Create honkin' new post? O.K.

As I said a while back now, we unloaded our camera of a couple hundred some odd photos. Here are a few of them, in the order they were taken.

Josh and I sitting on a curb last Fall.


Christmas at our humble abode, pre snow.


Our humble abode, post snow.


Supper Club, pre Calzones!


Birthday Cake.


The wife with the new nephew, Owen, or Owee boy.


The Happiest Place on Earth.


Croquet at The Dunlap's.


Esme borrowing my boots for a day.


Amber saying goodbye to the old yeller lady.


Supper Club in Silverlake.


The Blair wedding in Laguna Beach.


Our hike to Castle Rock (site of first smooch).


Our couple of months living in L.A.


Esme meeting her distant Uncle Joey.


Bachelor party, pre Black wedding.


Black wedding.


John Steinbeck's house, Salinas, CA.


The Gamble House, Pasadena, CA.


Still The Happiest Place on Earth.


Our house #1. Bedroom.


Our house #2. Still Bedroom.


Our house #3. Bathroom.


Our house #4. Throne.


Our house #5. Dining Room.


Our house #6. Kitchen.


Our house #7. Living Room.


Our house #8. Still Living Room.


Josh at work.


Pumpkin pickin'.


Singing love songs at Big Sur.


On the grass at Bridge School.


And that pretty much brings us up to date.

Adieu.

(Sing)

We're off to see the wizard, the wonderful wizard of Bridge-School-Benefit-who's-name-is-Neil-Young,
Because because because because becaaauuse,
Because of the wonderful skills-he-has-at-singing-and-playing-guitar-and-some-of-the-other-people-on-the-line-up-too.
Badabumbumbumbumbumbumbump.

This weekend will be alot cooler than that just was.

Wine.

Cheap Wine.

So the line-up is as follows:
Neil Young
Pearl Jam
Dave Matthews Band
Brian Wilson
Foo Fighters
Trent Reznor
Death Cab for Cutie
Gillian Welch
Devendra Banhart
plus special guests!

Out of those, I'm excited to see the following:
Boris
Neil Young
Pearl Jam
Thee Brian Wilson
Foo Fighters
Death Cab
G. Welch
D. Banhart
and maybe the special guests!

Photos to follow will be many in numbers.

I like all my friends alot. All of them.

Catch you on the frip side.

Last night...

...was a blasty. Thanks to those who came. I kicked back quite a few, and there were times on stage when I thought things could get scary, but we managed and had lots of fun.
We were, and were amongst, performers who tend to make mistakes. When these errors occur we performers either brush them off or get a little sad and go home. No big deal. This weekend I will be watching performers who, when they slip-up... could die.



This is called the Opposing Climb. If you look closely you will see the #5 plane pass in the opposite direction just before they pull up. This will rule.

Son of a b.

When I left my parents house last night the score was tied at two. In the time that it took me to drive to the f-ing pub the Card's gained a four run lead and eventually beat the Padres out of the m-f-ing series. It was a bummer. Next year.

It costs $275.00 to replace my lost, piece of s, pain in the a, car key.
F! I think Amber and I will be sharing hers for a while.

Who enjoyed the Lost premier?

Who wants to be a buddy and join us at Detroit Bar on Thursday?

We play at nine.

Thats it.

Welcome to October.

My wife and I awoke this morning to the pitter patter of the first Autumn rain. I oozed out of bed with swollen eyes and felt my way along the bedroom wall, past the dresser to the cold metal of the bathroom door knob. I quickly came to after a hot shower. Coffee. The scent was thick and I was hot on the trail. I pulled on a pair of polyester pants and an old t-shirt. I tied my blue shoes and lobbed a corduroy jacket over my back. My wife handed me a cup of coffee and a fried egg sandwich. I kissed her twice and walked out the front door.

So it's Monday morning and I'm at the office in front of the computer. News readin'. Blog checkin'. Bill Handle listnin'. Phone answerin'. Calculator calculatin'. Not much else to say, I just felt like writin'.

