I Miss My Laptop!

When I was in LA about six weeks ago my laptop carring case strap broke, and the case fell to the ground...with my laptop in it. I took it to Fry's to get fixed, and that was the last time I saw it! I miss it because I hate using these school computers. I swear some of the computers at school are from Radio Shack, and if I didn't know better some of these are Tandy computers from 20 years ago! I miss listening to my internet radio station (KFOG! Woo Hoo!) while I write these blogs, or even write a paper. Oh little laptop, come back to me!

Waking up to Greg Brady and the Super sounds of the 70's!

Well, it was bound to happen. It had been sunny here the last 9 days (I counted), but now I wake up, walk over to the door and look out. It rained last night and it's cloudy around me. Weather in Humboldt is back to normal. I turn on the television to find Barry Williams (aka Greg Brady, apparently the only Brady that mattered) pitching Time/Life "70's Explosion". What they should call it is every one hit wonder from the 1970's plus one Elton John song (Croc Rock). There are a few good songs. I like Brandy you're a fine girl, Seasons in the Sun, and yes, American Pie. I grew up on American Pie so I have to like it. Then there's a lot of other crap. Not much disco, which isn't a bad thing. I think disco has it's own Time/Life collection anyway.

Yesterday was the last day of session 1. Which means I just did five weeks of summer school, and next Wednesday I begin another five weeks of school. Hey, if it gets me closer to that lovely piece of paper that saids "I be a smarty, and I can teach" then I'll suffer. My drunken Frat friends, who stayed in town to work full time and save money, partied all night last night. I was too tired to join them. I heard them say they were going to hit the Casino, which I should've joined them on since it's Karaoke night! I doubt if they sang.

I notice more people are slowly coming back to town. Mostly to find better places to live, which I am trying to do too. I just got a new neighbor, who is quite a babe and very nice. She's getting her Masters in Enviromental Engineering. Wait till she finds out how thin the walls are! Although, the idea of having a hot neighbor is pleasing, I still have to move. I can hear everything my "other" neighbor (who I deemed "Hammond junior" and inside joke for only three people I know that are on Blogspot), and it's quite annoying. He talks on the phone with his family and I can hear every word of the conversation. I did tell him that so I don't seem like I am listening in, and really the conversations are that great, he's just whining about work and asking his dad how to pick up girls...really! There is one place going for $495, but it's a studio again, almost as small as mine. I don't think it has a closet. It's next to the bars, always a good time, but I don't know if I'll take it. If I can find a better place I might take it, but I need to find a place before Aug 5th, when I go to a wedding in Lake Tahoe, and then off to New York for 2 weeks! Yeah!!!

Oh, before I forget, I saw Supeman. I really didn't like it. I won't spoil the film, but I think the director did a little too much "tipping of the hat" to the first 1978 Superman film. Also, it suffers from what I call "Empire Strikes Back" syndrome. Just trying to add too much dimension where it wasn't needed, and lack of action where it was REALLY needed!!! Still, it has some cool moments,but I guess in the end everyone digs the 70's!

"and I knew if I had my chance that I could make those people dance and maybe they'd be happy for a while" D. McLean

Experiencing the thrill of victory..

The last week of this class! I can't believe I've already been back in school for 5 weeks. I am so happy to be done with this class. With tomorrow being the last day I am into the single digits with the number of classes I have left before I graduate. Still a year away, but I have a ton of stuff I have to do in the next 317 days between now and then.

1. The CBEST, which I have to take and pass before I can graduate from school
2. 3 CSETs that I have to pass to teach within the state of California
3. Enter a credital program, which I may or may not do here, but I have to do A credital program somewhere to be an official teach.
4. 3 Letters of recommendation, which I'm clearly NOT going to get from my last job.
5. Be certified for CPR
6. Write a 3 page paper about my "Philosophy on Education".

