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7/31/2005 06:24:00 PM
219 what does it mean?
So that was my weight yesterday. I finally had my first crack at the 220 barrier in over a year. Last time I got serious about shedding some pounds I dropped to 205. Never beat 200. I plan to rectify that situation.
So I was working out a little yesterday and had a dizzy spell. Actually hit the floor and darn near passed out. It was all over and done in about ten minutes, but I don't mind telling you it was a bit scary. I think I'm just little thinly stretched. Many new responsibilities on top of my current work schedule. I decided to rest as much as possible today and so far I am happy to report I have only had some food and watched Firefly while my laundry works itself through. Lazy day, I deserve it.
Things are going well. Still don't know for sure if my tiny promotion at work has gone through but it looks good. I shall know soon I guess. Finally squared some time to visit with Anne but it's still 20 some days off. This is about as long a time as we have been apart. I hate it, but what can you do?
Busy couple of weeks ahead preparing for the trek convention that starts on the 11th. Those of you who may not have been to star trek the Experience before might wish to take advantage of this time to do so. During the weekend of Aug 11th - 14th you will find a gathering of trekkers more colorful and outrageous than all of the franchise feature films combined. It' quite a show. If you get a chance, stop by the Hilton and get a glimpse of your future.
Hope all of you are doing well. This heat is maddening. Stay cool.
love,
TFP
Addendum: Just got done with my exercise routine today. No Dizzys. Yippie! Must have been something I ate yesterday.
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7/26/2005 08:38:00 PM
Ready Set Go
So the set was awesome!!!
Yes we rocked the spot. Big thanks to the Second City players for allowing me to join in on the magic. It was one of those nights that reminds me of why I love improvisation so much. Speaking of magic, Lance Burton was in the house on Monday night. How cool is that? I love this town. Griffin also made it to the show fresh from the windy city. There was talk of a Yum Yum show....Perhaps sometime in October...Stay tuned.
So, in the past I have had few kind words for Mr. Joss Wheadon. Well, I bought the Firefly season set and man alive it's some good eatin'. I think essentially we are dealing with an incredibly talented cast of performers who allow me to give a rat's butt about their plight. A certain vampire slayer has never so enthralled me. So props to Joss and my hat is off to all you early Firefly adopters, you tried to show me the light, sometimes my boo hiss is just too much for me to control.
Current Tunes
Iron and Wine: Woman King EP. Country death songs and haunting ghost guitars. I love It. Where have I been? Missing these guys for like a year and a half, unacceptable!
The Unloveables:Crush Boyfriend Heartbreak. Barry has said it before and it is true in many ways, my musical tastes make it seem like I was raised by a pack of teenage girls. Well in this case I don't care. I was recommended this disk by the mc chris newsletter and he ain't steered me wrong. Bubblegum punk pop perfection. Don' listen to this disk if you don't like smiling.
Today I weighed 221lbs!
less soon
more soon
TFP
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7/24/2005 07:24:00 PM
Space .... The final frontier
I thought last week was going to be busy.
It was but not nearly so action packed as this week. I pulled three thirteen hour days out of my four this week at trek. I was exhausted. I got to sleep in today however and that was pretty nice. Today has been an actual off day for me. Not one scheduled appointment or meeting. I have taken the opportunity to stay at home, work out, and generally tidy up as well as exercise. I weighed in this morning at 223.5 lbs. I am still fighting this 124 hump. I hit 222 yesterday so all hope is not lost. I have gained some muscle mass in my workout process so I'm not too concerned. I still want to be below 200 by Dec. I consider it my birthday present to me.
Things with Anne and I are great. We had a very fun, but all too brief visit on sun. And mon. Sometimes I miss her more than I can stand it. Still, at the end of the day when we talk on the phone she puts my mind at ease. I just can't wait to be with her again, living in the same state for a change. The Honk got to meet Anne while he was on business in San Jose. He seemed to like her. "Run, run now." , he said to me. I hope he meant into her arms.
Leen just had her birthday. Happy B-Day Leen. The folks have been getting out and riding bikes together on Phill's off days. Not bad for a couple of cool cats in their mid 60's!! It gives me hope for some longevity myself. Yea Leen and Phill!!
Everyone is back from Comic-Con and wow did I get the hookup! Ignignok socks from Jeef as well as cool ass Transformer pins. Carl, my hetero lifemate as he likes to call himself, did not disappoint. He got me an exclusive Four Horsemen sculpted King Randor statue from the Masters of the Universe line. Those that know me know I love few things on earth more than MOTU. Hell I still use my He-Man pillow cases from '83. They are on my bed right now, no seriously go look. See. So yea I love this thing and on the back of the package I see an ad for a Hordak statue. You all know Hordak, right? Skeletor's former mentor, Leader of the evil Horde, abductor of Princess Adora, aka She-Ra. Yes that Hordak. So I run to Carl and exclaim how I must obtain this Hordak statue. The guy already pre ordered it for me.
Carl, you are Santa and Jenny McCarthy all rolled up in one.
Todd and Sin were kind enough to drop off a small offering for me to the Penny Arcade guys. I have said it before, PA is the best site on the web. Go check it out, there is a link right over there. No over to the left, your other left fool. Yes there. Just click it and go! Buy their stuff!
Love
TFP
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7/12/2005 12:03:00 PM
Here comes the week
Oh man am I gonna be busy!
Tonight I have Scriptless at 1030, then all this week I am scheduled to give backstage tours after my 10 hour day of Klingon tomfoolery. Waaaaaaaaaa! Well, it will provide a little of that much needed scratch for me. Hopefully I can survive intact.
