Average White Dan

I think I'll go to Boston.

2011-05-31T15:14:00.005-05:00

Does anyone still read this blog? I forgot about it.

But in case anyone somehow reads this but not Facebook, I'm moving to Boston at the beginning of July 2011 to go to BU Law! I made a nifty countdown clock to show my time left in L.A.. To be honest, the only reason I'm posting anything is that I wanted to point to it like this ------>

Crabs!

2007-04-26T18:34:00.000-05:00

Hi Everyone.

Been a while since I posted. Sorry about that. Lots of good stuff happening, not the least of which is that I have new office companions.

After the untimely passing of Coltrane, my betta, my awesome boss Joanna brought me the gift of 2 hermit crabs, Cake and Louis.

Pictures below.

That's Cake on the left and Louis on the right.
Also, go Sox.

The boys with Kat, queen of television licensing.

In their terrarium amidst wildlife.

New Career

2006-11-03T23:47:00.000-05:00

I'm quitting the music business to ride steers.

Ok, not really, but I enjoyed riding the mechanical bull at Saddle Ranch, located on Sunset Blvd, just a stone's throw from my new house in Hollywood! I move in 11/10, and I foresee more trips like this one.

New Car!

2006-08-04T19:56:00.000-05:00

So I finally got sick of fixing the many small things that were going wrong with Heather, my trusty '93 Honda Accord. Heather was a good car, she served both my sister Gina and myself well, but it was time. She's 13 now, and she's got 153,800 miles on her.

So after very, very extensive research with the invaluable assistence of Ms. Connie, I settled on the Nissan Versa. It's very reasonably priced, it's a hatchback, it's got fun toys like Bluetooth and CVT (Continuously Variable Transmission -- no shift shock-- see the commercial). Also, I handled the license for the song used in the most recent Nissan commercial, Mellowdrone's "Oh My", so I thought that was kind of neat.

It took several trips to Nissan dealers, the last of which was an entire day, but I finally got it.

Enough story... pictures!

Me with my old car, Heather, the '93 Honda Accord

New and old next to each other. This is historic.

Jodi, my salesman, shaking my hand as he is about to give me the keys.

The interior of my car (psst. don't tell anyone I didn't take this picture)

The exterior of my car (psst. That's not me inside, and my car is silver, not blue)

7-11 is scary sometimes

2006-06-21T01:38:00.000-05:00

Hey all-

Just got back from 7-11 looking for some late night Gatorade. I had a very strange encounter that I need to re-tell.

I was waiting in line with a few people, one of whom was a friendly Asian woman who was making small talk with everyone in line and with the man behind the counter. She was perhaps slightly friendlier than I would have been at 11:30 at night at 7-11, but she was perfectly pleasant.

Also in line was an extremely large, bald anglo gentleman. For those of you readers who followed the late band Junk Nugget, he looked like a much taller, more muscle-bound version of Mike Ward, our guitar player. As in, if Mike is Bruce Banner, guy in line is the Hulk.

The conversation in line went like this:

Asian Lady (to Huge Bald Guy): "Having a nice night?"
Huge Bald Guy: "Yeah whatever."

[Asian Lady pays and leaves]

Huge Bald Guy (to me): "I mean, I'm not racist or anything, but I fly where the eagle flies if you know what I mean."

Me: "Yeah, totally."

Now, a couple of things bothered me here.

First of all, what the hell did he mean? Like... he only talks to white people? Politely responding to this Asian lady would have been some kind of betrayal to America? Or had he convinced himself that the lady trying to fill the awkward silence in line in 7-11 was interested in him romantically? And thus not "flying" with her would be saving himself for a white lady- a "place" where the "eagle" would "fly"...? I just don't know what "flying" is...

Second of all, what made this guy think that was ok to say to me? He wasn't crazy, so he wasn't just muttering. This made perfect sense to him, and he said it to me as if it were obvious - as if I would agree with him! And he waited until she left, until only I was there and he could speak freely. Do I look like a guy who would "get" something like that?

Third of all, I totally copped out and agreed. And I didn't even take any time to consider it. He had barely finished asking me before I agreed. I know that taking a stand against what may or may not have been racism in defense of a lady I didn't know and who was no longer there was probably not a good enough reason to start an argument with a guy who was of questionable sanity and character and who was unquestionably enormous. But it still made me feel like a sissy. Like a simpering little man.

I'm gonna drink my gatorade now.

Weird...

