hope that i get old before i die…

i have to say that there is something about getting in the car and driving across the country that just does something for your peace of mind. well, except for the people who don’t understand basic concepts like traffic flow and “slower traffic keep right”. it seems like each state has its own version of how to pass on the open road, so here is my interpretation of the states that i’ve observed:

the Missouri pass: “I’ll just sit here in the left lane until I pass every car I can see to the horizon. Oh look! There’s a car 10 miles down the road, I guess I’ll be in the left lane until I finally pass that car, *then* I’ll think about getting over”

the Illinois pass: sadly, as boring as illinois is to drive through, most illinois drivers are going too fast to get out of the left lane. this is the only good thing about illinois i can find to say, so if you’re from illinois, please be proud of your state

the Wisconsin pass: Wisconsin drivers are usually going too slow to pass anyone. Heaven help you if a Wisconsin driver decides to pass another Wisconsin driver.

the Texas pass: Texas is divided between huge cities (and Austin), and middle-of-nowhere BFE. in the cities, you can always count on being behind the slowest person in the left lane while the leadfoot who thinks he’s driving on his own personal autobahn is behind you. with the exception of austin, where it was actually debated in the letters to the newspaper whether or not the left lane is for passing in BFE nowhere-land the cops are so quick to pull you over that you can’t pass *anyone*. they will actually give you a ticket for driving ONE MILE OVER THE LIMIT. don’t ask me how i know this….

the Oklahoma pass: also known as “the reverse pass”. these dumb-ass okies will not only *not* get out of the left lane when they move out to pass, they will actually GET IN YOUR WAY when you try to go around them, then drive *under* the posted limit until you can find a place to get by. expect even worse behavior if you happen to have Texas plates on your car. this makes oklahoma hands down *THE* worst state to drive in in the entire US.

of course this is not an exhaustive list. i have yet to drive in the pacific northwest, and for the most part east coast drivers are good about getting out of the way if you’re trying to pass them. but if you have any experiences in other states that you’d like to see here, feel free to add them

i am finally th eowner of a brand new 80GB video ipod. i’m never one to buy the newest gadgets right when they come off the assembly line for the first time, but in this case this is a long time coming. there are so many times in my life where i wish i had a copy of a song *right now* and now i am able to finally play the soundtrack to my life at all times throughout the day and night. this was the only gift i received this year, and i have to say that this was probably the only thing i really and truly wanted — if i had to make a list that is…

2006 has turned out to be one of my more mediocre years so far, but 2007 is looking like it has a lot more promise for me and my future. new apartment, new friends, and plenty of adventures ahead of me i’m sure. and if i’m lucky, i can get that new motorcycle i’ve been thinking about for some time now. but *that* dream is a little far away at this point. we’ll see what the rest of the year brings me though…

well, i certainly felt like i just wanted to “get away” as the commercials say this morning. when my boss told me he was “disappointed” in my attention to detail, even though he was the one who told me to do the things he was criticizing me for, it made me want to just go home and polish up my resume. (i may still do this anyway — this guy is like jekyll and hyde) anyway, i was driving away for lunch and had green day on. i know they have this big image these days to maintain, but there was a time when their music was not just pop riffs and music industry formulas for success. no, i was listening to their second album — “kerplunk!” i started in the middle but each song that came up pulled me out of my funk and got me back on the right track. here’s a little excerpt of my afternoon mood swing:

give me something to do to kill some time
take me to that place that i call home
take away the strains of being lonely
take me to the tracks at christie road

when i was younger i thought that there was a circle around me
but in time i realized i was so wrong
my immortal thoughts turned into just dreams of a dead future
it was a tragic case of my reality

do you think you’re indestructible and no one can touch you?
well i think you’re disposable and it’s time you knew the truth
it was one of my lies
it was one of my lies
and all i wanna do is get real high
well, it’s just one of my lies

why does my life have to be so small
and death is forever
and does forever have a life to call its own?
don’t give me an answer cause you only know as much as i know
unless you’ve been there once
well i hardly think so

it makes me wonder when i grow to be that age
will i be walking down the street
begging for your spare change
or will i grow that old?
will i still be around
the way i carry on i’ll end up six feet underground and waste away

it seems so frightening
time passes by like lightning
before you know it you’re struck down
i always waste my time on
my chemical emotions
it keeps my head spinning around
and waste away

call me irresponsible
call me habitual
but when you think of me
do you fill your head with schemes?
better think again
cause no one knows

there’s a boy who fogs his world and now he’s getting lazy
there’s no motivation and frustration makes him crazy
he makes a plan to take a stand but always ends up sitting
someone help him up or he is gonna end up quitting

tonight i ended up watching a girl i met a few weeks ago, skyler stonestreet. she’s got a nice voice and is a great songwriter, so please check out her music, she’s definitely worth the listen as bob marley once said: one good thing about music: when it hits you, you feel no pain. so hit me with music….

they say your memory is the first thing to go as you get older, but i never thought i would witness this phenomenon firsthand…. of course it’s not because of me getting older, it’s because of the um, …recreational activities i subjected myself to over the years. yeah, that’s the ticket…

so my boss decided he was going to be mr. hyde today instead of dr. jekyll, so when i left work i was really feeling like i just wanted to stop working altogether. but my friend sent me a text message saying to meet him out for a friend of his dj-ing at a local restaurant and from there it turned into a small party. all i can say is that there is nothing like meeting new friends to satisfy your soul for deliverance from your sorrows. i know i’m going to be paying for staying up so late (it’s about 1am right now after all…) but there is just no substitute for having a good time with some good people. and the best part is knowing that there are many more good times ahead. as another friend said just the other day, “work is work. there is always more work out there. you can’t let work get in the way of seeing the people you love” she meant it in the sense of being with your family, but i think it works pretty well on its own.