The Adventure continues
Details in June...

Blah.
My grandma died Friday night. She taught me how to play poker. I'm pretty much ok. I'm just stressed a bit about when I should fly out of here to go to the funeral. That's the problem with having a job.
It's raining, it's cold, and the Matrix wasn't very good. It's been a particularly somber weekend. I want dinner.

Got a haircut, got a real job
Well, I did it. After complaining for weeks that my life has been on pause, I finally get to Play. I got a job! Starting Monday I'm a Program Assistant for AARP Tax-Aide. On Friday, I'm taking my first vacation day to go to Austin, Texas to see my other College Ave. roommates and some good old-fashioned College Nationals Ultimate. (And Kate if all goes well.) Then on Tuesday I take my first business trip to N'awlins. Woo. Doggie. No wonder people get jobs.

What's the deal..
with D.C. potato salad? Where I come from Potato Salad is yellow and of questionable shape. Here it looks like potato. No good. I want unnaturally yellow potato salad. No more of this Capital city creee-ap.

Austin?
Austin, Massachusetts?

Near run-ins with the almost famous
The past few days has just been filled with fame...
*My friend Rob ran into Nathalie Portman on campus in N.H. He was brave enough to talk to her.
*I met a guy who played at Worlds Ultimate. He was lazy enough to let me hand-block him and sky him. He had poor spirit and was my new nemisis until he asked me to play on his team.
*Today while eating my lunch of fried shark I eavesdropped on the proud father of a future star. You’ve seen his kid in Pizza Hut commercials and soon you’ll see him in a movie with Darius Miles, Erica Christenson (sp?) called “Perfect Score” We all expect very big things. I just wish he would’ve shut up for 10 seconds so I could think my own thoughts during my solo lunch. He’s on his 4th Volvo you know. 3 in row, one in graduate school...

And the plot thickens
If you aren't going to sleep enough and you aren't going to exercise, eventually it will catch up with you. I guess today was my day. I still got asked to play on a Coed team Memorial Day weekend. See title.

Do I?
There is something about Arlington, VA that makes me want to participate in the mating rituals of my species.

No regrets. Ok not many
Check it! That's my buddy Rodger doing OSU's scoring (message 11). Nationals baby! I could've been studying junk and using up my eligibility with that gang, but I'm living it up with the old folks and trying to win a Rec league instead. All the way OSU! All the way boys. Football and Ultimate in the same year. Why the heck not?

Can’t explain it
I went to a party Sat. night. I’m not a party guy. I thought this one would be different. It was an Ultimate party and there was free pool. It was not different. Even in a room where everyone shared my favorite talking point-Ultimate, I still couldn’t find a place to start a conversation. Beer and noise are my kryptonite.
Cut to the next day. Surround myself with basically the same people, but this time I’m in a field and conversation comes second to the actual game of Ultimate.
In our very first game I had one of those great one on one battles going. I got a D on him. He got a D on me. He called a foul. I contested it. And the play was done over. I was wrong, but he treated me with respect. I burned him. He burned me. And all through the game we battled it out. It was one of those occasions when opponents bring out the best. My team snuck away with the victory, but that’s less important to me than the rest of the story.
And the post-game story was interesting too. In between games I struck up a conversation with Chip, my new rival. As I walked away he said to me, “I have an extra skirt if you’re interested.” I thanked him and said maybe I’d find him later. A bit later I did find him and I borrowed a beautiful blue kilt. I wore it like a Scotsman should, perhaps a backwards Scotsman, but still a Scotsman. And it was glorious, probably less so for the spectators. From that point on, I talked it up with my teammates. I joked, I laughed and I didn’t care. It was my kind party.

My sister asked me an interesting question that I still can’t answer. “Why did he offer you a skirt in the first place?” It didn’t occur to me, but that is an interesting question. Chime in if you read all this, but don’t forget that skirt wearing in Ultimate is an accepted practice. I like to think it’s because my Spirit was visible.

As graduation approaches people start to dispense advice. Here at Dotopia, I'm no different. In honor of all those readers graduating soon, already graduated, and even those of you who think graduation is for punks, I give you All I need to know I learned from punk music
*Being grown up isn’t half as fun as growing up...The the only thing that matters is just following your heart and eventually you’ll finally get it right.
*That’s the point. I won’t think about nothing, now I’ve got to do something else.
*ROCK. It’s what we’re all about. It’s what we live for. Come on and shout it out.
*Someone’s got to lose when someone wins. Look at the world you’re livin’ in.
*You’re not alone.
*Go on and take it off. TAKE IT OFF!
*Living so free is a tragedy, when you can’t be what you want to be.
And finally although it isn’t punk, it’s very important advice from Carolyn Hax, “Nothing is better when it rules out a moon bounce.”

And this special heartfelt, nonpunk message from me, "Make me proud, but do it your way."

Nice shoes
Here's the new D.C. pick-up "line". Me: Do you read the City Paper?
CG(cute girl): No.
Me: Too bad. They have these "I saw you" classifieds and now you'll never see the one I put in about you.
or
CG:yes.
Me: Save me 3 dollars and don't make me put an "I saw you" ad in next week's paper.

I know. I know. Who can resist?

I'm flying, Jack
I'm feeling particularly antsy. Overtime isn't helping. The free southern peach Ben and Jerry's ice cream didn't hurt, but it didn't last long. Take me away. To a place where injuries heal, extra work disappears and insurance isn't twice as expensive.

I listen to Bluegrass Country everyday now. I need a banjo.

It's my life
If life is a choose your own adventure, I need to stop picking the same one every day.

to laugh, or to cry?
My grandma claims to have thrown a party this past weekend, but she didn't invite anyone because she couldn't get a hold of them. She also claims to have been kidnapped by the Mafia.
My Sociolgy teacher claimed there is no Mafia.

strange desires
If I had a banjo right now, I'd be playing it.

Sure, Dave, that'll be the day
Know how blogger introduced that feature so you could call into your blog from a phone and post? Well, why stop there? I say connect a button through your neurons that goes off whenever you press your thumb and forefinger together so you can blog as soon as you think it. How cool would that be? No longer would you get these edited, scripted posts. You'd have the real stuff. Uncut and unfiltered, or at least more uncut and unfiltered. Although, I get the feeling that Clare doesn't leave out much on American Idol days anyway. Best of all THINK of the hilarity when people posted by accident. That girl is kinda cute. She doesn't have a wedding ring. Her nose is kinda big. I wonder if I have any frozen pizza left. I really have to pee. I think I do have pizza, whoa, was that my stop? See what I mean!

I interview tomorrow.

You can say that again
but you don't have to.
That's the best Secretaries' Day I've ever had. Cookies, certificates, I even found out what the whole nine yards meant. Then, I topped it all off with some 17th century Dutch Art.

Big Time?
Lunch, on the company dime

The non-moss gathering pebble
*I applied for a job in the department I've been temping for six months. Cross your fingers. Cross your toes.
*After work today I figured if I can't exercise, I can at least be a tourist. Post Office Pavilion. April 29th is Ben and Jerry's Free Cone Day.
*Today is Kim's birthday. After 6 years of being pals with her, I finally tried the ketchup and peanut butter sandwich. I guess you're supposed to dip the pb sandwich in the ketchup, but I can't imagine that changes much. It's not as bad as it sounds, but I'll stick to jelly.
*2 games of mini-golf is a nice way to celebrate Easter. Find the symbolism. I can't.