You found me..

Cooking is my forte

2009-03-03T02:30:51Z

At my apartment, we have a little mini toaster oven. Looks kind of like this...

I turned it on to toast an English Muffin. Woot. I took it out and enjoyed my muffin made by the Brits. And then I took a nap.

Turns out I forgot to turn off the toaster oven, and I left my roomates mimi plastic cutting board on top of said oven. When I got up from my nap and walked out into the kitchen, I was witness to a half melted cutting board gooped over our toaster oven.

I of course turned off the toaster oven and proceed to use a knife and spatchula to remove the mess from the oven. The parts of the cutting board that were not in contact with the heat of the oven were just fine, but the entire top of the oven had half an inch of plastic stuck to it. It wasn't completly melted, but just not solid. It was like really hot silly putty.

In the course of scraping the oven clean, the melted cutting board cooled off and half of the board was still stuck to the oven. So I had to turn the oven back on and scrape the goo off, trying to get the oven hot enough to where the plastic was mallable enough to scrape off, but not hot enough to burn through my gloves.

Gloves = the ends of my sweatshirt sleeves.

My roomate gets home in 15 minutes, is he in for a story...

Yesterday was what?

2009-02-17T17:29:11Z

It was a federal holiday, and I didn't even realize it.

I typically have mondays and tuesdays off, so those are the days in which I do my errands and things of the like. I went to Costco to do my shopping, and the place was packed. I even saw kids walking around with their parents and remember thinking, "I wonder why those kids are not in school..?"

I went to the gym in the middle of the day and remember thinking that the place was a little more crowded that it normally is for that time period on that certain day.

It wasn't until, at around 3:00pm I decided to go to the liquor store, only to find it locked up and all the lights off...

My train of thought went something like this...

"Why is this place closed? It isn't sunday is it? No, I know it's Monday. Did the economy hit them hard and go out of business? No, people like booze too much. The only times liquor stores are closed in the state of Washington are on Sundays and holidays..."

Then I realized it was presidents day.

Then I made the more important realization that gas stations do not close for presidents day, and bought some burgundy wine to celebrate the holiday.

Drinking a beer. This is billybob21b

2009-02-11T01:36:22Z

So, I was perusing the job boards today to see what I could find.

Sometimes, I apply to jobs while laughing to myself. I saw an opening for a management opportunity at a Chuck-E-Cheese.

Can you really see me managing a chuck-e-cheese? All my friends would come to visit me at work, and all of my ballpits would have a bunch of drunk young adults in them.

What is the age group for young adults. I didn't see that box on the application...

I am getting into comic books again. But much like my obsession with TV on DVD, I don't buy singular comic books. I wait for a bunch of them to come out in an anthology. I hate waiting for the next episode. Or in this case, the next issue.

I don't update as much as I should.

A single tear drops... :'-(

It takes effort

2009-01-26T16:10:52Z

If you want to achieve a goal, write it out on some paper, a whiteboard, whatever.

Make sure it is the first thing you see every morning.

Create mnemonic devices that help you remember your goal throughout the day.

Be hard on yourself and don't falter.

Reap the rewards.

...

Fuck it. You are on vacation this week. Relax. Maybe you can start tomorrow.

Wait a minute...

If you don't start now, when will you start?

Tomorrow? Next week? Wait for the next year to make a resolution that you are sure to break?

Why don't you start now? What is stopping you?

All it takes is a little bit of effort.

I should be a motivational speaker. Living in a van, down by the river.

Philly Cheese Steaks?

2009-01-18T06:46:13Z

Some people get hooked on certain types of music for periods of time. For others it is movies that does the trick.

For me, it is food.

I have had this craving for Philly Cheese Steaks for the past three weeks. Where ever I go, I see if the menu serves shredded steak with melted cheese all smeared on a bread of some sort. The different fixings make every one I taste a unique and memorable experience.

I even went for the Philly pizza at Papa Murphy's. Delicious.

