telling people that I am going farting this weekend.) I got these new TMNT action figures, the kind with snap action in them. It was awesome. You could pull back on the arm and WHAAAPPO!!! it'd nock stuff to the floor.

My brother and I constantly have the same exact thought at the same exact time, even to this day. This particulare Christmas mornings was one of those times. Immediately we both bolted into the front yard/street/court/field to find as many snails as we could manage to carry home. Those poor, slimy bastards. We got maybe two or three dozen and piled them up in the walk way to our front door. We proceeded to empty the salt shaker on these guys and have our Teenage Mutant Ninja turtles beat the hell out of them with their whip-snap action toys. I forget wich ones we had. I think I was Donnatello and my brother was Raphael....or something. It was such a mess...a sad, evel, sick mess. That was a fun Christmas morning.

Oh, and then there was the one time I had the awesome idea to just collect snails. I don't know what I was thinking. Seriously...what was I thinking. Whatever it was I was determined to fill a shoe box full of snails and stash them in my closet for later use. Needless to say the box tipped and they got loose. I don't remember much of what happened, just what my mom has told me. Apperently I went running to her yelling that there were bugs all over my room. She said that she didn't believe me (I had a habit of saying that there were bugs all over my room...seriously). Anyway, reluctantly, she came and opened my door. She said that she was breathless. There were snails everywhere. Like, everywhere everywhere.

So...well, I guess I don't have a point....or maybe my point is that if you are going to collect things that can escape your evil little tallons make sure you put them in something with a lid...a tight lid.

RolliePollie

While most kids get into collecting cards of some sort, or even stamps for crying out loud (although I think this never really happens, same with coins). Anyway, my brother and I were into collecting things that are really hard to collect. Things that tries to scurry, wiggle, run, swim, hop, and slither away.

For a long as I can remember there were buckets and buckets of tadpoles right outside the door to the garage....like buckets of them. Once, on a hot summers day, the tadpoles had recently become frogs mind you, we went outside to check on them but instead found a backyard full of dry, crusty frogs corpses stuck to the pavement. Poor little guys were all hip, hip, hopping going "tssssss ouch, tssssss damn, tssssss holy crap this is hot, tssssssssssssssssssssss....." and then they didn't hop anymore.

Other things we would collect were rollie pollies. These, if you didn't already know, are those little creatures that are about a qtr. inch long, black little beetle looking things. The cool thing about these guys is that their defense mechanism is to roll up into a little ball and tumble away. This made catching these things awesome...for one things they were cute and funny as hell. I think that if I was an insect, any kind of insect, I would make best friends with these cute little guys...I don't even care if my own insect species made fun of me....thats how awesome these little guys are. It's always a score when you find one at the top of a driveway because then you get to chase it down and watch it bumble and tumble. Just watch out for the cracks...once he goes in there there is no getting them out.....unlesss....

Unless that is you are a collecter of one of my favorite tools/weapons/make you feel like a bad ass when you have one in your hand/back pocket/even when you have one with ice cream on it still because you know what you can do with it...Yes, you guessed it. I am talking about popscicle stick daggars. You know, you grind 'em on the side walk till its sharp as heck. And you know its sharp cause your buddy who you just jabbed with it as making a mean as hell' Ima get you back' face. Yes, only with the popscicle stick daggar can you pry out a rollie pollie from a drive way crack. Your probably thinking 'you could probably use a twig...or even like, a pen.' Well let me ask you this. How many people have you killed with a twig??? Do you feel extra tough with a twig stuffed in your belt??? I didn't think so.

This post is getting long...I will continue on in another...

