July 2007 Archives

Friday night, I proposed to Gina. She said yes, which made me the luckiest man alive. No joke.

Now begins the roller coaster ride of the calling, the planning, and the receiving of advice from every married couple we know... and all of that is great, but what really matters is that I'm going to be spending the rest of my life with the woman I love, and I couldn't be happier.

Thanks to all who have already sent us warm congratulations! My face is still hurting from smiling so much. Seriously.

Some months ago, when we were throwing a party in the townhouse, Gerritt stopped by the alternate-universe-equivalent-of-7-11 down the street, the 7 Market, and picked up a few 12-packs of soft drinks. Only Gerritt knows what cosmic force directed him that day to choose Inca Kola as one of the 12-packs, but that decision would rock our pantry to its very core for several months hence.

Inca Kola is a mysterious beast. Bottled in the far reaches of Peru, it is wildly popular in that country, apparently beating out both Pepsi and Coke in the soda wars. Resembling fluorescent urine in color, Inca's taste varies for everyone who drinks it. I always thought it tasted like liquid bubble gum, but the descriptions I've heard range from ultra-sweet Red Bull and yellow cough syrup to cream soda and the soul of Satan, and so on.

I promise it was only out of reverence that the same 12-pack of Inca lasted from sometime in the winter to a couple of weeks ago, when a bunch of the guys got together to help Stephen have fun while Jen got a ton of presents at her baby shower. The game of the day was Brian's new horseshoe set, and the drink of choice, due to a spark of inspiration on my part, was the remaining six cans of Inca Cola.

It was practically a requirement that each man must down at least half of his can of Inca before hitting the horseshoes. I'm pretty sure the spirit of the ancient Incans elevated my skill level to the point where I almost got a couple of ringers in one of the games once. I should have drunk more. I should have drunk more Inca!

Check out the Flickr gallery for the day in Manassas for more Inca Kola pictures and horseshoe action, as well as the ensuing pool party and celebratory cookout. Can you figure out why Katie's head is on fire?

What a summer for movies, eh? I'm not sure I actually realized that there were going to be so many movies I would be interested in this summer. I typically keep a decent idea of the goings-on of film releases, but the most recent line-up of Die Hard, Transformers, and Harry Potter never really dawned on me. I saw Transformers last week, and I ended up liking it more than I was expecting. I was mainly afraid that Michael Bay was going to "mess" with it too much, but that wasn't necessarily the case. There were a few too many characters to really care about everyone, but in the end it's an action film, so who cares - right?

Meanwhile, the promotions for The Simpsons Movie are in full swing, and I like what they've done there! Matt Groening has really had a turnaround since the 80's, when the only Simpsons merchandise available was in the form of bootlegged T-shirts of Bart saying "don't have a cow, man!" Now there's a movie coming out soon, a website where you can turn yourself into a Simpsons character, AND real-life Kwik-E-Marts strategically placed around the country. What a world we live in! To me, the Simpsons cartoon has been on a slow decline for a while, but I am definitely awaiting the movie with bated breath. It will be interesting to see how much the animators can get away with in a PG-13 setting and with comparatively unlimited time.

Also, I'll get this out there ahead of time: yes, I preordered The Deathly Hallows, but I will be in Blacksburg moving Gina out when my book arrives at my doorstep. So I fully plan on becoming a recluse for the few days after I get back. NO SPOILERS, please!

There's always something new on the Metro. Today, I decided to keep my iPod turned down relatively low so as to catch fleeting clips of the train operator. Sometimes I do this even though it's usually in vain as the mumble of the operator is drowned out by the train itself. Today, I'm glad I did, for the man behind the curtain promptly said as we pulled into Rosslyn that "this Orange Line train is now a Blue Line train."

Just like that. Who knew that the Metro operators had the power to change the sex of my train with just a few words and a flick of a wrist?

The funniest thing to me, though, was watching the shocked and appalled reactions of some of the riders. A few stormed off the train in disgust to wait for the next Orange Line to come along.

But, wait a minute, Angry Metro Rider... after Rosslyn, it DOESN'T MATTER which line you're on, unless you're going all the freaking way to New Carrollton! You didn't have to get angry! You didn't have to leave! You could have just sat right back and let it roll, secure in the knowledge that you rode two different Metro lines without ever having to move a muscle.