Perhaps even more interesting is the fact that I am noticing philly cheese steak sandwiches on the menus of places I have been to a dozen times or more. It is not like they just started serving these things three weeks ago, but just recently I am noticing them pop up more and more. Also, if I ever go out to eat, I will make a conscious effort to look for new places where I am sure they will serve these wonders from Philadelphia. Whenever I step foot into an eatery, the first thing I think is, "I wonder if this place has a good Cheese Steak?"

And the first moral of this story is...

It is human nature to crave things we find pleasant. Once we find some sensation of comfort, we will go back to it again and again. We will look for new sources of this comfort, and will notice and be drawn toward this newfound source of positivity in places that we know. But more importantly, we find comfort in places we thought we had already looked.

This could also relate to positive qualities that we find in all of the people we interact with. If I suddenly realize that I like the way a person interacts with me, I am going to be drawn to that kind of person. But sometimes you get a surprise out of left field, and find that you have a connection with a person that you thought you would never understand.

And the second moral of this story is...

Philly Cheese Steaks are scrumptious.

I have a weakness

2009-01-10T06:14:45Z

I find kittens adorable. Not cats, but baby kittens. As kittens get older, they lose their appeal exponentially. Like hookers.

And now for something completley different...

Rolling down highway 16

2008-12-29T09:10:01Z

I saw an old lady driving her car, elbows bent and both hands gripping the top of the wheel as her her head peered over the dash to get a better look at the road.

She had a vanity plate that read, "TAPDANCE"

Cute.

Even better, she had a custom made border made for her Tapdance plate. The border consisted of flowers on a vine surrounding her plate. One of the flowers was placed in such a way that it covered up the top part of the "T" on her plate lettering.

So at first glance this sweet old lady has a vanity plate that reads, "lAPDANCE"

I was amused.

It starts like this

2008-12-21T07:57:40Z

Driving down a hill very slowly, making sure not to slip and slide. The front of the car, I can control fine. However, the back end of the car starts to slip away from me. Slip slide, slip slide, slip slide I go. Lucky, am I that my front left tire slowly bumps the curb, and I am stopped on this hill. Granted I am sitting at a 45 degree angle, but safe nonetheless. Just before I stopped, I heard the honking of a horn from the vehicle that was behind me.

"Dumbass, I know I am sliding down a hill. You don't need to honk your horn at me." I think to myself as I turn my head left to peer out my window and up a hill only to see...

An SUV sliding down the same hill and coming right for me.

Impact is imminent. I ready my body for the collision, holding the wheel firmly but keeping my body loose so that I can adjust for the sudden jolt I am about to receive. But strangest of all, I shut my eyes tight. Yes, I am sure my face looked like I was about to crap myself. Maybe if I closed my eyes it would all go away...?

CRUNCH

Nope, didn't go away.

I open my eyes to realize that I am yet once again sliding down the hill. I have enough presence of mind to pump the brakes and try to regain control of my vehicle. Not withstanding the fact that I am two seconds removed from being on the business end of a T-bone collision, I still manage to get my car safely stopped on the curb once again. Success!

Wait, wasn't there an SUV behind me...? Maybe I should check on that...

And for the second time in a very short time frame, I am witness to a Sport Utility Vehicle barreling uncontrollably on ice right towards me.

Hands on wheel? Check. Body loose? Check. Eyes shut tight? Check.

CRUNCH

This time my car stays stuck to the curb, and the SUV is nudged firmly against my car and the curb. I spend a couple of hours calling tow trucks or the cops trying to get these cars off this hill. There is no way these cars are being driven off, and no tow trucks dare come near. Am I to die on this hill like a pussy? Not likely. Instead, I find out that one of our company vehicles is being held at a hotel three miles away. No cabs want to come get me, so I thought it would be a fine idea to take a little hike downhill in the snow. After my brisk walk, I drove back to work through a snowstorm and finished my job in said snowstorm, like a real man.