Best. Site. Ever.

2006-06-05T23:31:00.000-05:00

www.danielfabiano.com

I know it's been a while since I've posted, but you guys gotta check this out.

(psst... it's not me)

More good news? Impossible!

2006-03-29T03:41:00.000-05:00

I got a job at Sony!!!

This is a picture of me reviewing my new hire materials and being happy.

My official title is "Licensing Coordinator"

I'll be licensing music by Sony artists for film and television.

And I'm still working in Santa Monica!

Dan is on iTunes!

2006-03-02T15:54:00.000-05:00

So the first of (hopefully) many songs I've recorded is available at the iTunes Music Store!!!

This is a saxophone instrumental for a song written by Roxanne Seeman and Gavin Greenaway, based on William Ross' theme from the Disney movie "Young Black Stallion".

I think you should buy it.

Update Of Last Post!

2006-01-22T00:58:00.000-05:00

Well, I figured out how to link to things in iTunes!

Check out Billie Hughes Live!

Wanna see some of the stuff I've been doing in California?

2006-01-08T16:53:00.000-05:00

Hi! Hope everyone is settling into the New Year without too much trauma.

I want to let you know about a couple of exciting recent online developments.

First of all, as some of you probably know, I've been recording some saxophone instrumentals. Some of them are available online through my boss's website (scroll to the bottom).

Also, as some of you may also know, I have been uploading some songs written by Roxanne (the afore-mentioned boss) and her songwriting partner, Billie Hughes, to the iTunes music store. We've got three albums up, the most recent of which is "Billie Hughes Live", which I personally happen to love. You should all go to the iTunes music store and search for "Billie Hughes". You can both see the fruits of my and Roxanne's hard work and listen to some beautiful music! (Sorry I couldn't figure out a way to link you there... you'll just have to put in a little effort. Get over it.)

Merry Christmas!

2005-12-20T14:41:00.000-05:00

Hope you're spending it with the ones you love!

Trying to call me? Sorry.

2005-11-04T01:20:00.000-05:00

Hey all. Some mysterious problem with Cingular's service made it so that some people calling my cell phone got the message that mine was "not a working number." Ugh. I'm not a deadbeat, it's just that Cingular hates me.

Anyhoo, I (along with Dave at Cingular) thought that the problem may have been that I had DC service and that I am in CA.

Long story short, I have a new, L.A.-tastic cell phone number. If you want it... comment here? Or e-mail me. My e-mail is still the same. I'd post the number, but then my hordes of hysterical groupies out there would have it, and I'd have to change it again.

Pictures From Verizon

2005-10-23T03:02:00.000-05:00

So when I got home from LAX after having spent a glorious week with Connie in Charlottesville, a package was waiting with with a CD of pictures from the day of my Verizon contest at the Nationals' RFK Stadium. Enjoy!

On the field, waiving when they said my name

Behind the scenes with the Verizon mascot... Mr. Verizon... Guy

Me with the check! And a jealous moth

Los Angeles Dodgers of Los Angeles

2005-07-27T13:46:00.000-05:00

(I wrote this a while ago and forgot to post it! Oops)

Last night I accompanied the Chilton crew to Dodger Stadium to see the Dodgers square off with the Reds. In their previous matchup, Derek Lowe pitched a one-hit shutout, so I was worried the Reds would come back with renewed purpose.

Fortunately, despite a home run by Mr. Ken Griffey Jr. (which was really cool to see in person, despite the fact that he was on the wrong team) the Dodgers triumphed yet again.

Connie and I got to the Stadium plenty early to get a look around. I like it a lot. Big, but cozy.

My Kitty

2005-07-19T01:13:00.000-05:00

This is Emmy. She likes to play in the shower after I'm finished in there.

I say "my kitty" when in reality the kitty belongs to my roommates. But they went away for the weekend, and it was just me, Connie, Emmy and Abbey (Emmy's skittish sister). So she feels like family.

In California

2005-06-20T01:14:00.000-05:00

That's me on the beach after my internship. That's right, at 5:00 in the afternoon I got out for the day and decided to walk down to the beach and read for a while.

California is awesome.

Sure, I'm currently sponging off of my friend Jon and sleeping on an air mattress in his living room. And sure, I don't really know how long I'll be able to pay rent once I DO find a place of my own, in that I have no income right now.

