love it

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Fitxofd7kOA&search=funny%20commercials

Die you steel bunnies! Die!

Today I went out to the shooting range with Matt. Annette and Mike were supposed to go too, but it didn't have a shotgun range, and that's what they wanted to do. So, Matt and I stayed for about two hours and just shot pistols. The range was out in the middle of nowhere, about 20 miles from me. It was an outdoor range, and I'd never been to one like that (it was only $5 to get in, though). I've only been to two in St. Louis, and those were indoor with the cool paper-person targets on a track. This place was just a bunch of metal animals and round discs set out about 25 yards. That was a lot further away than I've ever shot before. Matt has a bunch of guns, and brought a .22 Ruegers (sp?) and a couple of 9mm Glocks. The .22 was pretty cool. It fit my hand really well and didn't have any recoil. I shot the Glocks for awhile too, but they're just a little too big for my hand, and the recoil is a bitch. I was doing pretty well with my aiming. Out of about 300 rounds I hit the little animals I think 12 times. The rest of the bullets were either too high or too low, but I was pretty good with keeping the shots in a line. I didn't do a lot of left/right misses. Then we went out to dinner at Iguana Grill on 620. It's right on Lake Travis and the view was so beautiful. It was 100 degrees today, but was cloudy and had a breeze, so it wasn't as hot as it could've been. The food was ok; I'd go there again.

Nathan and Tony are all moved into their house. I went over on Thursday after work - got there around 6pm. They had just started unloading, so I helped them for about three hours. Luckily both of them are tall and in shape, so they handled the few furniture pieces, and I focused on the boxes. Last night (Saturday) we went out to 6th street and walked around for about an hour and half. I know they aren't big drinkers, but it's a lot of fun to just people-watch down there, and I wanted them to see what it was like, if they ever wanted to go back. Then we drove back to their house and watched a movie. I got home around 3am. My kitties were just standing at the door like 'where've you been bitch?' heh.

One thing going right

My passport was going to expire this year, so I mailed it off for a renewal about a week ago. Just checked my bank and the check cleared yesterday. At least I know they got the package. I should get the new passport in plenty of time for Italy.

Ok, Jayson had these up on his blog, and they were so FUNNY. Check it out.

Fast Times at Hero High
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PCLWKeE33kA

American Jedi
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y6CMTI2L6uk

Countdown for Nathan and Tony!

Nathan and Tony are on the road RIGHT NOW driving towards Austin. They are somewhere in Arizona. They've got a rental truck and Tony's car. Nathan's car is presently in my garage. They should be in Wed morning, and they close on their house on Thursday. So, they'll be staying with me Wed night. They are bringing their two cats, but will keep them in the guest room. I really don't want them mingling with my kitties since Asher REALLY doesn't like new cats, and they'll only be here one day anyways. No need to get my kitties upset over nothing. I'll go over Thursday after work and see if they need any help unpacking. Damn, still can't believe they'll be in Austin. This is going to be so fucking FUN.

Sing It!

Gah! I love the Alama Drafthouse! It's the local theater chain in Austin that you can order food at too. The location downtown always has funky stuff going on. Here's the website.
http://www.originalalamo.com/ui/default.aspx
http://www.originalalamo.com/downtown/frames.asp

Tonight I went to the Queen Sing-Along with one of the guys from No Kidding. There were about 300 people there. It was about an hour and a half of old concert footage and videos from Queen with the lyrics printed on the bottom of the screen. We all sang along at the top of our lungs. It was so FUN. People were really getting into it. When Crazy Little Thing Called Love came on, people were dancing in the aisles. We are the Champions was another where people were standing and swaying to the music. The evening of course ended with Bohemian Rhapsody and EVERYONE stood up for that one. It finished around 11:45. I know it sounds corny, but with the screen being so big and the music so loud, it did kinda feel like you were at a concert. One of the best parts was for Don't Stop Me Now. They interspersed the clips from Shaun of the Dead when they are beating up zombies with that song playing at the pub. Awesome!

a new try for pics

Ok, here are the pics I tried to post before. For some reason it won't let me edit the previous post with the pictures.

Here is Mo, Kim, and me at Houlihans on Thursday. I really need a tan.


Here is Sarah, her new husband Eric, and me at her reception. Notice the 'Lutheran water' she's got. :-)


Here are the ladies and me on Sunday at Vicky's house. It's Cheryl, Vicky, me, and Kamila.