Boomshakalaka.

what a couple of hours means

2008-12-15T16:44:34Z

Russell before the gym

Russell after the gym

Nugget-McTastic

2008-12-13T07:20:53Z

I work for a company that primarily hires recent college grads. Folks from the ages of 21-22. Me, teetering on the cusp of 26 years of age, while not seeming like that much older to me, am being considered one of the "old" folks.

Really?

It went down like this. A co worker and I were talking and he made the comment, "Russell, you are probably old enough to remember before that book "fast food nation" came out in '01 and McDonalds had the option of the 20 piece Chicken McNuggett order, right?"

Chicken McNuggets = Learnedness? Sure, why not?

But this exchange did give me cause to reflect. Time after time when I am at work, I see myself making this mental comment to myself about some of our newer employees, "I can't believe that idiot did/said that."

Upon further reflection, It isn't the fact that the newbies lack mental faculties. Hell, the "kids" are probably smarter than ever. It is just a lack of experience in what some would call the "adult workforce." Or maybe it's the lack of 20 pieces of mechanically separated meat in their diet. But in any case, it is part of my job to make sure the young'uns have a glossing understanding of what I do. Learn, train, teach, coach. Bing, Bang, Bongo.

And as I go about doing my thing at work, I am humbled in the knowledge that the people more experienced that me are looking at me do my job and thinking to themselves, "I can't believe that idiot did/said that."

"Experience: that most brutal of teachers. But you learn, my God do you learn."

C.S. Lewis.

I have an addiciton

2008-11-25T19:43:12Z

TV shows on DVD.

Due to the relative small about I watch on TV, I do not have cable television. The only thing I watch on a regular basis are sports, and I usually just go to a bar or friends house to get my fix. I do have an extensive dvd collection of shows like Scrubs, The Office, My name is Earl, and the lesser known and sadly prematurely canceled Fox comedy "Titus"

In addition to watching these, my roommate has a Netflix subscription. It is like Hollywood video in our mailbox. It is fantastic, so we can watch all the latest "flix" with ease in a short amount of time. The only hassle is the one or two day wait he had to put up with to watch our stuff.

However, we also have an X-box, which now lets us stream Netflix right into our own home. It is as easy as ordering Netflix online. No more of this only three disks at a time bullshit. No more of this waiting two days horsecrap. No longer will I have to burn excess calories walking from the apartment to the mailbox! Just a couple of clicks and there it is.

This is going to take up way too much of my time...

Recession? Sure.

2008-11-22T05:25:09Z

I am going to be very vague here, as far as who I work for, what I do, and who I am talking about. But I am sure you all will understand...

I had a sit down lunch with my boss yesterday. We talked about the recession in our economy, where our company stood, and where he and I stood as far as employment status goes.

It was an interesting talk. Our particular division in Washington has never had to lay anybody off for financial reasons in 50 years. Ever. But this past month, we have. Hard workers from all divisions of our company have been getting laid off. The cuts are not swooping and dramatic, but one by one over the past six weeks or so. Another one bites the dust, as it were. We have a pretty solid division here in Washington, and it is sad so see us have to do it.

The worst (or best thing , depending on your point of view) is how awful it is for other groups in our company around the nation. Cutting upper management to "trim the fat." as it were. One upper manager goes so that four or five entry level workhorses can stay. Working on a skeleton crew, as the saying goes. Even worse is our competition in the marketplace. Reading about shares in stock pricing anywhere between $3.00 a share down to $.41 a share. Some of these drops getting as far as 95% of that as they were 18 months ago. It is kind of scary seeing where we are at.

I have learned so much about running, owning, and operating a business over the last few years. All this stuff is kind of scary. This is the first economic recession I have experienced in my adult lifetime, and it is very eye opening. Seeing different business models and different business philosophies, and how they have worked now as opposed to 12 months ago. Leaves much to ponder...

Long story long: I still have a job, and my job is not in immediate jeopardy. (or so I am told.) Rumor has it I am awesome.