But I'm loving it here. My internship is very interesting. I'm working closely with a well-established singer/songwriter, learning aboutg the biz, getting to contact some pretty important people in the music industry and introduce myself to them. And I'm even playing some music with my boss, which is exciting.

Also, I seem to have won a contest through Verizon Superpages!

Contest info

I entered about a year ago, and I was chosen through a drawing of hundreds of thousands of contestants. So far I have won (I think) a $10,000 shopping spree to any store that advertises with superpages. I also have the chance to win a $2,000,000 shopping spree (payable in $50,000/year) if I pick two matching envelopes out of 25 at the grand prize event, which happens in about a month or so. Details are a little sketchy as to what I can get for my prize, how I do it, and when the drawing is, but I know I won! Hooray! More details tk!

I miss everybody!

On the road....

2005-06-10T12:43:00.000-05:00

Somewhere between Colorado and Utah, Dan snapped this lovely photo of his hula girl. He'll post again when he's got a computer and a place to sleep. Until then, he enjoys cell phone calls and text messages on his lonely, lonely drive West.

Mmmmm...moutains....

Updates!

2005-05-27T08:15:00.000-05:00

Hi everyone, sorry I haven't posted for a while, but I've been going CRAZY! Some updates:

-Took a wonderful trip to Luray Virginny with the beautiful Ms. Connie. And I stole this picture off of her blog. Mwahaha. Despite our sort of non-plussed look, I swear we were having a good time. Note the enormous cavern behind us. Also, the Great Stalacpipe Organ is pretty damn cool.

-Today (Friday) is my last day of work! Some of the agents here have said very nice goodbyes already, as they are not coming in today. I'm hoping there's no tearful farewell party or anything.

-I am desperately fighting to get permission to sublet my apartment for the 2 months left on my lease. C'mon, Momo. Please?

-If the woman from Craig's List does as she said she would (and she might not, she's a total stranger...), I will be selling my bed at 2 PM tomorrow. For much less than it was purchased, but it's used now, and this also saves me the trouble of getting rid of it!

-Tomorrow I am having a hitch installed on Heather, my poor little Honda, so that I can tow my stuff home to Boston in a U-Haul trailer. To me, towing anything with my tiny car is kind of like attaching a yoke to the car's namesake, Heather Locklear, and having her pull a plough or something. C'mon Heather, you can make it!

-Closed my bank account, cancelled my gym membership (which will be finalized with proof of my move), cancelled netflix, put a hold on my directv account, changed the utilities to Ian's name, sold my desk to Connie.

-I also quit the band, but I thought the illustrious and talented group of musicians and all around fantastic guys, Junk Nugget deserved their own bullet point. I will miss you guys!

-Now all I have to do is pack and go home, right?

50% less wise

2005-05-18T10:55:00.000-05:00

Hey all, I know the last post was kind of heavy, so I thought this time I would tell you about something a little more mundane. As part of my preparations to leave, I realized "Oh crap, I'm not going to have medical insurance after I leave Cathie Gill, Inc.!" so I made an appointment to see the dentist down the hall from my office. She told me I had great teeth, but that there were cavities in my upper right and lower right wisdom teeth (that's 1 and 32 to all you dentists out there). I appreciated the thought, despite the inherent contradiction, and asked what I should do. They said that they could fill the cavities, but it would be better to just extract them.

Yesterday, after many reschedulings and much drama about the time I would be out of the office (my boss is crazy. Certifiably crazy), I finally had my appointment with Dr. Ahklagi (which is, may I add, very easy to say while there's a whole bunch of stuff in your mouth. Maybe that's why she became a dentist...) I noticed some things about my visit that I thought I would share.

It's much scarier to go to the dentist when you are a grown-up. Dr. Ficarelli, my childhood dentist, would slap a pair of sunglasses on me to help with the glare of the dentist light, tell me he was administering "sleepy juice" and get to work. This time I had all kinds of consent forms and warnings about dry socket and all kinds of horrible things which made me very very nervous. Also, I had the displeasure of knowing exactly what they were doing to me.

Because this was an "easy" extraction, in that my teeth had both "erupted" out of my gums, they didn't give me gas or general anesthetic, just several shots in the gums. I don't know if they forgot I was there or what, but the doctor and her assistant were discussing the process in easy enough language that I could understand. For instance:

"The roots are too strong on this one and I don't want to pull anymore. I guess we're going to have to go with a hemisection." Well, I managed to crack the super-secret dentist code, to know that she was CUTTING MY TOOTH IN HALF. Yikes!