I'm glad the Padres will play in the National League Division Series.

I'm excited to watch Boris rip my face off.

I'm excited to go camping, and go to Bridge School.

I'm getting a gold tooth today.

Welcome to October.

Two things to not do.

#1. Be in San Diego and plan on going to your favorite Baseball team's final home game but at the last minute casually decide not to only to miss out on being a part of a sell out multitude of screaming fans watching Trevor Hoffman in the bottom of the ninth blow the cheese right past three Pirates to break the all time record with his 479th career save.

#2. Walk into the dog shelter/pound to look for a dog to buy just in time to see the lady behind the counter pulling a struggling dog away from it's teary-eyed owner who can't keep it because he's moving away.

Don't do either of those things.

On a more cheerful note, get a load of what my boss gave me today.



Yes sir, it's a 1980 Polaris Galaxy 340 Snowmobile. He said it would make his wife happy to have it out of his yard, and that was that. "Does it run?" you ask. It does indeed run. Like a champ. Well, almost.

Soy muy contento últimamente.

Things are looking up, and as a result I've been able to relax, and smile more. The VW went to the dealer for a new alternator, a new battery, and some new wires. I don't know what any of these wires do, I just know they weren't doing what they were supposed to be doing, hence the car was not working. Fortunately she is under warranty for another two years or twenty-five thousand miles, making all the repair free. So that's totally radical. But it doesn't stop there. I sent our water damaged ipods back East to a little company called Ipod Res-Q, and they fixed both of them. And that's awesomely badical! I also just got around to ordering a new battery charger for the D-Elph, and after charging it and turning it on I found a buttload of old photos that I forgot about. They will be on here next time. Belee dat.

This weekend we make way for sunny San Diego, where my Grandparents will celebrate their 50th with a straight up luau, where my Mother-In-Law will buy me belated birthday Levi's, and where I hope to buy a couple tickets to the Miramar Airshow. Well see about that one.

Lastly, I put up a classic on the other blog. Check it.

Until next time.

Drawn Into a Dark But Gentle World

All this thought about where to live lately makes the world seem so awesomely big. Right when I've got my mind set on Los Angeles a Wilco song comes over the headphones and I start thinking about Chicago, that is until a Yo La Tengo song gets me in the mood for the Northwest.

Food has been good to us lately. Onion bagels with cream cheese, cucumbers, smoked salmon, and black coffee for breakfast. Cotija cheese and corn tortilla quesadilla's topped with avocado and crema mexicana for lunch. And last night for dinner, pork loin rib chops seared with garlic and red wine, topped with Granny Smith apples and red onions sauteed in butter. And beer, with everything.

Lately I've been pulling out some books from my childhood, from an author who is probably more positively received by our blogosphere than other writers. His name is William B. "Bill" Watterson II, or simply Bill Watterson.



He's better known as the writer of "Calvin and Hobbes", a comic strip and book series that I've been reading since age nine, and lately, to the wife before bed to prevent nightmares. It's true. I adore these books more than most things, as well as the author for his goodness and taste in inspiration. He wrote a short piece for the L.A. Times in 1999, a few years after he quit, called "Drawn Into a Dark But Gentle World", in admiration of Charles Schulz as "Peanuts" was coming to an end. That, and he rules. It's because of him that my favorite jet was the F-4 Phantom, and that I was kicked out of Mr. Acoin's 5th grade class for drawing dinosaurs.