It's like a bond

2008-11-13T05:31:03Z

I called my roommate before he got off work with instructions...

"Buy a cheap $10.00 bottle of vodka"

He had found ten dollars at work that day and had the same idea before I called him.

When you live with some people for any amount of time, your thoughts tend to be on the same wavelength. As soon as he found Mr. Alexander Hamilton, we both got a mental spark at the same time. Interesting, no?

letting my food digest

2008-11-10T20:01:15Z

before I go to the gym that is...

I have kind of a strange schedule. I work on Saturdays and Sundays, and I have Mondays and Tuesdays off. I sit here, on what is supposed to be my weekend, with nothing to do. All of my friends are at work, and nobody wants to go out Sunday or Monday nights because they are tired from the weekend and have to go to work.

Boo-urns.

My job isn't that great. It isn't like I am sacrificing my weekends for anything in the future as far as career advancement goes. It just kind of turned into, "It is more convienient to have Russell work on the weekends, so lets do that." Even when I took this new position, I was promised one weekend day off a week.

And I got my hours cut. Frustrating, no?

So, with my days off, I feel perusing the open job market is the way to go. With no social activities to spend the time, there will be plenty of hours to search for new, gameful employment. With the economy on the downturn, good jobs are scarce, but they are out there. If you need somebody to jump start your workplace, I am the guy to have.

Food digested? Check. Off to break a sweat...

Election? Sure why not.

2008-11-04T01:48:18Z

I am an American, and a proud one at that. Proud of what our country stands for, and what one can accomplish here in the U.S. of A.

Then, why do I not care who wins the 2008 presidential election?

I am just exhausted of the constant media blitz going on with these two candidates. I am tired of hearing how much polls change every 12 hours not knowing what questions are asked or how these polls are conducted. And I am tired of all the negative things each party has to say about the other.

I kind of feel like an asshole when I vote, for a couple of reasons. first of all, sometimes I don't feel like I understand all that is going on with the economy, or why exactly gas prices are going up or down, or what foreign relations are like. I only know what I read, and sometimes the things I read are one sided or biased. Some of the things going on in this country, I can't get a straight answer as to why they are the way they are. The more I read and listen to try and figure it out, it seems I never can.

Usually, there are a lot of little tidbits which are the reason for things happening, best I can figure out...

I don't want to be uninformed when I vote, but I think I know and understand more than most, even if I can't provide a formula for the American economy.

Secondly, I really don't care who wins. I can see both candidates being a good president for different reasons. I pay enough attention and read enough to where I would be proud to live in a country with either man as its Commander in Chief. I hate to sit on the fence and not take a stand, but it really wouldn't bother me if one or the other did or did not become president. I would feel comfortable voting for either candidate.

Even though both canidates do things that piss me off, like McCain's appearance on SNL trying to humor voters into a vote, although I do appreciate a man who can laugh at himself. But top of the list of aggravating things candidates have done has to be Obama's 30 minute "American Stories, American Solutions" infomercial. It was like a 30 minute episode of "Bart's People" for all of you Simpson's fans out there.

But, whoever does win, in two or three years when our economy gets out of this funk, will go down in history as the President who pulled America out of one of its greatest recessions. History books will tell tales of Obama or McCain as the man who saved the U.S.A the time we had to take out a 700 billion relief loan. Who knows, one of them may get their face carved into a mountain.

More importantly than this election. Happy birthday mom.

I am from Olalla...

2008-10-29T03:24:50Z

Let me bring you up to speed, for those of you that don't know..

It really is a beautiful place. Minus certain kinds of people that live there...

But, home is home. I went for a run while I was there, and it was cold out. I am very sad to say my lungs are in piss poor shape. For about two and a half years, I smoked cigars fairly frequently. Despite me going to the gym consistently for about three months, my lungs were burning after about a mile. My legs and blood pressure felt fine, just the 45 degree air filling my lungs left me hacking and coughing something fierce. It is a far cry from the warm sweaty air inside my gym.