...and something else I can't remember so it'll come back to me later. Still! It's good to start to see some sort of light at the end of the tunnel, it's not a very bright light of course. More like a black light in a dark cave. Heck, I'll take anything!

and the Agony of Defeat

I just gave a presentation in my Intercultural Communications class, and I blew it! I thought it had to be 20 minutes long so I spent the last week trying to fine tune it. Then, yesterday, I learned that it was only suppose to be 5 min max! So I'm editing it, making cuts where I can. When I gave it I made no sense. I don't think I even got sympathy applause! What really sucked is I had a scene from a film that was cued up, but the teacher didn't give me a chance to set it up right, so I had to give the second have (of my 5 min presentation) after a 10 min break.

Thank goodness tomorrows the last day of class. One session down, one to go!

Ok, back to your regularly scheduled program

When I came back to school I had to recalibrate my whole way of thinking. I hadn't been in school in ten years. Note taking, homework, study groups, none of this was stuff I was looking forward too. I think the one thing that has been unexpecting has been the personality of the professors. Keep in mind I love people that have personality. Anyone that can carry a decent conversation.
My wake up call to my professors I have to go back to my first class. I had to take a General Requirement in Math. Steve, the professor, he only liked to be addressed by his first name (In fact, I'll just refer to teachers by first name just incase you guys might know these people), was definetly a man of the world. From Alabama, he had been in the military and I guess a war or two. But like a bad 80's sitcom he would go from talking about math into a flashback. My first example when something along the lines of "Algebra is actually from the Middle East. From Iran *he stops and looks out the window* I remember when I was stationed in Iran.." and would go into a speech about it. I thought it was funny.
Ellen is one of my writing professors, she would have us go outside on sunny days and write poetry. She didn't care what we wrote about. She is a real 60's child. Arcata is her home, and before people moved to California in the mid-to-late 60's to soak up some "flower power" Ellen was a true California hippie, one of the last true peace lovers who was actually there from day one! One girl in class wrote a poem about smoking pot before going to school. You can just see Ellen's face and said "Good Honesty, go with that." Ellen hasn't smoked pot in years because she just doesn't have to. "You have your fun with it and move on. Get high off life!"
I think that is one of the big advantages of living here. It is a lot more freeing how you act. The more vocal you are the more you are embraced. This town is about as opposite from Los Angeles as a Quaker Village would be from Washington DC. So after 9 years in LA this is all a culture shock.
As I write this I have a homeless man sitting next to me on his myspace account. I am peeking over and notice that some students are actually his friends on myspace. I don't think you'll find that in Los Angeles.

Radiohead in Berkeley and other meltdowns...

Geez, the point of this whole blog is to talk about my time in Humboldt. Anyway....

I didn't have the meltdown, but I should've. Let me first off say that "The Greek" on Berkley's campus is without a doubt the best place I have ever seen a concert!! 1/3 the size of the Hollywood Bowl or Shoreline, there literally isn't a bad seat in the house! I had gotten tickets for Radiohead two months ago, and well, clearly I have been spoiled going to concerts because if I had looked closer at the ticket I would've realized that it was "General Admission", I hardly look at the ticket when getting them (Hence, The Simon & Garfunkel mess, a blog for another day.) Anyway, we got there 4 hours early and the line to get in was already a mess.

But before we get to that let's talk about parking! I don't think the census bureau has a list of "Best cities for parking" because there aren't any! Berkley is no different. It took nearly an hour to find a spot. Then the whole standing in line. Which was funny because the cops and security came about 45 min before they were going to let us in and tried to move the lines around (some mess about how we were blocking a fire lane or something). But still, it was Radiohead!

This was my 5th Radiohead show. Like the Beatles, I can listen to there albums and never get sick of them. Show started off good, the did a lot of new stuff (they only touched on two songs from "The Bends", a tad of the OK Computer, nothing from Pablo Honey). It was a weird night because the fog kept entering the theater, where even Thom had to make a quick comment about it. Anyway, during the show, for whatever reason, the lead guitarist Jonny Greenwood left the stage, and Thom freaked! He kept yelling "NOW! NOW!" and pointing his finger to the ground as if he was calling on his dog who just peepeed on his new car! It was hilarious! The crowd dug it though. The show was stellar though.