Man, Oh Man

So it's been a rough go these past couple of months. We are currently back at our home in Big Bear for as long as it takes. We had our sublet in Silverlake, which was very nice. Amber had a steady job in Pasadena. I landed a job with an architect, and was very excited. I had a great first day on the job. I returned to work my second day, to my boss telling me he doesn't have enough time to train me. There were some curse words floating through my head at the time, but I took a breath and went with, "Sail on silver girl. Sail on by." Acually I didn't, but that would have been good, right? So I spent some time at the library and the mac store, looking for jobs and houses. I picked up a couple tile jobs that helped out a great deal. Then we were off to the next sublet in Monrovia. While there we found a great place for rent. We applied for it and a few days later were told that after narrowing it down to us and another, he went with a more suitable fit. With time and money running out, we got a couple parking tickets, spilt water and broke both ipods, and returned to Big Bear with two broken cars, which brings us up to date.

I apologize for being a big fat farting baby about all this. Amber and I really did have a nice time making friends, learning things, and growing together. And we're not giving up. We just need to get a few items fixed up and payed off. But for now we're in Big Bear and it's autumn. The leaves are turning tone and the crisp air is beginning to bleed through our summer clothes. It's high time I pull out the old smoking jacket and vampire costume. Also, if anyone wants to come up and get some last minute fishing in, just holla.

Sorry Friends

We're making some changes at the moment, and we have no internet. This really really bites in my opinion. My wife doesn't mind so much. I am at a library right now, where the computers are free and the air conditioning is blessed. When we are more settled, which will hopefully be soon, we will update everyone. For now, our phones are still on. That's about it.

Had a crazy ass weekend

Drove to San Diego Hotel at midnight Friday. Surfed Saturday. Well, really sucked at surfing Saturday. Swam in pool. Drank beer. Drank bloody mary's. Drank bloody beers. Bought baseball cap. Went to Padre game. Boo'd Bonds. Drank bloody beers. Swam in pool. Went to PB. Got bro'd. Went to LA. Looked for job. Got lost. Went to LBC. Got drunk. Went to Pasadena. Drank wine. Got douched. Ate stuffed burgers. Got fireworks. Toked Hooka. Came to BB.

Two Things

One: Built to Spill. Last night I had the pleasure of being reminded just how much they kick ass live.

Two: Subway Sandwiches. I think that in order for one to obtain a position of employment at one of these fine family eateries, one must be missing at least two teeth.

Nevermind

My Vegas trip ended before it beganded. But thanks for the support Mike. Let's go sometime.

Viva

I'm driving to Sin City tonight with Nate. We will eat buffet food with Rosie, gamble just long enough to get one free drink, then come home in time for work in the morning.

A Late Invite

Tomorrow is the wife's birthday. Amber will be 26. We will be raising glasses from 8:00pm on at the Red Lion if you would like to join us. Hopefully we'll see you.

Teeth

Long story short, I'm sitting in church chewing gum. A filling falls out of a tooth. I swallow this filling. I go to the dentist. Dentist tells me I need a crown. I get sad, and a little scared. I make an appointment. I go to the dentist again. I get drilled. Dentist tells me I need a root canal. I get really sad, almost depressed, and a little bit mad. I get temporary crown, and make an appointment, which brings us up to date.

I'll let you know how this goes, but for now, i say teeth are shit. Little pieces of it all stuck up in our gums, and I hate shit in my gums.

"Smooth move Ex Lax"

Let that one re-materialize for a while.

It made me laugh by myself.

Where in hell is the problem?

Again we apologize for sucking at blogging. This should be illegal. I don't know that it bothers anyone that much, but I do know that I hate it when I'm all into blogging and I go to check other peoples blogs and they keep saying the same thing. It really really sucks. So again, sorry.

A quick catch up of our month:
-We've been eating at home alot more, for reasons like money and health.
-I landscaped the backyard and we're ready to have a BBQ party.
-We need to have that party soon because we might move in July.
-We got caught up with Lost in time to watch the finale, which was crazy.
-We drove to the Bay Area for the Black wedding.
-We went to the Steinbeck Museum on the way home, which ruled.
-We stayed with the Talbots on the way home, which also ruled.
-I'm way way back into Roller Coaster Tycoon again, and Disc Golf.

We hope everyone is well, and we'll keep you posted on that BBQ party. Also, share with us your May highlights if you'd like.