It also made me nervous to hear the doctor ask for certain devices with which neither she nor the nurse seemed terribly familiar. "I need that clamp thing. No, not that one, the one with the flat edge - yeah, the one on the left there."
If I hadn't had nine instruments and a finger in my mouth, I would have shouted "Have you DONE this before?"

Lastly, after they had pried my teeth out and were stitching me up, these two ladies were chatting. One has her fingers in my mouth and is running a needle in and out of my gums, and one is handing her very important surgical items. They are both mere inches away from my face, and they're going on and on. About personal stuff! It was totally surreal. I sort of began to question if I was actually there. Fortunately for me, the dull ache of my jaw where my teeth had been ripped out helped to keep me grounded. From what I gathered, the dentist, who is Indian I think, has been seeing a guy that has not gained the approval of her parents. I think he's divorced, and maybe has some kids from a previous marriage. The nurse is a product of her Catholic upbringing, and thinks that divorce is never right, no matter what the situation, but the dentist thinks there's a little more of a gray area than that. Plus he's such a great guy and treats her right. Is this making you feel awkward yet, readers? Like you know too much about a stranger? Imagine how I felt! I was there!

Anyhoo, they seem to have done an ok job. I'm stitched up and except for a pretty bad jaw/headache last night and a little bleeding this morning, I haven't had any real discomfort. They didn't even need to prescribe me any drugs. I should hopefully be able to make it to the premiere of Star Wars!

Going West

2005-04-25T15:16:00.000-05:00

Anyone reading this blog knows that I love music and that I do not love real estate. This being the case, it’s really about time I made a change. I’ve been trying to find a music job in Washington for almost a year now, and nothing has materialized. As much as I love it here, Washington just isn’t the right place to be.

So.

I’m moving to California. I’m just going to pick up and go. My best friend from home, Jon, has a place near Beverly Hills, and one of his roommates is going to be gone for the summer (probably June and July). The current plan is for me to move my stuff back to Boston at the beginning of June and head to Cali from there. (I wanted to make the trip as long as possible.)

What am I going to do there, you ask? Good question. I’m not entirely sure. Maybe I will get lots of jobs as a studio musican playing the saxophone. Maybe I will get a job in a recording studio. Maybe I will get a desk job at a huge corporation. Maybe I’ll work with stage sound. Maybe I’ll strike it Rich writing jingles for cereal commericials. There’s a lot of possibilities, and I would be more than happy with any of them.

Hey, I’m young and I’ve got a dream, and there’s no better time for me to go and just give it a shot. WOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!

Cherry Blossoms!

2005-04-11T08:50:00.000-05:00

After work on Friday, Connie, Kyra and I headed down to the tidal basin to see the cherry blossoms. It was bee-oo-tiful.

Thanks to Kyra for playing photographer for the day!

Directivo

2005-04-01T14:36:00.000-05:00

So it turns out that my landlord is, in his own words, "Not inclined to let me out of my lease."
"Well," I almost replied, "I'm 'inclined' to punch you in the face, but I'm not going to, am I?"

In order to console myself and make being at home more bearable, I decided to get Directv. One of the main reasons for doing so was to be able to watch the Red Sox this year, and not only the games that FOX5 wants to show plus the occasional ESPN game of the week. Connie wisely pointed out that if I was able to watch the Red Sox, she might never see me again. (Six moooooonths out of every year). So what did I do? I got Tivo, too! This way I can live a semi-normal life and watch baseball when I have spare time! (And fast forward through commercials and manager conferences and crap!)

So on Tuesday, while I watched Scrubs on Connie's Directv, I ordered my programming. 150 channels, every MLB game this season, and, for 90 days, all of the premium movie channels for free! At around 10:15 am on Thursday (well within the 8:00 am to 12:00 pm window they promised) the installer guy showed up and installed everything without incident. Or so Ian tells me, he was gracious enough to be there for the installation.

It's a little pathetic how happy this has made me. I'm giddy. I watched a crappy split-squad Red Sox exhibition game against the Diamondbacks on NESN and I almost wept.

It's slightly overwhelming, in that now I feel like I have some kind of obligation to watch everything that interests me. Which is hard because I have about 150 channels. Any suggestions of cable programs I should catch? It's been a WHILE since I've had any pay channels. I've already watched "The Core" and "Emmanuelle vs. Dracula" so all of you that were going to chime in with those suggestions, you'll have to think of something else.