I don't know why

I create relationships and loyalties with objects. I usually give a back story to these objects like one is an up and coming roll of toilet paper. Or the left sink in my office gets spilled on more but still smiles and those who wash up messily. I don't know why but I feel like I need to be loyal to these qualities in these objects because, I guess in a way, I look up to them. They remind me of how to be and how to treat others. They have drive to continue with their work regardless of others inconsideration. And I want to see them succeed. I am the only one on their team and that is how I like it. It's us against them, against all odds and damnit we will prevail, we will: the left sink, the middle stall, the loose roll of TP, the toothepaste that hates being squeezed in the middle, the left side of the bed, the glass in the back of the cabinet...and me.

WaterEars

There is just something about the sea. The Mediteranian sea especially. I need a summer with warm water. Open water and salty water. I don't know what it is but I feel very connected to water. It has been rivers mostly up until now. For the past six months though, there has been a deep craving for the open sea. Like a craving for food, well, that is a rather mild comparison. My body kind of goes into shock every now and again when it realizes that it isn't where it's supposed to be....

Mars Bars!!! Would you look at that....

Mark your calendar, you won't be around to see this the next time it happens.

Two moons on 27th August 2007

27, August 2007.....the day the Whole World is waiting for......

Planet Mars will be super bright in the night sky starting August.

It will look as large as the full moon to the naked eye. This will cultivate
on Aug. 27 when Mars comes within 34.65 Million miles of earth.

Be sure to watch the sky on Aug. 27 12:30 am. It will look like the
earth has 2 moons.

The next time Mars may come this close is in 2287.

It's about freaking time...

The Great Pumpkin will skip San Francisco this year.
City officials said Wednesday that there will be no official Halloween celebration anywhere in San Francisco in October -- not in the Castro neighborhood, the traditional home of the event, and not at a parking lot near AT&T Park, which had been considered as an alternate site.
"There will be no party," said Audrey Joseph, president of the city's Entertainment Commission.
Officials had been quietly working on plans to snuff out the Castro event, where a shooting last year injured nine people. The goal had been to instead hold a large outdoor concert near the ballpark. But the concert promoter has pulled out of the effort, and there is not enough time to find another, Joseph said.
But officials are still trying to prevent any festivities in the Castro. On Wednesday, Supervisor Bevan Dufty sent a letter to 110 owners of bars, restaurants and stores in the Castro, asking them to close shop on Halloween night to discourage partygoers.
The Halloween event was marred by violence last year after the shooting near the main stage on Market Street. Another person was injured as the crowd fled the area. Dufty and other city leaders had already been concerned about violence at the event, including the potential for attacks on members of the city's gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender population.
Halloween traditionally has been a major community event -- sometimes referred to as the "gay Christmas" -- but Dufty said that era has passed.
"It's not a holiday in the Castro. It's a night in which the neighborhood is overrun by people who come to gawk, not celebrate, and unfortunately it turns into gang night out in the Castro," he said.
To quell the Castro event, which draws several hundred thousand people, no roads will be closed, no barriers will be erected and no portable bathrooms will be set up, Dufty said. Police will be out in numbers akin to last Halloween, but they will be patrolling with "zero tolerance" for anyone breaking the law, he said.
Dufty has commitments from five businesses in the Castro to close on Halloween night, and he will try to persuade more to do so at a community meeting in the neighborhood next week.
One business that will close that night is Café Flore, one of the neighborhood's most well-known establishments.
"It's normally a big-money night, but it's just too crazy," said Doug Forrester, who manages the cafe, which is a few yards from where the shooting occurred last year.
The city is working with the Convention and Visitors Bureau to encourage people to support business that agree to close by patronizing the establishments on other nights. The city also wants to promote private events at museums and other locations. The city also plans to hire a public relations firm to put out the message within a 100-mile radius that there will be no large, public event in San Francisco.
City leaders had hoped to offer an alternative event to the Castro. The popular singer Pink had given a verbal commitment to play a show at the other venue, and there also were plans for a motocross event there, along with DJs and other bands.
But the promoter the city was working with on the event, Big Billy Inc., decided the Halloween party would be too much to handle, as it is putting on the Hardly Strictly Bluegrass festival in Golden Gate Park earlier that month.
Also, neighbors in Mission Bay, Potrero Hill and other areas around the ballpark had complained to the city that they had not been consulted on the plans for the concert near their homes.
Castro area residents have similarly complained about the lack of public involvement in Halloween planning. After last year's violence, Mayor Gavin Newsom and Dufty announced they would convene a task force to analyze the problems and organize a 2007 event.
That task force never met because it was unanimous among city department heads -- and residents who contacted those departments -- that there should be no Castro Halloween, thus eliminating the need for a task force, said Nathan Ballard, Newsom's spokesman.
Despite that opposition to a Castro Halloween, some residents in the area do think the party could go on with more planning.
"Other cities do this kind of thing all the time, and you don't hear about excessive violence, you don't hear about gay bashing," said Alix Rosenthal, who unsuccessfully challenged Dufty during his re-election campaign last year and made the Halloween event a central issue. She said she thinks that the city has not put enough resources into the event to make it successful.
And Café Flore's Forrester said he is curious to see how many people still show up in the Castro.
"It's going to be interesting, to say the least," he said.