Lots of my hommies are headed to San Diego for Comic-Con this week. All the best my brothers in geekdom. I shall be there in spirit.
Anne will be here soon.
Life is good.
TFP
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7/05/2005 09:51:00 AM
Vacation ...All I ever wanted
Three summers ago, on the fourth of July, my apartment building was on fire.
It was just after eleven at night, I was already in bed which was weird 'cause I'm quite the night owl usually. I began to hear some shouting outside. "Did I just hear someone yell fire?", I thought. I got up and opened my front door just in time to see some guy bash open the fire extinguisher housing right under the stairwell of my apartment unit. I ran back into my room, threw on my jeans, grabbed my phone and its charger and ran outside. I remember thinking, "Well I guess this is really all anyone needs, some clothes and a phone.". As I got outside and into the parking lot, I could see the wild flames shooting out of an apartment four doors down from mine on the second floor. A crowd was forming, people were yelling, I called 911 as some drunk woman in a bathing suit tried to take my phone from me to call 911 herself. Fire trucks arrived fairly quickly, but it took a while to put out the flames. A cat that had been in the apartment when it was ignited was apparently the only fatality. It seems that the deranged resident of this apartment had poured gasoline onto his bed and set it ablaze in an attempt to kill his girlfriend. He had escaped into the night but I understand he was later caught. We were all brought to the apartment office to await the ok to return to our homes.
When I got back to my place around 3am, my heart sank. Everything was covered in a thin greasy film and the stench of smoke hung thickly in the chalky air. All my elaborate toy displays, my videogame systems, my bed, my couch, chairs and clothes, everything reeked of noxious fumes. I was overwhelmed. I called Rick for a place to crash and I went to sleep at his place. It just so happens that his girlfriend at the time had been involved in a serious accident and flipped her truck the same night. Not a good day.
Things work themselves out eventually, My mom and dad came out to Vegas to help me clean up and get re-situated. They even helped me clean up my stuff, wiping down all my CD's and other affected trinkets. I boxed up most of my toys and moved in with Darren, where I still dwell happily. The fire kicked my butt, and I sank into depression and started eating like a fool. I undid all the progress I had made with Raul and Travis and let myself go. It took me almost a full year to begin to feel like myself again but I did, and In fact, I'm better for the experience.
The fire did suck, but it also gave me a new perspective. I realized that things are not ultimately that important and the important things can be replaced. I also learned the true meaning of friendship when my pals helped me sort through my apartment in the July heat of Vegas while the smell of smoke gave us all headaches. I learned that I can count on my friends and family when I really need them and I learned that my mom and dad really are the best of parents.
Now, years later, I am still learning. This year the lessons were much easier.
I was invited by Anne to her cousin Scott's wedding in Pennsylvania. We flew into D.C. on Friday night and Anne's dad and her sister Jeanie picked us up. We drove to Anne's mom's house to meet her and Anne's brother Robert. On the way we stopped at a convenience store called Sheetz. This place has everything. The best thing they have is a cream cheese filled pretzel. Before the weekend was over I had consumed three of these twisted pieces of ambrosia. Then it was on to the hotel where we finally crashed out for the night. The wedding was on Saturday afternoon. The event was held outdoors and the weather was beautiful, but a little hot. My God , I do not miss humidity. Anne looked amazing. She bravely wore the most challenging high heeled shoes ever designed. I think they are going to be considered for the 2006 Olympics as an endurance test. We ate and drank and danced then jumped back to the hotel to sleep before returning to the same little country inn for an early Sunday brunch celebrating Anne's cousin David's 40th birthday. The McFeaters clan bought him a cane as a gag gift. So, I got to make the rounds and was introduced to tons of folks, met both grandmothers and lots of cousins uncles and aunts. The landscape and the attitude of the people really brought me back to my old life in Kentucky. Sunday night we had dinner at Anne's mom's place and we got to pet some baby pygmy goats and play some Scrabble and shoot off some fireworks. I loved it. I have not been so relaxed in a long time. I was able to totally forget about the rest of my responsibilities in Vegas for a while. I left my phone turned off in the hotel room the whole trip. Just sitting around the coffee table, sippin sweet tea, while the dogs slept on the floor beside us. Anne's dogs are great. There is Laddie who is sweet and reminded me of my dog Molly. Then there is Bandit who is just a bit south of sane with a wild look in his eye, also sweet but unpredictable. Mr. fuzzy socks, the cat, is a lost cause. When people entered the house, he began to destroy decorative flower arrangements. He believes his company on your lap is a welcome gift. In this he is mistaken. We exchanged words and from then on he was as well behaved as any feline can be.
Yesterday we said our goodbyes which was tough. Then a long drive to the airport, more goodbyes and then heading to our planes. Anne and I had a drink at the California Pizza Kitchen in the Ronald Reagan airport terminal as we chatted about the future. One last kiss then she was swallowed up by the security checkpoint. She was on her way back to Cali, me to Vegas. It sucks.
On the flight home I starred out the window. What a difference a few years can make. As we traveled at 36 thousand feet above the ground I was able to see hundreds of fireworks displays all the way across the country. I thought about all those families gathered together to watch these explosions designed to remind us of the cacophony of battle. These bursts of fire, so destructive, can also force the creation of something beautiful to behold. As long as our family is beside us when the bombs burst, the concussion will not knock us to the floor and together we can watch fear change to wonder while the dark sky is made bright again.
Thank you McFeaters one and all for making me feel so welcome and giving me a Fourth of July I am happy to remember.
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