Set List, for those curious (and if memory is correct)

01 You And Whose Army
02 The National Anthem
03 15 Step
04 Morning Bell
05 Exit Music
06 Arpeggi
07 Videotape
08 I Might Be Wrong
09 Street Spirit
10 Nude
11 Down Is The New Up
12 Pyramid Song
13 Like Spinning Plates
14 Bangers 'N Mash
15 There There
16 Spooks
17 Idioteque
18 A Wolf At The Door
19 4 Minute Warning
20 Bones
21 Lucky
22 House of Cards
23 Everything In Its Right Place

Shine on you crazy diamond!

Why I moved to California is a question I get often, but I never go into great details about my life. The short version, that everyone gets, is I was going to community college when my mom was offered a job in California (She was laid off two months later, thank Uncle Johnny!). I had two choices, stay in St. Louis continue going to community college and maybe find a four year college that will take me, or Cali. I like to think I would've moved to Chicago, or New York where a hunk of my family is, or even Orlando to work at Disneyworld for whatever childhood reason. But I took a chance and went to a state I had only been to for a few days a dozen years before.
What I never talk about is how miserable I was in St. Louis. High School was...well high school, really I don't have to go into it because we've all been there, and I can only imagine we all have the same stories. Anyway, most everyone I knew had moved on to different parts of the mid-west to go to college. California was a breathe of fresh air, and I took it all in.
I have never regreted moving out here. I have become a new man, and have had many, many, many adventures. I have met some wonderful people who I consider life long friends. I have gotten to do and see things I have only read about. It's been a wonderful 16 year ride.
To bring this back to the overall subject. Next year I will be graduating from college with a B.A. in Education, on top of that I am taking a depth of study in English as a second language, which means that I will be able to get jobs outside of the U.S. I think nothing would be more fun then to live abroad. My friends in California have all moved on now. Many are married or getting married, some have had children, and a lot went back to school or just moved out of California to chase all new dreams.
For the last two years I have been thinking about where I want to live. Bay Area, back to LA, San Diego, or somewhere completely different. But when I ask these questions I realize I am wondering if I should stay in California or not. I can never go back to Missouri because my old friends are gone. I think that "effect" has started with California, yes we have myspace and stuff to keep intouch with them, but you can already see they are moving on with their lives, why shouldn't I?
A friend recently just hit the same wall. I think of their frustration and relate to it. They are very smart, and wiser then I, and they will make their own choice.
I think it's time for me to move on. I knew the writing was on the wall when I went home last summer and hear the stories, the same stories I head when I went back to St. Louis two years after moving away (quite spooky!). This last time when I went back to LA a month ago I already felt like a stranger visiting. Not that my friends treated me like a stranger, but again, they have moved on with their lives and have other things on their mind.
My parental unit tends to think since I am in my 30's I shouldn't think about "traveling abroad" that I am too old for that, and maybe find a girl and settle down. How..."traditional". If there was a girl that would settle down with me, which there isn't, then we wouldn't be settled for long. I am not a tradtionalist. And any girl that I meet will want to travel with me to where ever Pacific Island I go to! Bah(!), I say! Just because we get older doesn't mean we need to follow rules. Hell, I'm back in college, where does that qualify as tradition!
We all need to do what is right for us. I have loved my life in California. My 20's and early 30's have been the best! Yes, we have to let go of the past, but that doesn't mean we have to forget what made us the wonderful people we are today. This is the year I will wake up, pour out the old coffee, make sure the fire is out, and pick up the tent so I may pitch it somewhere else.




And we'll bask in the shadow Of yesterday's triumph Sail on the steel breeze Come on you boy child, you winner and loser Come on you miner For truth and delusion and shine!
~R. Waters

Hottest day in 400 years? Not where I'm sitting

I think today is the 10th day this year we have had no fog or overcast. It is a lovely day today. The highest record temperature goes back to 1936 (I believe) where it was 89 degrees!
I can imagine it I drive a few miles in any direction from here I will experience the hot weather, but I won't.
I have a friend from Seattle, we would talk about how the weather really set the mood up there because it rained all the time. Although I am 9 hours away from Seattle I can start to see what he means. This weather is a bit of a bummer. Not seeing the sun gets depressing and not getting any snow either also sucks. I don't miss living in snow, but I do miss playing in it. I think in my 16 years in California I have only seen snow 4 times! Normally you can just drive into the mountains to see it, but that requires gas, and that requires money and right now I don't have that.
About 90 miles east of me is a friend I have met up here. She is working at a large lake renting out boats. She sends me pictures of her water skiing, swimming, doing all sorts of summer stuff. I type this blog and whine about not being there, or get up, get in my car, and go visit her.