Whoopeeeee!

Gizoogle

2005-03-25T15:55:00.000-05:00

In case you feel like the language in my blog is a little dry, try looking at this. It's my site run through Gizoogle. Funny stuff.

"Dad n Nizzle at Mallory Gangsta. Cute."

Ha.

Florida Pics

2005-03-18T10:45:00.000-05:00

As promised, here are some pictures of my trip to Florida. Enjoy!

Mark, Gina and me in front of a cool store called Flaming Maggie's

Mark, Dad, and me at Mallory Pier. Do you know where the weight room is?

I caught a big Cero Mackerel! Then the guide gaffed it. Ew.

Another Fishing Pic. My brother is laughing b/c I hurt my hand reeling in the fish.

My dad fishing. He has cool fishing clothes-- like that hat.

This is Mark fishing. Don't we all look happy?

Dad and Noel at Mallory Pier. Cute.

Picking up Mark at the lovely Key West Airport. They give you beads when you arrive!

Moving!

2005-03-04T16:36:00.000-05:00

Well, I'm sick of being robbed and being cold and being in a basement, so I'm trying to find some new (naive) tenants for my house. I've shown it to a whole bunch of people, some of whom seemed genuinely interested. I should know-- it's my job. However, something always comes up; one girl had a roommate who didn't like the area. One pair of girls who spent nearly two hours planning how they would arrange their furniture stalled and found somewhere bigger (and more expensive). Some people just flake out. What should I do to sweeten the deal? I'm seriously considering throwing in a DVD player. Maybe my body? Anyone?

Amateurs.

2005-02-28T16:49:00.000-05:00

Ok, Washington DC, one more time: FIRST it has to snow, THEN you cancel school. I know, it's confusing. Honest mistake. You'll get 'em next time.

This city is crazy! All they did was predict a storm and school got cancelled? It's not even accumulating! We'll get maybe an inch. AN INCH! To see if we should have school, our dean would throw his dog off the porch. If, once the dog landed, Dean Ghory could still see any fur at all, we would still have school. Don't ask what kind of dog. I don't remember. And for the purpose of this rant, any dog works, because all dogs are taller than ONE INCH.

Me Gusta Cayo Hueso

2005-02-22T15:33:00.000-05:00

Key West was fantastic.

I spent much of my time on the beach.

That was the beach about 2 minutes away from our condo. There were other, bigger, less seaweed-y beaches a little further out.

I also spent much time drunk with my brother, Mark, (left) and my sister, Gina (right). Ok, just kidding, that's the cigar calesman on the right. Gina was taking the picture.

I even caught some fish! Actual action shots of fishing are forthcoming, but here's a preview of the cero mackerel I caught.

I'm... happy... to be home. Ok, I miss Florida a little bit, but there's a lot to like about Washington. Like Connie! And... other stuff... It'll just take a while to acclimate.

Try not to miss me too much

2005-02-11T17:16:00.000-05:00

I'm off to Key West!

Be back the 20th!

Halftime Hullaballoo

2005-02-08T09:33:00.000-05:00

First of all, go Pats. No one deserves it more. I don't care if people hate you now, keep on doin' what you're doin' and keep on winnin'.

Freddie Mitchell: you are a moron. Rodney Harrison caught more passes than you-- and he plays defense. Maybe next time you'll think twice about calling out a player who is much, much better than you are.

Terrell Owens: I tip my cap to you. Turns out, you're not JUST a media whore, you actually worked hard and got back in playing shape and contributed a lot to your team.

Now on to the real point of my post: the halftime show. It seems that a lot of people felt that the halftime show this year was subpar or boring in some way.

Now, I'll admit, I made some quick phone calls when halftime began, because I'm not usually terribly interested in the show. It's usually two or three pop artists doing a sped-up medley of their so-called "hits," which are mostly songs from that year that will be forgotten soon afterward. The artists definitely don't sing. That would take away from dancing and running from platform to platform and shouting "Jacksonville (or whatever town), ARE YOU READY!?!?!?!?" There's usually weird dancers surrounding the stage who are all dressed the same, maybe waving flags or something.

But this year there was a real musician on stage! Paul McCartney sang and played instruments. He wasn't boring about it either, he played to the crowd, and even involved them. I thought the TV screen walkways were cool, and there were fireworks and Bon Jovi.

I don't get it. What did everybody miss? Rap? Britney Spears? To me, this year's halftime show was just way more interesting than past years. Maybe I'm just not the halftime show type.