On a whim

Have you ever been leafing through music at a record shop, bought something simply based on looks, and had it indeed be a good buy? Or a terrible mistake?

For example (Both in 2001):

Good buy: Sparklehorse - It's a Wonderful Life.
Result: Complete Satisfaction. Didn't leave stereo for one month. Still peaks it's head out for weeks at a time.

Bad buy: Dashboard Confessional - So Impossible EP.
Result: Ran around in circles screaming, beating self in forehead and chest. Two hours later, burnt it while crying.

not my achilles!

one of my co-workers tore a ligament in her achilles last tuesday. on saturday one of our clients had to go to the e.r. because her left ankle swelled up two sizes. why did it swell? somehow she damaged her achilles. i don't know what is going on, but i fear i may be next!-a

Sheeeeeeeeiiiiiiiiiiiiiit

Evidently I have allergies. I've never had them before. I'm guessing that the Big Man was sitting around, kind of looking about on His shelf, and with me in mind He said, "Hmmmmm, lets seeeeeee, maybeeeeee... no. Hmmmmmmm, hooowwww aboooouuut... THIS!

I can't breathe through my nose and my eyes feel like they have cats stuck in them. I'm eating a T.V. dinner that I can neither taste nor smell. I take a big breath, then a bite, then I chew. I then open my mouth and breathe out, then chew some more, then swallow.

In other news, I was inspired today to buy a ring binded sketch book along with twelve Verithin prismacolor lead pencils. I want to start sketching again, and maybe if they don't suck really bad, just maybe, post a few.

Cool? Cool.

5/26/06

I can't wait for X-Men 3!!!! I love the Wolverine. He is a babe. I want to be the Phoenix or the Professor. Who do you want to be?-a

Sorry that we suck.

We've been slacking big time. And even after slacking this big time I still don't have much to say. How about an update? We're good. We bought new sheets and they rule. We watched Fargo and it made us feel wierd. We're excited for Spring and Summer. We go down the hill way way too often. We might be moving down the hill very soon. We might not. We got the Ipod tape thing for the car and the Ipod tv thing for the house. We got season two of Lost from the lovely Pattersons. We will watch it all tonight. We decided not to buy Bloodhounds. Trailor puked in my car. Buying gas blows my ass off. We want to hang out with everybody, and we should really get a camping trip together. Anyway, there's more, but that's about all for now. We hope everyone is great and that everyone does rad at every day life.

And if you'd like, name your favorite entertainment system, and then your favorite game on that system. Mine would be a tie between Intellivision's Dungeons and Dragons and Original Nintendo's Captain Skyhawk. Do two if you want.

no joke

Ann Lynn has a meeting with MTV today. Nobody is sure what the meeting is about, but it's exciting nonetheless. They got a hold of the EP and called Josh up and asked to meet with the band. While the boys are having their fancy meeting, Andrea and I are going to 3rd street in Santa Monica to shop. Wish all of us well!
p.s. They have a show at the Lava Lounge on Thursday night that is going to be fun. Come on out! -a

disappointed

i just ate a really disgusting hamburger. i hate it. i threw most of the stupid thing away. i can't leave work for lunch today so matt said he would bring me something. i really wanted a meatball sandwich but the stupid meatball sandwich place wasn't open yet. so i settled for a burger from this place called bjs. not bjs the pizza place that they have "down the hill". that place has good food. this is a different bjs and their hamburgers suck. matt will disagree with me, but i'm telling you, they suck. matt had suggested that i get a hot dog from circle k and now i wish i would have. it definately would have been better than that stupid disgusting hamburger! all this to say, i'm going back to eating pizza three meals a day. pizza has yet to let me down.

On the brighter side of things.

Yesterday I had the pleasure of watching an old toothless couple eat McDonald's Baked Apple Pies.

Good Afternoon, Welcome to Big Bear.