"Charles Douglas is that dog food you're eating?!"..."yeah"

Yup, as soon as I heard that, I thought 'that'll be the title for my blog'. Heh. I'll explain later.

Since Wed I've been in St. Louis and Chicago. I drove a total of 2500 miles. Got home this evening.

The original purpose of the trip was that my friend Sarah was getting married in Chicago. At first, I was just planning on flying in and just doing the wedding/reception. Then I started thinking about it, and you know, people don't really have time to visit and socialize at their own wedding. I figured I'd just see her for a few minutes. So, I decided to make it more of a St. Louis trip to see my old college friends, and then I'd drive to Chicago for the wedding and drive back. It turned out better that I actually just drove up for the reception. Here's my trip:

Wed: 13 hour drive to St. Louis. Stopped twice. It was overcast, so it wasn't too hot in the car. I was getting 36 miles to the gallon! I love my little car. I brought about 70 homemade CDs on a spindle and just listened to one right after another - 80s, oldies, and alternative. I have also become newly hooked on a band - AFI. I love love love their new CD decemberunderground. I bought a few of their older CDs and while I like one that came out recently, their really old stuff is too punk for me.

I stayed with my friend Kim that I met at the Marriott where I worked senior year. We've kept in touch, and although she moved several times since I graduated, she is now back in St. Louis.

Thurs: Hung out with Kim. I extended my vacation an extra day to spend more time with her. She's only 30 but she's been diagnosed with lymphatic cancer. She's doing radiation treatment, and I think the prognosis is good. Unfortunately, she's living her life like she's dying soon, which is disheartening. She's having sex with four different guys, smoking 5-7 packs of cigarettes a week, and drinking 5-10 drinks a night (these are her estimates). She's always been a big drinker, but it's really getting out of hand now. I guess she figures better enjoy life while she can. I tried talking to her about it, but she didn't want to get into it. Thursday night we went out to dinner and she called Mo, who we also used to work with at the Marriott. I hadn't seen him in years, so that was great. He works for a brokerage firm doing their computer stuff. After dinner we went to Houlihans, which is like an Applebee's. I guess Kim and her friends go there almost everynight. They all work at California Pizza Kitchen, and all the restaurant people know each other. The bartender knows her well, and he hooked us all up with cheap drinks. I did have one drink. Some people think I don't drink....let me qualify that: I'm cheap and think alcohol is a waste of money and I don't like the taste of alcohol (even in cooking). But there is ONE drink I like - Absolute Citron and Lemonade. And since drinks were only $2, I had one. But, really I don't usually drink. Here's a pic of us at dinner. (will add pic later...blogger doesn't want to do it right now)

Fri: had breakfast with Kim, and then bummed around StL on my own for awhile. Went to see the old Wash U campus, and it's really changed. The library got a facelift and it's so beautiful. The dorm area is completely different. It looks so posh now. Spoiled college kids! The dorms that I stayed in are gone now. Friday night I met up with my old B-school friends - Vicky, Cheryl, and Kim (different Kim) at Fitz's on the Loop. I went home with Vicky that night.

Sat: Drove 6 hours to Chicago. It's normally thought to be a 4 hour drive, but with the location of Vicky's house and the location of the reception, it was a full 6 hours. I'm really glad I hadn't planned on making the wedding. I would've completely missed it. There was a three hour gap between the wedding and reception and I made it just in time for the reception. Sarah knew that's what I was doing, so it was all fine. The reception was really laid back. It was at a forest perserve and everyone changed into shorts and t-shirts. She had slushy machines and cotton candy too. Awesome. I got there while they were setting up and I heard someone say 'Oh, here's comes the truck with the Lutheran water'. I was intrigued. I didn't realize Lutherans had special water. I went over to where they were unloading, and looked, but it looked like regular bottled water to me. I asked someone what the 'Lutheran water' is, and she replied 'Oh, that's beer. We Lutherans love beer'. ! Cracked me up. They had two kegs and everyone was calling it 'Lutheran water'. Learn something new everyday! (will add pic later...blogger doesn't want to do it right now)