Blog Recommendation

2005-02-02T11:20:00.000-05:00

What's that? You're looking for a blog that is totally pointless, yet still somehow entertaining?

Besides mine?

Well, ok.

I read it for the articles...

Best. Neighborhood. Ever.

2005-01-25T09:44:00.000-05:00

Ladies and gentlemen, car theft #3.

This time the thief walked away with a cup of change totaling roughly $5. And my sense of personal safety.

Late Christmas? Early Birthday?

2005-01-24T13:44:00.000-05:00

I've been told that sometimes it's hard to shop for me. I'm going to make it easy on anyone who feels like buying me a present for any reason. Maybe because I'm really cool? It doesn't matter why. Somebody buy one of these for me (click "John Coltrane").

P.S. Somebody also please tell the people running this auction that the mouthpiece is on backwards on both of these and on Benny Goodman's clarinet. .

Happy Sucks Day

2005-01-20T11:49:00.000-05:00

I apologize for my less than clever title, but today sucks pretty much any way you cut it.

I am at work. No one else is at work. No one is buying houses today. But I'm here in the office, bitterly not-watching and not-listening to the tiny tv that our office manager brought in to watch the inauguration.

The combination of weather and road closures for the inauguration has prevented me from seeing Connie since Monday, even though she just 6 miles away in VA. I miss her!

I guess what's bumming me out most of all, though, is the damned event itself. I know that even though I didn't vote for Bushie, I should be behind him in some small way because he is going to be the president of my country for the next four years (or even longer, as my friend Drew points out, given his penchant for changing the constitution). But I'm just not feeling it today.

Even if I'm not happy about the president, maybe I should appreciate the grandeur of this national day of celebration. Perhaps I could look at the history of the inauguration and be fascinated by that. Memorable speeches have been made on inauguration day-- maybe if I watched I'd have the chance to hear live something that will be remembered for years to come. Somehow I don't think so. I have a feeling today's speech wil be full of sickeningly self-righteous platitudes about freedom and wholly inapropriate references to God.

It all seems a little silly to me. The nine zillion inaugural balls seem excessive. I won't go as far as to say that because of the thousands of lives lost in Asia and Iraq that the ceremonies should be curtailed or done away with altogether. I understand that the money comes from private donations, and should be used the way the donors intended. I also get that people simply need to have their parties. The celebration is something that gives people pride and not having them would cast a shadow over things. I just worry that we are giving more fodder to the people in the world who think America is a nation of over-indulgent rich assholes who are oblivious to everything outside our borders.

Phew, that turned out to be more than I thought I would write about that... I apologize if I sound whiny or melodramatic. I'm sure everything will look a lot better once this is all over and Washington isn't so crazy.

Farewell, Hiroki.

2005-01-18T10:50:00.000-05:00

It was a sad day on Girard Street yesterday. No, no drug deals went bad. No pimp-ho disagreements escalated into violence. It was something much, much sadder.

Hiroki, Beta Extraordinaire and faithful pet to Ian and me, passed away.

Hiroki could have taught us all a little something about life. Sure he hid behind the fake plant a lot of the time, but when it came time to eat, he didn't just take the pellets and go back to hiding. He attacked those pellets. He was feisty and he enjoyed life. We will miss him.

Not Hiroki. But it looks kinda like him.

I have a new hero...

2005-01-06T11:04:00.000-05:00

...and his name is Dan Dare

Watch the ship for a minute... it gets cooler.

Happy Happy

2005-01-03T15:54:00.000-05:00

Well, it is a new year.

I had a surprisingly fantastic time at F. Scott's on New Year's Eve. To see pictures taken by the lovely and talented Connie on her new Christmas present digital camera, look here. Unfortunately, the events of the evening allowed the small hint of a cough that I had to develop into a full-fledged cold. To get an idea of what is happening inside my body, look here.

Nonetheless, I am happy that I got out and made some memories, and stopped being such an old man. Thanks to my stepmother, Noel, for the heads up on that one.

Happy new year all.

Hello, Moto.

2004-12-21T13:04:00.000-05:00

Yeah, so a lot has happened since last I posted, blogees. Much of it is a little too sad for a whimsical blog such as this, so I choose instead to post a collection of photos from my new phone Enjoy!

My Christmas Tree

A Lonely Lawn Penguin

A lovely amaryllis given to me by my boss for Christmas

Me, upon learning my Christmas vacation would be very short

My beautiful girlfriend, Connie

WTF?