When I'm not drafting or building or maintaining, I'm in the vacation business, or the travel business if you will. I take reservations, book rooms, check in guests, as well as give recommendations for ski rentals and restaraunts and hiking trails. Usually I hate this very much. It's not easy being surrounded by people who are fresh on holiday, excited about buying souvenirs and sleeping in and drinking cosmopolitans. However I've found that with a little effort and a slight adjustment in attitude, my position here can be quite enjoyable. It's a lot like what I imagine Christmas as a father would be like. For example, it's not about you as it is about them. You've had your turn, or will soon. You're in control of first impressions. You set the mood. You can sneak off to the kitchen for a quick brandy blazer and be back before the kids put the batteries into Teddy Ruxpin.
So I don't know if battery operated talking bears have much to do with it, but other than that this is how I feel. Check in day is like Christmas. Our customers are like children. I'm the first person they see. I set the mood. I give them things, not gifts, but room keys and maps, and I send them off in the right direction.
I like to think that I'm a significant part of these peoples time away from home. I like to think that I just might play a role in helping them enjoy their vacation that much more. I like to think that even though I would rather be on vacation, while I'm not, I will do what I can to be a part of or as close to the active remains of the worlds community of travelers.

memory

a few winters ago, when i lived by myself above the liquor store and rosie and suzanne lived in "the slum", suzanne and i had nothing to do. as on most occasions when we have nothing to do we found ourselves at teddy bear drinking coffee. after several hours we had consumed an absurd amount of coffee, were much too hyper for our own good, and reverted back to jr. high and thought it would be a lot of fun to walk to k-mart. we took a cup of coffee to go and began the three-mile walk in the freezing cold snow. about, oh, ten minutes into the walk we realized that this was a dumb idea, not fun at all, and that k-mart was much farther than we thought it was. in order to make the time go by faster and distract us from the cold we decided to sing every song that we knew by heart, starting with bohemian rhapsody. we had so much fun with that one that we switched gears and decided to quote wayne's world in its entirety (we rule at this, by the way). we were part way through when we arrived at k-mart, which was closed, and started making calls for someone to pick us up so we wouldn't have to walk back to teddy bear where my car was parked. we couldn't get a hold of anyone, but we still had wayne's world so we started the walk home. we were in the middle of "did you find bugs bunny attractive in a dress playing a girl bunny?" when we noticed that there was a group of shady looking guys walking behind us. fifteen minutes later they were still behind us and we started to get worried. we started imagining all the things they might do to us. like kidnap us or shank our achilles. we started to get angry, "who do they think they are? they can't mess with us." we formed a plan. if they tried anything we would go completely nuts, we would be a fury of teeth and nails. we got really worked up and brave until we passed through a section of the street with no lights and it seemed very very dark. we lost all our gumption and started running, yelling "no, not my achilles! anything but my achilles!" looking back, i don't think those guys were following us at all and probably thought we were complete freak shows. but that night forever solidified our fear of getting shanked in the achilles.

still?

it snowed six inches last night and it's still coming. i'm annoyed. it's freezing. i don't have any snow boots because three months ago it didn't look like i would need them. i like winter, i like all of the seasons. i love the snow and i love bundling up. but i like these things at their proper time. the appropriate time for snow and winter is from november to the begining of march. sometimes it creeps in a little early in october, that's ok. but this is silly. it's april for god's sake. this isn't alaska, this is southern california! this year in november, december, january, and even february: no snow. in fact, it was kind of warm. no winter like behavior. march rolls around and suddenly winter decides to show up. well i say, you had your chance winter. make room for spring. i want to wear cute shoes. anyway, if this nonsense keeps up through may i'm getting out of here. hey talbots, how is the weather in ventura? can matt and i share a room with ewan?

it's not just the ill timed weather that's getting me down. i just finished reading "gone with the wind" and it's got me in a funk. matt tried to tell me that it's just a book and the people aren't real so i shouldn't get upset. i can't help it. i have to take a little break before i start something else. any suggestions of something to read that is not so emotionally taxing?-a

Good Days of Old

This morning I stood in the shower for probably fourty five minutes, soaking up the hot water, staring at the floor, and reflecting on some good days of the past. I noticed that these good days, for me, all encompass the same qualities. For example, these days usually begin fairly early in the morning. They usually take place in nice weather. They are most often experienced outdoors. They don't fall on or around a work day. And among other things, there is no serious responsibility involved. That is the way life should be lived.