I am very sad because when I was running 20-25 miles a week, running in brisk, cold weather was my favorite climate in which to run. I haven't had a cigar in about three months, which is good. But I know what I did to my lungs is something I cannot take back, and although it will get better, I will never have the respiratory strength I once had, no matter how much I train.

It is one of the things I regret? Sure. It is something I can change? Of course not. Can I learn from it and use what I learned to help me make future decisions? I had better.

More importantly than jumping on people and judging people by their actions, is to judge people by how much they learn from them.

See how I tied that into one of "life's little lessons?" I do that in my blogs from time to time. It's like "Chicken soup for the soul", but with "Less metaphors and more cursing."

Shit piss fuck.

My creativity died...

2008-10-23T03:36:47Z

Or, livejournal told me so anyway.

So, I logged into livejournal to read what a few of my friends have been writing about over the past few months, and I see this...

"77 weeks without an update. What's the matter? Writer's block?"

Livejournal then asks me this...

The World Series begins today, meaning balls will be hit, bases run, and homeruns scored. Remember the first time you got to first base? What was it like?

My first feeling was, "Why would anybody write about something like this on livejounal? Who would seriously waste their time writing about this crappy metaphor?" I almost hit the little (x) in the upper right hand corner of my screen.

Almost..

Then a little voice not unlike a cartoon cricket in my ear said to me, "You used to take a sentence like that and turn it into..." well, I am not sure what you would call the literary pieces I used to write. You could call them rants, you could call them my personal philosophy, or you could call them gibberish. Take your pick. The point is that I used to get a creative spark when I read or heard something that made me think, and somewhere along the line I lost that. But more importantly, I forgot how much I missed writing, or typing rather. Visually, my writing looks like a drunk 4 year old got a hold of a pencil and an 8*10.

But I digress...

You can call it therapeutic, you can call it stress relieving, call it boredment relievment(?), a creative outlet, or a forum to practice my typing. But I enjoy writing what I think. Lord knows I express myself better on pad (screen) better than verbally. Maybe it is my fingers talking, maybe it is my lack of creativity trying to burst out, or maybe it is the 40 oz of Olde English I have running through my veins and liver. But it may be time I picked up the pad and pen (monitor and keyboard) again.

Long story long, to answer livejournal's question, the first time I got to first base was awkward and confusing. I had no idea what the hell I was doing, but thought I should have, so I acted like I knew I was doing, but I did not. =-(

But I got better. Semicolon, minus sign, end parentheses.

I have not updated in how long?

2007-05-01T06:59:58Z

Let's see...

My grandma died 3/30

I got promoted 3/20

I changed work environments 3/01

Hell, what should I say?

Sorry mom, I have been drinking. But I bought a bowflex. Working on the bowflex bod

I think I may go up to bellingham this weekend, 5/4. I got some good peeps up there.

Why does nobody call me? Probably because I am sort of a dick

unintentionally of course, but still a dick nonetheless

Man, do I love cake and meat.

Snow day? Sure.

2006-11-27T21:42:36Z

Lately I am feeling less creative. I used to write a bunch, draw a bunch,and think of crazy inventions that would ultimately make me millions of dollars. However I don't really do that anymore. All I do is work and make money.

Not that this is necessarily a bad thing, but life is getting awful one dimensional.

One of my roomates is in the process of writing a short film script. Just because he can. I'll get to play a part when the filming takes place, but I think that is really neat. I may try and make it a new years resolution to be more creative.

I might make a snowman.

I have yet to write my prize winning novel. I'll get to that later as well.

What was I doing a year ago?

2006-11-16T00:54:47Z

A year ago I was getting fired and kicked out of school on the same day.

Tonight, what am I doing?

I am going to a work party honoring people who are badasses within the company. Said badasses include Russell Bishop.

Life's little lesson learned? We will try multiple choice.

a) Gotta work through the setbacks.
b) Perseverance pays off.
c) Good things come to those who wait.
d) Western Washington University can go suck it.