2004-12-02T09:45:00.000-05:00

Check out this fantastic flash movie that was posted on the ever-entertaining and clever mangoat.net

Enjoy!

Pardon Our Dust

2004-11-30T11:27:00.000-05:00

Sorry for the unsightly black boxes (or little red x's), folks. The server that hosts all of the lovely pictures you see on AWD has gone down. It shall hopefully be repaired soon. For now, imagine vibrant, artistic renderings of whatever you would like to see.

A little bit Buddha

2004-11-20T16:14:00.000-05:00

Something to think about from Bill Bryson's "A Short History of Nearly Everything":

"[Atoms] are also fantastically durable. Because they are so long lived, atoms really get around. Every atom you possess has almost certainly passed through several stars and been part of millions of organisms on its way to becoming you. We are each so atomically numerous and so vigorously recycled at death that a significant number of our atoms-up to a billion for each of us, it has been suggested- probably once belonged to Shakespeare. A billion more each came from Buddha and Genghis Khan and Beethoven and any other historical figure you care to name. (the personages have to be historical, apparently, as it takes the atoms some decades to become thouroughly redistributed; however much you may wish it, you are not yet one with Elvis Presley)."

My New Favorite Show

2004-11-13T11:39:00.000-05:00

Call me crazy (or call me boring), but I just love "Ask This Old House."

For those of you that don't watch a lot of PBS, it's just a write-in home improvement show. I can't really explain why... maybe it's the camaraderie... maybe it's the FANTASTIC Boston accents. Maybe it's the limited Saturday morning programming. But I can't get enough of it. Last week I learned about putting in steps in a sloped front yard!

I am saddened.

2004-11-03T15:33:00.000-05:00

I will express my feelings about the election outcome through a series of pictures.

I have settled on "worried" now.
I guess that's what I get for caring.

Finally

2004-10-28T13:12:00.000-05:00

'Nuff said.

I promise I will start posting about things other than the Red Sox now. Had to be done.

Beantown

2004-10-26T10:12:00.000-05:00

Excellent trip home.

Sox won twice.

Pats won.

Slept late. Watched the games with my fam. Got 300 more songs on the iPOD from my brother, a recent addition to the ranks of the iPOD. Now I'm cool because I have a Wyclef album. Other noteworthy additions include Tony Rice, who is friggin' nuts on the guitar, and Tenacious D.

Oh, and I... paid for all of these songs....

Anyhoo, back in DC workin' it. Anyone want to buy a house?

Amazing.

2004-10-21T14:13:00.000-05:00

After game 3:

After game 7:

Amazing.
That's the only word. Now, I know that I haven't been a die-hard Red Sox fan for all that long. Sure I grew up going to Fenway, but it's been maybe 7 years since I have lived and died by the Sox. That being said, I am still just kind of stunned by the amazing ALCS. I didn't know what to do when they won. Bill Simmons (writer for ESPN and die-hard Red Sox fan) says:

"So what happens now? Where do I go from here? Should I throw myself into politics? Backpack across Europe? Take up gourmet cooking? Learn how to fly airplanes?"

That's kind of how I feel. Calling my Boston friends and my dad (perhaps the longest suffering Sox fan I know... a fan since the Braves left town and, after a brief period of confusion in which he looked to the Yankees, swore allegiance to the Sox) helped me to understand just how big it really is! I know there is still much to do in the World Series, but I am just so happy for Boston. And for the Sox, who seem like genuinely good guys. Couldn't have happened to a better team. Friday I am off to Boston to celebrate with my family and my city. It's gonna be great.

Sorry!

2004-10-14T12:49:00.000-05:00

Like Pedro, I'm ashamed. Not for losing game 2, but for neglecting all of you, my faithful blog readers (you exist, right?).

I have been caught up with many things. Some highlights:

The Red Sox are losing to the Yankees.

I'm really trying to keep hope alive. But it seems like the Red Sox consistently choke in the post season, while the Yankees seem only to get better. I will, of course, watch until the bitter (or joyous) end. But I'm not going to be as bright-eyed and cheerful as I once was.

I bought a new desk from IKEA and dropped in on my toe. (It's like the one pictured, but straight, not a corner desk)
It's kind of too big for my room, but it's so new and exciting. And it has enough space to hold my books, CD's, DVD's and pictures. I really like it! And thanks to Connie for helping with it's procurement and assembly!
As for the toe part... I am dumb. On the plus side, a nice doctor at the Sibley Hospital ER burned a hole in my toenail, which now feels much better.

