I went to a great show at the Black Cat tonight with my friends Jen and Ari. I finally got to see Tom Heinl(above), a crazy musician from Eugene, Oregon whom I missed while I was there last Christmas. We also heard the music of Clearlake and the Decemberists. This was one of the best shows I've ever seen, and most crowded. Too bad my friends Andrew and Maris are in Paris.
Brandon is a junior-year fine arts major at the Corcoran College. Occasionally I stop by his place and say hello to him on my walk home. He knows my beliefs are Amish when it comes to video games and he usually finishes up his game if he's playing when I get there. However, one of our mutual friends, Mike stopped by too and convinced me to play a fighting game against him. I won like 1 out of 5 games. (I don't believe my lack of skill is the actual reason I don't like video games.) Mike defended the games by saying, "We got school and no time to play sports ... gotta do something!" Brandon laughed, but agreed.
This is my friend Karl. He is a Marine down in Tampa Bay. I met him at the airport today. It was the first time I saw him in at least two years. At one time we both worked at Marine Corps Air Station New River, N.C. For a while we lived together in a trailer park. Later we moved out and upgraded to a brick house on the main drag of Jacksonville, N.C. When I got deployed he made sure all my things were okay. He took my car to storage and corresponded with my family about storage issues. We use to drive down to Florida together on leave. We went to the barber shop every week to get our hair cut. We drank Guiness together. I am really glad I got to see this guy again. He's probably headed to Iraq in a couple months. I remember back when his wife, and mother of his daughter, was just his girlfriend ... I even remember before that. We share the memories that make life worth living.
Today I left Florida and my family. It was a great last day there and an fun night back in D.C. The flight I got on was over-booked as usual. I boarded the plane only to find that they double-book the entire isle I was assigned to -- meaning someone was in my seat! While the stewardesses figured out the dilemma I stuffed my carry-ons into an overhead bin and walked to the back of the plane to use the restroom. When I came back out they had started to sort things around. I stood patiently in the isle while it seemed everyone else was taken care of first, and they were. Then they called me and said, "It's your lucky day." I was sitting in first class. I even ate the free first-class meal and had the genuine first class company of Fran. When I got my baggage my friend Katie picked me up from the airport. We went to the Russian bar, Maxim for Nigerian Night. Then we walked around this lively city. On my way back home through busy Adams-Morgan I talked to a couple friends who were driving by. The streets were packed. The clubs let-out and fights were brewing. I stopped by the Blue Room to say hi to Solomon (Solid-Man) and Susan. I meandered up the crowded street through fights and disorderly conduct. Spring Break is underway.
This is my nephew Hayden. He flew in from Oregon with my sister Gina yesterday. We probably spent two hours brushing and combing the horses today. But we were so busy with other things we never got to ride them. In the morning we'll be riding though. Me and him are a regular pair of cowboys down here in Florida. Like Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kidd -- tending to the horses, playing cards (Uno) at sunset, and sometimes disagreeing with our mothers.
I went with my niece Becky and her husband Bill after my terrible karaoke hangover today. They are looking to trade their car in on a mini van. They just want more family-type room. While they went test-driving I watched their kid and my great-niece, Reba. I designated an island in the car lot as our play area. I chased her around. She chased me around. Then we all ate steak.
Never Keep a Gift Horse in Your House
This is my sister Patti putting one of her horses away. I forget what this ones name is. She gives things crazy names. Her beagle's name is Casper Addison. What kind of name is that for a dog? It looks like this horse is afraid of the camera, trying to hide behind Patti. I was thinking earlier about that phrase, "Never look a gift horse in the mouth." I was thinking that maybe it would bite at you or something. But when I really thought about it I figured it meant if someone gives you a horse don't look at it's teeth to see how old it is (because you tell the age of a horse by the wear of its teeth). Just take the thing, free horse. Be grateful, not critical of a gift. And sometimes Wee People hide in the mouths of gift horses to poke at your eyes.
Finally made it to see The Passion of the Christ. I went to see it with my sister Patti, my younger niece Carol, and here boyfriend Kevin. There were people crying in the theater after the lights came on. It was an emotional movie but seeing those people cry bothered me as much as an uncomfortable public display of affection. Kind of like when people are standing in front of you kissing and you're trying to look beyond them. In other news I sang Karaoke for the first time in my life at a little place in the swamp called Big Daddy's. My niece Taira and her boyfriend Johnny are there every Monday and Tuesday night. Aside from having a band Johnny has a Karaoke business. Singing in this picture is local hip-hop karaoke legend Booker. God bless Japan.