See you on Monday!! :)

Ch-Ch-Changes!

Why "Humboldt Townie". Maybe a blog I should've started with, but when I was introduced to this blog site I wasn't sure what I was doing. Now I do.
I moved to California in 1990, I have since lived up in the Bay Area and down in LA and have been to all parts since. However, one part I have never been to was north of the Golden Gate. Humboldt County. If you heard of it you know it is known for one thing...pot. About two years ago I quit my job (before I got laid off) and went back to school to get my degree in Education. (Why I didn't have my degree in the first place is a long story.) Well over a year ago I found this lovely college with the cheapest admission prices in the U.S. (Why I didn't come here in the first place is a longer story.)
I am originally from Missouri, and even with my background with farms and backwoodsmen didn't prepare me for where I am today. Arcata, the name of the town I live in, was a thriving farming and loggers community right up till the last 60's/early 70's. Then, came the hippies, and the rest is history. The town is very political, very Anti-Bush, or Anti anything that the town doesn't agree with. It's kinda refresing to live in such a liberal, free-thininking town after drowning in superfluous, passive/agressive, fantasy crap of Beverly Hills. A stench that is still lingering on my nicer clothes.
The people I have met up here have been interesting. I think my intro to the town will always be the highlight. I was walking to a mini-mart when a old man with a long beard walked in behind me. His clothes were old and ripped up, and he clearly smelled of cannabis. Anyway, the guys fills up on candy bars and chips and rides off. The casher then turns to me and says "There goes your city councilman." Welcome to Humboldt.

"I said that time may change me, but I can't trace time" ~David Bowie

Hippies: The Deadlest Race

So Friday I decided to go see Bob Weir in concert. To those of you who don't know, Bob Weir is that other guy from the Grateful Dead, who actually sang all their popular tunes (Jerry had three fingers, so he gets to be on the T-shirts). I always thought Dead shows were dull. When I first moved to the Bay Area in the early 90's. There were Dead shows often, and they always sold out. So I was a bit curious to see what it was all about. Well, I get there...early, apparently dead heads show up to shows late. I am at the front so I'm next to the stage. Boy, nothing if meaner then a hippy scorned! These guys were pushing and shoving to get the front of the stage. Since I didn't look like a hippy they left me alone. It's funny, these guys were high, yet they would try to talk like gang members. Sorta like Cheech and Chong meets Andrew Dice Clay. "Dude, don't make me, dude, get angry, awww man you know what I mean fuckerdude." Now the show itself sucked!!!! Every song was 15 min long. The only decent song was his cover of The Beatles "Come Together" (which doesn't work well for the evil hippies!) The rest of the songs I might've hear up here in "Hemp"boldt, but it was disappointing. I mean even the Rolling Stones play Satisfaction every once in a while. Why can't old Bob!

With that said, dear people of the world, please keep the armpits clean and stink-free!

Friends today,..........tomorrow.

I think we all know of the infamous Myspace top 8. It is quite a little annoyance. Recently, a friend took me off her top 8, which was bothersome because we were close before, but I guess she found out how annoying I am in realy life.
When I signed on to myspace I was expecting it to be more like this. Write some blogs, read how people really feel. Instead it's sort of a new lazy way for people to keep in contact with others. I miss the days of getting the phone call and a simple "hi" without any favors or crap. Now with myspace you see pics and read updates, and that's it. There is little communication with those I care about.
The good thing about myspace is you find out who your friends really are. Someone once said "Your friends come and go" well that's not true, if they are your friends you will continue to keep in touch with them. Right?
I'm doing summer school up here and most of the people I know are off around the world doing exciting interships (there aren't too many interships for teachers unless you are in the peace corps). So I've been reading and goofing around looking for a better place to live, and killing time till I go to NY!

The top 10 of everything list!

