post turkeyday shoutouts and an inspiration

dearest all-

what a vacation i've had! i actually wrote an entry for this publication while flying over the united states last week (from dallas to los angeles for the big USC/cal game) but it went on and on and basically, i realized that i had been writing not for your enjoyment but for the express purpose of not thinking about flying. which failed miserably since i wrote about how much i hated flying. to recap and brevitize: when i fly, three things happen: 1) i get anxious, 2) i get cold sweats, 3) i get anxious about my cold sweats. which is why i now fly with both a change of shirts (for arrival freshness guaranteed!) and some "italian shower" stuff (cologne and deodorant). and in this new age of decency, i apologize to my italian friends out there. but we know germans don't even wear cologne, despite the namesake town.

anyhoo, it was a blast of a thanksgiving holiday and my batteries are, to clicheitize, recharged.
so, on to an extended shoutout section (chronologically ordered for clarity):

SUPERDUPER SHOUTOUT to the pilots of american airlines. specifically, the pilots on every plane i flew. they did not: randomly trigger any nosedive, turn on/off the seatbelt signs more than once (always a sweat trigger), or arrive short of distance. thanks!

massive shoutout to dr. sharon w. of riverside, california. not only did she 1) give up her ticket for the cal game (so i could sit with her effervescent trojan-clad fan sister katie w. of los angeles), but she 2) showed off her new digs (4.5 stars out of 5. a tipping futon, by the way, is a bonus!), and 3) gave us a tour of riverside. having seen a bunch of places on this place called earth, let me say that riverside is by no means waikiki or hermosa beach. but it definitely has college station beat. nothing gave me more sadness than seeing texas in my front-view mirror as i drove back yesterday from the airport. riverside has a distinctive "california aesthetic", i.e. its slightly manufactured, gloriously manicured, and definitely appealing if a bit fakish. just like the actresses.

BEAT THE BRUINS (rhymes with PRUNES) shout-out to: katie, marcas, eniko, and stef. organization being what it was, i didn't actually get to party with everyone i wanted to party with whilst in los angeles, but i did have a great time. and as an inspiration, i've just read marnas' myspace blog and it comes as no surprise that he's still talented as the wordsmith. hence that radio gig he got. if you haven't read it, go ahead. he somehow scored the "marcas" tag on myspace. probably b/c, at 29, he's roughly 11.5 years older than the average user so is practically an original blogger (since 1999!!!) also sporting a myspace account is stef h. of section 8, row 2, near the wall. nice wave back, longhair! see you at 40!

speaking of which, i must recount the little tidbit side-story of the cal game. 1) by having lunch with the dr. w's, i did manage to share a little floor space with some song girls. bonus. 2) by seeing marnas and eniko inside associate's park (thanks to some shifty nametag passing), i did manage to get a photo, upclose, of my songgirl for this year, alissa. bonusbonus. 3) by taking sordid candids of dancing alissas, i did manage to score a few free beers with marnas et al. bonusbonusbonus. 4) that stef called moments later to say the beer was gone at her party and i missed a chance to see her for the first time this century? super no bonus. boo and hoo. i will sadly be forced to stare at my alissa desktop for the coming year in misery. that she got, the very next game, field passes from the notre dame killer anthony davis, and photos appearing with said mr. davis and other, current trojan killers, makes my blurry alissa photo a little less happy. at least she has acknowledged my providing field passes to her once upon a moon.

how does one talk trash in a fancy section at a usc football game? start tapping the cal fan in front of you mid-way through the 3rd quarter with "its a long ride to berkeley" (sung to "its a long way to tipperary"). how does one talk trash on way to game? spend 17 months growing hair out (now since trimmed to a respectable length), wear dirty jeans and loud shirt and start singing, "dirty long-haired hippies! go home!" (sung to the tune of "to the ends of the earth goes i") can you tell i enjoyed that game? therefore: maximum shoutout to pete carroll and crew for absolving me of fear of the "carr bros. curse" at my first game back since graduation. it's all those $19.99 checks i write each year, i bet...

a 2 = 4 shoutout to nara w. of los angeles. a perfect sunday morning breakfast at the pantry was immediately thrown on ear when we discovered they changed their numbering system for ordering! holy canoles! thank goodness i caught it! and while i linger on my successfully re-ordered 4 (nee 2: 2 pancakes, 2 eggs, hashbrowns, orange juice), i'm willing to bet that nara will catch his spot for a television gig before summer's out. first, we get T3 on "who wants to be a millionaire", then it's me and euge on "college gameday", now nara's turn! which makes me all the more excited to see other members of fluor 803 turn up on tv. any takers for "ben m. on maury povich?" anyone? anyone?

surprisesurprisesurprise shout-out to the huntington gardens in pasadena, california. the dr. w's took the cdr. c's there on sunday pre-flight. wondrous gardens. beautiful gardens. in fact, i'd say that they were the nicest gardens i've ever been in. that they are the only gardens i've ever been in is beside the point. best part was the barefeet i managed to get into for the zen garden (that and the patient zen-like photo of said garden, muy impresivo...)

finally, aloha and macadamia nut shout-out to the people of oah'u. i had a blast there. even the zealot-prophet who drove the shuttle from the airport at 10pm when we were all worn out from flying was a hoot. from surfing (with the locoboyz) to driving the north shore to catching up on sleep or stealing free internet to email papers that were due, it was a perfect vacation. i only wish it lasted longer or that i was fabulously wealthy. both would equal more fun. but, poor as i am, i still felt rich when i left. and it had everything to do with the beautiful family i am surrounded by. that and the "drive with aloha" signs. but seriously, the good dr. and his family of showstoppers was just so great to see and hang out with again. when they move to the far side of the globe for 3 years and you have just enough time and money to revel as far west as riverside, you take your moments where you can. it's mind-blowing to know the next time i see skylar and arianna, they'll (probably) be walking/talking with no memories of crying every time i tried to say hi to them!

ps shoutout to jenna and jeff, the happy couple. and pps bonus shoutout to thatch and his upcoming digs in hermosa beach. having seen riverside, i can't wait for a reason to visit in hermosa! (just kidding, sharon. riverside was lovely...) besides which:

college station << riverside

an engineer should get that one...

peace and aloh'a! --goose

now: BEAT THE BRUINS!