My goodness. Go see Live Free or Die Hard, turn your brain off, and just enjoy it for what it is: non-stop action in true Die Hard style, Bruce Willis jumping off of buildings and cars and fighter jets, and a general frantic good time. The only thing that seemed to be missing were the cuss words (I guess the producers decided to keep things PG-13 to compete with some of the other blockbusters), but there were puh-LENTY of explosions to counteract that. What's more, the plot hits close to home for me both by being based around D.C. and by showing us a potential downfall for being overly reliant on technology.

There are only two other things I have to ponder: where the heck is that toll tunnel in downtown D.C., and how come the Charm City finally gets featured in a movie and gets its freeways totally trashed? Okay, three things: there is no Middleton, WV, nor is there a giant natural gas hub located there ready for the attackin'. But these are the kinds of details that really only make the movie more fun, for me, knowing that the writers/director were trying to set up the next big action sequence and none of that really matters. I can get behind that. It doesn't bother me. I've seen Bruce Willis survive a rooftop explosion by strapping himself to a firehose. I've seen him eject out of an exploding airliner. I can handle him driving a sedan out of gridlocked DC and getting to WV in a few scant hours.

Thumbs up, kids! Check out the Love Pirate's review, too, for a more thoughtful review than I could give with the energy I have left after returning to work today from an extended weekend.

Don't tell anybody, but I've set myself up for a mini-vacation-at-home this week. I'm in the middle of it right now, actually. You might have noticed, but Independence Day fell on a Wednesday this year, which left those of us who enjoy Federal holidays with a conundrum: extend the weekend from the week before, extend this coming weekend, or just have the one day off? To me, the second option was the only option.

This has left me with the following activities: playing lots of guitar (trying to build those callouses back up), writing music, reading books, being outside (when it's not raining), drinking green tea, watching movies, painting mental pictures, and going to musical concerts. Oh, and today I helped out at Gina's workplace by taking pictures of the restaurant's food for future use somewhere. At one point, I'm pretty sure I photographed J.J. Redick's steak salad, and I didn't wake up this morning being able to say that, so I'd have to count this as one of the good days.

I also just returned from my first Wolf Trap show of the summer (hopefully the first of several): Pat McGee Band, Carbon Leaf, and Stephen Kellogg & The Sixers. I've seen them all before, but I thought the three bands flowed together for a nice bill. Kellogg's easy folk-rock was a great warm-up. Carbon Leaf pulled out the stops for their first-ever Wolf Trap show, and Pat McGee invited a slew of guests to join PMB onstage, ranging from original member and James Taylor soundalike Al Walsh to a horn section from New Jersey. They rocked their hearts out, and that's probably because Pat McGee Band is one of the hardest working bands in showbusiness. Their story is similar to Carbon Leaf: they've kept a certain level of success and a homebase in Virginia and are slowly working their way around the country. And while PMB's sound has shifted somewhat since the first time I saw them in the Water Street Gallery in Blacksburg, they're still a very good live band, also much like Carbon Leaf. I can't recommend them highly enough.

And can I just say again that I love Wolf Trap?

Martha told me that my entries have been too long lately, so that's it for now.

I have to admit, my legs were protesting by the time I woke up Saturday morning. I checked my to-do sheet, and I realized there really were only two places left I really wanted to try to get to: the Skywalk Observatory and Newbury Comics. Both were within easy walking distance, but I wasn't sure if my legs would walk fast enough to allow me to enjoy both before having to catch the train back to the airport. Eating my last Whole Foods bagel, I decided I would try.

The Skywalk Observatory, as the default highest point in Boston, is probably something of a tourist trap. However, it pretty much has the market cornered - who can compete with the view it offers? Some reviews I read recommended skipping the actual observatory and dining in the lounge, which offers the same view with food, but I didn't exactly have that luxury. So, I got my student discount and instantly unsheathed my camera. As part of the price of admission to Skywalk, you also get an audio guide in the form of a little mp3 device with a keypad and a speaker you have to hold to your ear. The tour offered a separate voice for kids, and I was tempted to try that, but the girl sounded a little too annoying. So, I went with Charlie, who sounded like a taxicab driver with a thick Boston accent.

Charlie pointed out several of the landmarks I could see from the various positions as I wandered around the square of Skywalk. I probably would have enjoyed listening to the stories behind the various buildings a little more if I didn't feel pressed for time. As it was, I skipped around to various points that looked the most interesting and covered the full 360 degrees with my camera. Not knowing exactly how long it would take me to get to the store, I made my way down the 50-floor elevator after about 45 minutes.