I have the best GF ever.

I woke up with a tiny sore throat this morning. Bummer huh??? Kinda, but whatevs...I still have to go to work. About a half an hour into work the receptionist brings back a little package.

"Your James, right??"

Uh huh.

"Someone brought this in for you."

Immediately I knew who it was from. I mean, it was in a Bumble and Bumble bag for crying out loud.

I peek inside and find two Emergen-C packets, a shot of wheat grass, an apple, a bottle of Kombucha, and a nice little card.

My GF brought me a sick care package. I've said it before, I'll say it again....I have the best GirlFriend in the frickin world.

I got moted and you are made of iron

Old Chinese women are the toughest most confident people on the planet.

Have you ever seen an 80 year old woman carry seventeen grocery bags twenty blocks up 80% grade hills???

Or refuse to move to the side when walking down a crowded street and just shoulder (or occasionally poke) people out of their way???

Or elbow someone twice their size so that they can cut in line and pay for the food that they haven't even ordered yet???

Or mean mug...there is no meaner mug than that of an 80 year old Chinese woman watching you incorrectly order Dim Sum.

Dang, I kinda wish I could grow up to be an 80 year old Chinese woman.

Could you tell???

I don't know if you could tell, but my last couple of posts were pretty forced. I have been trying to get my average up.

Things I can't deny:

1. I really like to organize....and then re-organize.

2. I like clean spaces and am kinda anal that way.

3. I will always be earlier than you. I hate this one most of all. Punctuallity is a curse.

4. I love routine.

5. I fall for girls real quick.

6. I fall out even quicker.

7. I am mostly scared. I have bouts of confidence...but I am still mostly scared.

8. I am a procrastonator....see, I even lagged on learning how to spell the word procrastonator....or er....or I don't really care, I learn it soon enough.

9. I am a compulsive eater.

and ten. Two ton. Two tone. Transcontinental trucks, with trailers. Traveling from Tallahassee to Tyler, Texas. On Texaco's True Test, and twenty two terrible tires.

10. I am a sucker for all things romantic/sappy/sad/passionate/happy/tragic/tear jerky/you just name it and I'll cry to it.

is also cool

Climbing trees is also cool.

Riding bikes is also (with out a doubt) cool.

Having siblings is also cool.

Having hobbies is also cool.

Reading is also cool.

Going to bed early is also cool.

So is:

Waking up early is also cool.

Having a GF is also cool.

Wearing a helmet is also cool.

Being Are Dork is apperently also cool.

Loving your family is also cool.

Greek dancing is also cool.

Haritage is also cool.

This air is a gay

I am so sick of this damp weather. It's GD aweful. I think that at some point in my life I will need to live an a tropic or sub tropic environment. I also need to buy a boat and learn to eat directly from the sea. John, I know you are with me on this one. Lets learn to sail.