Survey says...?

The D's have it.

sui caedere

2006-11-08T22:48:14Z

I have no idea what day it is. Seriously, it may as well be saturday. I work a four day on two day off schedule with those four days' hours coming in cycles of 12:00p to 11:00p, 4:30a to 3:30p, 6:00a to 5:00a and 8:00a to 7:00p. It is the strangest thing. It funks with my sleep schedule. But I am off today. I don't exactly know which day it is, but I know I can sleep in one more day, then it is back to the grind.

A friend of mine committed suicide earlier this week. I had heard this through the grapevine. He wasn't my best friend in the world, but still more than an acquaintance. We weren't that close, but we were close enough to buy each other beers. We had multiple classes over the course of school, although I haven't seen him in probably close to three years, and I heard people drop his name every now and again. The strange thing is it doesn't really feel like he is gone or anything is really that different.

I wouldn't consider myself an overly emotional person, but I feel kind of bad for caring as little as I do. Anytime anybody passes away, it is cause for mourning and sadness, but it really hasn't hit me like it has other people who had known him, and I know that sounds heartless. But that is the way it is.

Regardless of how I feel, I send my condolences to the family and the other people who loved him.

And this gives me an excuse to drink a beer. As if I needed any more motivation. =-)

Why in the world am I awake?

2006-10-28T14:35:31Z

I woke up at 6:00 in the morning today. On a Saturday. When I don't have to work today. When I went to bed at a reasonable hour of 10:30 the night before. When I even had a couple of beers with the guys from work. My body is so willing to get up early when I don't have to go to work, but if I do have to go to work, my body milks that snooze alarm like a fat man milks an asian buffet. I don't have to get up until 6:00 but I have my alarm set for 5:00 so I can be in my bed and slowly wake up to the tunes of WARM 106.9. It is nice.

Why have I not made any coffee yet..? Good lord..

::glug glug glug::

But I enjoy my job. Apparently my company thinks highly enough of me to not only promote me to a larger office for a 4 month period, they are going to front the costs of a hotel room and a $15 dollar/day per diem for me. Yes, it is true, I am that amazing.

My sisters german exchange student goes home this morning. I feel she got a good taste of america. She got to see why we are so obese by going out to eat with us and watching me devour dozens of buffalo wings. She got to walk home and see our neighbors flying a flag bearing the swastika symbol. And she got to hear me make fun of the French. And the Dutch. And the Norwegians. She understood and appreciated why.

She She She. Pronoun Pronoun Pronoun. My sisters german exchange students' name is Saskia. I bought her a photo album book to put all of her pictures in. I I hope she likes it.

I think a nap is in order today.

Round the world I go...

2006-10-15T01:38:34Z

So I found these culturally enlightening phrases, and I have no doubt they will make valuable additions to my already stellar vocabulary.

Finnish:

Haista kusinen muna: Fuck off! (literally ‘Sniff a pissy prick!’—or a slightly softer variant: Haista kukkanen, jonka lehmš eilen sši! ‘Sniff the flower that the cow ate yesterday!’

Saatanan huora: Devil’s whore

Minua vituttaa: I’m pissed off! (Literally means ‘It cunts me’—One of the most common expressions of irritation in contemporary urban Finnish.)

Paskan marjat: Bullshit (Literally ’shitberries’)

Suksi vittuun: Fuck off! (Literally ‘Go ski into a vagina!’ Culturally, an extremely Finnish way of telling someone to get lost.)

Vittujen kevät ja kyrpien takatalvi: Oh fucking fuck! (Literally ‘Oh spring of cunts and cold spell of pricks,’ an expression of extreme disgust.)

Armenian:

Anderes al guzes?: Literally “Do you also want my dick?”, to someone who’s asking for too much.

Belarussian:

Hrać na dudcy-valasiancy: To give a blowjob (Literally ‘to play a hairy trumpet.’)