I like top 10 lists! Yet, I've never posted a top 10 list. Well, that changes now. Here is my favorite Top 10 on every subject I can think of. If there is something you want to see a Top 10 of then say something in my comments and I'll add it on.

Top 10 movies

1. The Godfather
2. The Shawshank Redemption
3. One Flew Over the Coo-Koo's Nest
4. Harold and Maude
5. Seven Samurai
6. Chinatown
7. Bridge over the River Kwai
8. Breaking Away
9. Tokyo Story
10. Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind


Top 10 Albums ("Best of's" count!)

1. Beatles- Abbey Road
2. Nirvana- Nevermind
3. Neil Young- After the Gold Rush
4. Beatles - Magical Mystery Tour
5. Van Morrison- Moondance
6. Bob Marley - Legend
7. Beach Boys- Pet Sounds
8. Radiohead- The Bends
9. Pink Floyd- Dark Side of the Moon
10. De La Soul- Three Feet High and Rising

Top 10 songs

1. Bob Dylan- Mr. Tamborine Man
2. Beach Boys- Wouldn't it be nice
3. Beatles- Penny Lane
4. Bob Marley- Three Little Birds
5. Pearl Jam- Given to Fly
6. The Band- The Weight
7. Beach Boys- Good Vibrations
8. Stevie Wonder- You are the Sunshine of my Life
9. *tie* Beatles- Hard Day's Night, and Let It Be
10 *tie* The Allman Brothers- Whipping Post, Pink Floyd- Shine On You Crazy Diamond


Top 10 countries I wish to visit that I haven't been to.

1. Italy
2. Fiji
3. Spain
4. Peru
5. Japan
6. China
7. New Zealand
8. Kenya
9. India
10. Amsterdam

Top 10 funniest sitcoms

1. All in the Family
2. Seinfeld
3. Taxi
4. I Love Lucy
5. Arrested Development
6. The Mary Tyler Moore Show
7. Cheers
8. Night Court
9. Three's Company
10. WKRP in Cincinnati

Top 10 websites I visit

1. myspace
2. imdb
3. craigslist
4. aol
5. rottentomatoes
6. blogspot (hi!)
7. humboldt.edu
8. amazon
9.ticketmaster
10. ebay

Top 10 things on that "things to do before I die list"

1. Surfing *still!*
2. Go to Italy and just travel around
3. Handglide
4. See Mishu Pishu in Peru
5. Abandon my car on the side of the highway when it breaks down
6. Water ski
7. Scuba Dive at the Great Barrier Reef
8. Sleep for one night by myself in a Haystack Landing. "The Scariest Place on Earth"
9. Film a feature lenght movie and and have it played in a movie theater.
10. "The 50 yard line"....nuff said!

Top 10 "favorite" actresses

1. Rachel McAdams
2. Evangeline Lilly
3. Natalie Portman
4. Keira Knightly
5. Kate Bosworth
6. Scarlette Johansson
7. Eliza Dushku
8. Rebbecca Romijn
9. Zooey Deschanel
10. Jessica Alba

Top 10 coolest actors

1. Johnny Depp
2. Bill Murray
3. Tim Robbins
4. Sean Penn
5. Jack Black
6. Edward Norton
7. George Clooney
8. Kurt Russell
9. Vince Vaughn
10. Bruce Willis


Top 10 favorite foods

1. Spiedini (Trust me, it's that good!)
2. Warm Baked Cookies
3. Pizza
4. Hot Fudge Brownie Sunday
5. Pasta with Pesto
6. Sushi (in general)
7. Pad Thai
8. Mozzarella Sticks
9. In'n'out cheeseburger
10. Philly Cheesesteak Sandwich

Top 10 people I want to meet, that are still alive

1. The Dali Lama
2. Bob Dylan
3. Jimmy Carter
4. Johnny Depp
5. Kofi Annan
6. Jon Stewart
7. Martin Scorsese
8. Barack Obama
9. Gene Wilder
10. Bill Clinton

Ok, what else can I add on?

Ahhh yes, something new

Myspace, aol, craigslist, I've done them all. The lovely Laura has now coaxed me into visiting this new blog area to vent my frustrations.

However, the only frustration I have is allergies! I have been stuffed up for several days now and it is driving me nuts!