1989: We spent the evening at The Conastoga Hotel playing in the pool and listing off, in order, which rides we were going on the next day. Splash Mountain had just opened. Star Tours was new. I bought a jaw-breaker the size of my head, and licked it three times a day for the next seven years.

1992: After a big day at summer camp I came home to find a Hawaiian Luau Birthday party waiting for me. All my friends were present, including Derek, Josh, Seth, Steve, Chad, and Danny. That night we watched Stand By Me, and then I beat Chad at Blades of Steal.

1997: Last day of my sophmore year. We ditched and went out to the rocks, where we jumped in the lake, lounged in the sun, drank Cactus Cooler, and listened to NOFX until nightfall.

1999: We went to the Heule's cabin on the edge of Zion in Utah. We had an early breakfast at a local ranch, rode horseback through the hills, had lunch on the trail, headed back to the ranch for a climbing wall, took a dip in the pool, played paintball, rode quads through the desert at sunset, and went back to the cabin to shoot rifles and skewer up shish-kebabs

2001: Derek and I were in the middle of a backpacking trip down the coast of California, just north of Santa Cruz, when we decided to mellow out for the day and find a place to sleep. We found a thicket of bushes with a cave like grotto inside, where we set camp. We sat on the edge of the cliff to share a few cigarettes and watch the sun go down. Then we gathered driftwood, had a fire, and ate ramen noodles with salami.

2004: Honeymooning on Oahu. We were up at dawn to rent a car and explore the island. We traveled up the east shore, had lunch on a Macadamia farm, snorkled with sea turtles in a shallow lagoon, leaned into the wind at Nu'uanu Pali, ate "shave" ice on the north shore, hiked the jungle to swim Waimea Falls, and made it back to Waikiki by evening for lobster and coctails.

These were good days. What do we have to do experience more days like this, together, and soon?

Dork

I made one. Don't read it, unless your a dork too.

Who wants to set up a Spring beach camping trip with us?

Nerd

Lately I've developed a fascination with nerdy things. Things that are not nerdy at the surface, but become sometimes very nerdy when i give them the amount of attention that I have been giving them, or desire from them the amount of knowledge that I've been desiring from them.
For example: Polynesian history, zoology and paleozoology, capitalism, model railroads, architecture and the American arts and crafts movement, linguistics, and cartography to name a few.
It's strange, this transformation from the young, social, on the go, pursuer of all things hip, to the not as young, lazy, introvert, beer drinker who shops for globes at thrift stores.
Apparently we grow up.
All this to say the doors of curiosity have been re-opened to one of my personal favorite nerdy things.
Disney.
I am hot on the trail of the history of Disney. The channel, the hotel, the world, and most importantly the man, and the land.
We went to Disneyland yesterday. Everything was dressed up in celebration of the 50th year anniversary. I have always loved Disneyland. Who wouldn't. Acually, I know some who don't. Morons. I have been a pass holder a few times, I have gone many times, and I have set a true affection on that park. Throughout my years of going to Disneyland I have become somewhat of a purist. For example, I wanted to burn down Tarzan's climb when it replaced the Swiss Family Robinson Treehouse. I wept when The Country Bear Jamboree became The Many Adventures of Whinnie the Pooh. And a fire was lit in my heart yesterday when I saw that the little catfish place on the Rivers of America had become a McDonalds french fry and coke stand. These things are crimes. These things make little kids fat. These things make me sad.
There are so many things I would like to touch on. I may even start a Disneyland blog. For now, I'll read what Al Lutz has to say.
My question to you is this:
Stick with and fix up what the people know and love? Or, out with the old in with the new?