Contemplating breast implants
Ok, I'm not contemplating them. I just liked this story. Shanghai is famous for it's extraordinarily tall and beautiful women, and now apparently large-chested men.

Savage Vocabulary

2004-10-04T12:27:00.000-05:00

If you are looking for an advice column for sexually deviant people with a less than sympathetic columnist, you should read Savage Love. This week was especially entertaining to me because Dan Savage tries (clumsily) to revive some nearly-dead bizarre words. See if you can pick them out!

P.S. I like to think that I'm pretty hip to the lingo these days, but what in the hell does GGG stand for?

People are fundamentally bad

2004-09-28T15:52:00.000-05:00

Well, my car stereo has been stolen for a second time.

Will play/write/record/edit music... for money.... in Chinese

2004-09-27T14:45:00.000-05:00

So here's the deal.

I am not unhappy at my current job. It is fine. I am salaried and have the opportunity to make commissions, which is a very nice set-up. It's just not what I want to do with my life. In my heart of hearts I don't yearn to be a Washington real estate mogul (or as my friend Jeremy would say, "real estate mongrel.")
So I seek employment elsewhere. I speak (less and less) Mandarin Chinese. I know a fair amount about music. I can play a bunch of instruments. I have a working knowledge of Protools recording software.

Anyone have any ideas? I have been pretty vigilant with Monster.com and Washingtonpost.com, but to no avail. I would love to find a job in the music industry in any respect, but not for no money. And there don't seem to be a lot of ads that say "we are looking for a guy who knows a little about many aspects of music."

I would even be happy with a job in which I could make use of my linguistic skills. Problem is, I don't know too much about China or about what's happening in the world in general. I was always very interested in Chinese literature and in the language side of things, not in using the Chinese I have learned as a tool to get me toward some other goal. Chinese is the end for me, not the means...

So I implore you, people of the internet, to make me employed. Just think how great it would be to be responsible for putting someone on the path to his dream! You can do it. I know you can. Ready.... go.

(Incidentally, part of the impetus for this renewed job-search fervor is this awesome book, Love Me You should read it. )

As much as....

2004-09-24T08:41:00.000-05:00

...a man can platonically love another man that he has never met, I love this man. Pedro, pitch well tonight, buddy.

Also, the mets can apparently fly.

Fitness

2004-09-23T09:11:00.000-05:00

So, in light of the fact that:

a) I am a fat crap
b) It seems that all of the men in my family develop life-threatening heart problems (that is, if the cancer doesn't get us first!)

I am joining a gym.
Thanks to the help of one enterprising Ms. Chilton, I managed to get myself to the Washington Sports Club and sign up for a week's free membership and was offered a neat promotion if I sign up for a real membership. I got to work out without waiting, and I got to watch the Red Sox play the Orioles while I did it! I am enthused about working out regularly and about eating right (goodbye, sweet fried things).

Your job, friends and acquaintances, is to police me. I am weak. I may falter. So kick my ass if you see me lying down and eating a French fry sandwich.

I want to live!

I Miss Beijing

2004-09-22T13:53:00.000-05:00

Just a taste of what you see when you walk around in Beijing.

To be fair, this was a 2-minute bike ride away from my dorm at Beijing University.

WHY?!?!

2004-09-22T10:31:00.000-05:00

Ok, unless you are a Red Sox fan, you may not care about this, but I really need to vent.

The Red Sox have recalled Byung Hyun Kim from Pawtucket.

In case you don't remember BK Kim (a nickname which uses the "K" from "Kim" twice, thus giving me a second reason to hate him, the first being that he is awful) here is an article about him being recalled

Oh, but don't worry:

"We won't activate him unless it's the right thing to do," Epstein said. "Unless he's ready to contribute and be a good teammate."

I have news for you Theo: it will never be the right thing to do. He sucks, especially against the Yankees. And who is the team against whom we will have to play well, either to capitalize on the slim slim chance of winning the pennant, or in the more likely event that we win the wildcard and have to make it past the ALCS????

THE YANKEES.

2004-09-21T15:09:00.000-05:00

Welcome!

It has come to my attention that all the cool kids are setting up their own blogs. I thought "Hey, maybe I have something to say." Only time will tell. Hopefully some of you will come along on this little journey.