Yiddish:

Tukhes oyfn tisch: Let’s get down to brass tacks (Literally, “Let’s get your ass on the table.”)

Chinese (Mandarin):

Hun dan: Bastard, (Literally, “mixed egg”)

Wan-ba dan: Cuckold. (Literally, “turtle-egg”)

Basque:

Popatik hartu: To be buggered (Literally, “to take through the stern”)

Indonesian:

Main karaoke: To perform fellatio (Literally, “to play karaoke”, as into a microphone)

Makan cacang kulit: To perform cunnilingus (Literally, “to eat peanuts made of skin”)

Japanese:

Kuso shite shinezo!: Go to Hell! (Literally, “Die shitting!”)

Omonkuu: Perform oral sex (”Literally, “Eat the honorific gate”)

Irish Gaelic:

Bualadh craicinn: Fucking (Literally, “leather-stretching”)

Deanaim neamhshuim: I’m taking a shit (Literally, “I’m making bad jam.”)

And the wait begins again...but not really

2006-10-07T03:35:54Z

Two weeks ago it was Ellensberg, last week it was Tuscon, this week it is Oktoberfest in Leavenworth??

Not this week. It was not to be, the boss has to bring in the talented Russell Bishop to take care of business on Saturday morning. So instead of making the trek across Washington state right now, I sit on my computer typing away. I suppose I could make the trip tomorrow and get there around 4:00 or so, and be there for about a day. But driving six hours just to get drunk for a few hours doesn't appeal as much to me as it did a few years ago.

I can just save time and gas money by getting drunk by myself on my porch. Why this has a certain appeal to me, I don't know.

Another lunch story: Yesterday while I was marketing my company, I had a craving for a diet coke and a McFlurry, so I stopped off at the local McDonalds. As I was reviewing my days work, in walked a fat man who had the interesting hair style of being bald in front, yet having a full mullet in the back. As he got closer to the counter, he came off as one of those people who just looked like they smelled bad. Like even if you were 100 feet away, the undoubtable stench would burn your eyes.

This gentleman walked up the counter, ordered sixteen cheeseburger happy meals, and requested that a different happy meal toy be placed in each box. McDonalds is offering Little Mermaid toys for the girls, and Bionicle toys for the boys (leave the sexism remarks alone...) but this guy got them all. It was the strangest thing I had ever seen. After he got his "meal" this man just strolled out of the restaurant like it was no big deal to have your arms occupied with sixteen boxes of cheeseburgers, fries, and kid's toys.

I spied no wedding ring on his finger, no children in tow, and certainly no lady in sight. I can only assume he was a collector of McDonald happy meal toys. Some days I think I am strange, but leave it to people like this to put any self-doubt I have in check.

and the wait begins again..

2006-09-29T00:50:09Z

This time I am flying to Arizona tomorrow morning. I am normally not a very spontaneous person, but if I get drunk, go online, and whip out a credit card anything can happen. Like purchase two plane tickets to Tucson...

But a story from last week - I saw something one could philosphise on...

I was at the local Dairy queen enjoying a refreshing Diet Coke and a tasty butterfinger flavored blizzard. I had noticed out the window and seen a bunch of crows flocking around the trash. This is normally not anything that is an issue, but one of the dairy queen employees suddenly yelled, in a restaurant full of people..

"Oh my god!!! Those crows are eating that squirrel!!"

Lo and behold, yes, three crows were devouring a squirrel ten feet outside a window where two dozen people were eating. Normally I would feel bad, but I couldn't help but chuckle when three people dropped ice cream on or in their shirts, one person threw up a chili burger, another actually threw a carton of biggie fries at the window, and the faithful worker who spotted the food chain in effect started crying while the manager got a pair of rubber gloves on and went outside. Then proceeded to pick up the half eaten squirrel and place the carcass in a official Dairy Queen kid's meal box, and threw the mess into the dumpster.

The whole time the song from the Lion King was going through my head, "The circle of life."

I don't suppose I can really philosophise on the story, I just thought I would share.