In U, S, and A

Very rich people like to drink 'a wine.

Moving on. I've been back at Double E Design two days a week, and it's been very good to me. On days like today I'm reminded of the reasons why I do want to pursue this trade, which are: the artistic expression, the creative freedom (for the most part), and the 1/2 office to 1/2 field time ratio, among other things. Some days I'm at the drafting table, with talk radio and a pot of coffee. Some days I'm measuring up a sunny job in the field, then plopping down on a pile of sawdust to enjoy a ham sandwich with a mexican framer.
Today I was on a new addition marking walls and shooting grades for an As Built. The client was dishing me up some tea and ginger snaps when I took a laid-back gander around the room and thought to myself, "I just might be able to do this".
Nonetheless an occasional day creeps into the mix where I grow frightened, mislaid, and confused. Yet every new day is just that, a new day. I read it put best by a fellow blogger (Mr. Hamilton) this morning, "I'm not stuck with any one profession".
I'll raise a glass to that.

In our Headlines:
My car is back, rip roarin' with her new tranny.
We will say goodbye to Ol' Yeller, but she's getting her very own blog farewell, coming soon (sniff, sniff).
Supper Club weekend. Food. Wine. Beer. Port. Snow.
My wife reads much more than I do. Her book is featured here.
I am a Nicolas Cage fan.

Nashville Trip

On the second of March Amber and I along with a couple friends made our way out to Nashville Tennessee to visit The Colour boys, who were in town to make a record, as well as to see some sights. Here are a few photos from our time.

On the plane. Two books, one ipod, one crossword puzzle, two and a half packs of peanuts, three bud lights, one bloody mary, two games of hold 'em, and a bag of swedish fish.


It does indeed exist.


A long game of Kings Cup back at the house.


Heading out for a day on the town.


Steven M. Black. 2nd St. Downtown Nashville.


Momma and I at the Opry


The Members Only Blues


That's Amber, and that's the CMT building in the distance.
Country Music Television Y'all!


Wonderin' back home. I enjoy this photo.


Derek was happy to see us. This is at The Mellow Mushroom,
a.k.a. The Best Damned Pizza in the South.


This is Wyatt throwing a bowling ball mach 3. This bowling alley was in the boons, about 45 minutes east of the city. We saw true Heshins.


This is one of the few photos I have of the house we stayed in, which upsets me. This house is lovely, 101 years old, original wood floors, fireplaces in every room, huge front veranda, rocking chairs, and located in the Historical District no less.


Here is a before photo of mine and Derek's home-made backyard firepit.


And after. Many a good late night talk was had here.
One of my favorite parts of the trip.


Here we are having a down right rocking chair ho-down,
singin' The Ashtray Blues


Davey, sad to see us go.


Dirty, catching Z's on the way home.


It was a great time.
Items not shown but worthy of mention:
-Nate, he was there too, I promise.
-The phrase, "Get stoked, and get awesome!"
-Brass Monkeys, 1 40 O.E. with 1 cup O.J.
-Catfish Tacos at Judge Bean's.
-Tequila shots with Kings of Leon.
-Derek's beautiful, clean, fresh, bedroom.
-Riding Deeptank with Sean.
-Bongo Java.
-The black lady on the bus.
-Bar fight over Sean's hat.
-Wussy band kids out-numbering tough guy frat boys.
-and
-Coming home to three feet of snow.

We'all back Y'all!

We had a lot of fun in the South. There are many stories that deserve the accompaniment of some photography, so I will get on that soon. The photo hosting deal that I'm using takes too damn long. For now I must say this, "Nashville? More like Smashville! AAAHAHA HAHAHAHAHAHA HAHAHAHA HA HA HA o.k.