Sun: Vicky had a barbeque for all the families. Vicky has a 2-yr old, Cheryl has a 1-yr old, and Kamila and Kim came too. Vicky's son Charlie is really cute. He look just like a young football player - very stocky, no neck, and very tall. He was a handful - getting into things he shouldn't have (like the dog food -see title). Vicky and Cheryl both just found out they're pregnant again, so a large part of the conversation was about that. They were commiserating with each other on the differences in these pregancies compared to their first ones (yeah, that was a riveting conversation), and Cheryl mentioned that she's been craving Big Macs but her husband won't get her any. That kinda ticked me off cause I'm a big believer that the husband should get his pregnant wife whatever she asks for. Then they started talking about body pillows, cause I guess when you get big, you can't sleep on your back cause it'll cut off the artery that feeds blood to the fetus. So, you have to sleep on your side, and body pillows help cushion you so you don't roll where you shouldn't. At this point, Cheryl's husband starts complaining about the pillows. I told him he could sleep his ass on the sofa. That really ticked me off too. I don't know him that well, but he seemed serious to me. You know, your wife already gave you one son and you were lucky enough to have a chance at another, and you're bitching about pillows? Women have to go through 9 months of pain, discomfort, and general unpleasantness, plus there's a real chance of death, and he can't get his wife a Big Mac when she asks for one? Get your non-pregnant ass in the car and go get one! Argh. Vicky's husband on the other hand gets her whatever she wants. He's a real sweetie. They've been together since college and are so cute.

Mon: Drove back. 110 degrees in Oklahoma! Geez. Luckily my car handled the heat just fine and I was able to run the A/C the whole time.

How the hell did this happen?

Ok, I still can't believe this is happening.....uh......I'm going to Italy for two weeks in October. How did this happen??? I went to Mike & Annette's house on Saturday, and Matt was there too. When I first met them Annette had mentioned they wanted to go to Italy. On Saturday when I was over there I casually mentioned it and asked if they were still planning it out, cause I could give them some tips. Then she says yes, they are going in the fall, but they didn't want to go alone, so Matt was going with them....and hey, do I want to come too? Uh, yeah! So, we all talked to our bosses today, and we have tickets booked and everything. Matt and I were able to use American miles (100,000!!! frickin airline!) and Mike & Annette had enough on Continental to get one free ticket and they bought the other one. So, we'll be flying separately but we get in within ten minutes of each other in Rome. Mike also has a ton of Hilton points, so we'll be able to stay free for a few nights.

I was a little worried about taking a full two weeks off of work. In the past it's only been a few days, and I'm back in time to do payroll. My boss hasn't done payroll since I started there, and it's quite involved. But, when I asked her about it, she said it would be morally wrong to deny me a once in a lifetime chance to go to Italy. (I did not mention that I'd been there for two months in college!) So, cool! We'll be going to most of the same places I've already been - Rome, Florence, Venice, Pompeii. But, we're getting a car in Florence and driving to Venice, so we'll be stopping in some small towns on the way which will be cool. I also want to go to the library and get some biographies. Last time the friend I was with was an Art major and knew a lot about all the sculptures and paintings we saw. I'm going to try and brush up on some Renaissance info before we go. I think it adds to the experience.

I guess I'm going to wait until I get back to find another roommate. I don't really want to leave the house for two weeks with someone who at that time would be a relative stranger. At least it'll give me more time to get the kitchen cabinets done! Can you spell pro-crast-i-nate?

A little late to the party

I finally read the DaVinci Code. Wow, that was a really good book! I thought it was well written and the plot was interesting and moved along quickly. I'll get the movie off of Netflix cause I'm not that excited about it. After reading the book I feel Tom Hanks was a horrible choice for that role. I really don't see what all the fuss is about, though. Yes, the book talks about the theory that Jesus was a real human and that he married Mary Magdalene and she had a baby. What's the big deal? I cannot believe what an uproar this book caused in the christian community. It's a FICTIONAL book! It's not even some theology book. It is written as a dramatic mystery. My dad borrowed it and he really like it too, which surprised me. He's usually very critical and dismissive. Even my roommate who goes to church every Sunday thought it was a good book and didn't know why people were so outraged. I guess the author is just laughing all the way to the bank. The book did make me go to the internet and check out the picture of the Last Supper and it IS a woman next to Jesus! Freaky.


Speaking of my roommate.....Sunday was her last day. It was one year exactly. I'll probably start looking again in August. I need to paint the kitchen cabinets first and want to get that out of the way before someone new comes in. I thought I'd have to do a lot of cleaning when she left but she washed her sheets and cleaned the bathroom really thoroughly. So, one less thing I had to do this weekend. I did edge and mow my front lawn. It looks pretty good if you ignore the fact that 25% of the green stuff you see are actually weeds. Oh well.