Here's one from the weekend before, to hold y'all over.
It's entitled "Born to be Wild".

nashville rules!

we're having an amazing time! when we get back i'll elaborate and post some pictures. but for now i need some advice. nate's sister is here visiting and she is going to give haircuts tomorrow. should i cut my hair? so far i've been told that i should cut some long bangs. i'm scared of bangs and of cutting my hair in general (you all remember the fred savage cut of 99?), but i feel i need a change. please give me some suggestions...-a

this is funny

hist-2>list1-8=:-)

a recap of my last couple days, followed by a list of some sort. the formula to an easy blog session. so let's do'er.
we spent some time with he and she this weekend. we tore the slopes up and the bars down. some good times and some great oldies. photos will soon follow.
brandon was up this weekend, as well, shooting his documentary on the music. it took some time to get used to the camera, but after a few hours it was as if he were nowhere, yet he was everywhere. he was an apparition. he was one with the wall paper.
last night we did a radio interview with tazy for sp and indie 103 and kroq. we had to say things like, "hi this is matt, and this is josh, from the band ann lynn, and your listening to tazy's birthday bash special on ska parade radio one". it was woweewowow.
we had our last d bar show last night as well. we played the faces "ooh la la" and had friends on stage with us stomping their feet. it was fun.
after that amber and i drove home and almost died. it was raining and a great deal of the mountain side was falling down onto the road. then we got to the arctic circle where we must have time warped to the neverending story because we came face to face with "the nothing". it was scary, and i bottomed out over a big rock, and i got pissed off.

things that make me happy/excited:
-long beach wednesday night.
-nashville thursday morn.
-model railroads (preferably HO scale)
-pecan pie by the longshoes
-cold days in my warm little house
-my warm little wife
-tom petty
-cheese dip

the great new hope of literate song-craft
-los angeles times on elliott smith, 1998

if you came out to the d bar last night, thank you. we had a blasty. next week is our final night so be there. i'll have a stack of drink tickets the size of my head and i'll be generous.

the clouds shat about 3 inches of snow on us and i pretty much hate it. not the snow, but this snow. it's been extraordinarily cold so this snow will not melt, it will just spend the next five weeks reducing faintly in size as well as forming an inpenetrable outer shell that will react poorly to the grip of your shoe's rubber soul. when you fall, it will actually begin gently laughing in your ear.

some thoughts

a.) even though jay bennett was a little annoying and hard headed, he was good. he still is. so is edward burch. they are good together. they look alike. what a sad and frustrating thing it must be to be jay bennett, i would think.

b.) i like drinks that come in a bottle. beer and non beer. for example, the good, grimey mexican places that use the tall recycled bottles. i especially prefer a bottle with a twist off top. i've found lately that i will buy beer simply for this reason, resulting in a lot of budweiser, miller high life, and so on. i'll even order them at the bar for their twist off top, and there i don't even get to do the twisting!

c.) i find myself going back and forth, back and forth between pursuing architecture or pursuing teaching. a year or two ago i began developing an interest in teaching highschool history. i've also had loads of experience in the field of building and design. i'm not getting any younger. i'll probably end up teaching hand drafting to a bunch of tenth graders.

d.) i've been greatly enjoying vintage, pre statehood hawaiian music.

e.) we just signed up for netflicks. we are taking suggestions. thanks.

Tonight's the night!

Annlynn is playing at the Detroit Bar tonight and for the next two Mondays this month. Come, friends! The admission is free, the atmosphere is good, there's beer and friends. I need some company at the merch table. The first band goes on at 9:00. Annlynn goes on about 10:45. It's a late night, but we're young and it's worth it. The Detroit Bar is in Costa Mesa, go to www.myspace.com/annlynn for more information. See you tonight!-a

such is life

i'm working. friday night, 8 o clock, and i'm working. sad. i'm getting by with a little "my wife thinks your dead" from junior brown.
yesterday after i got dressed i attempted to fix a minor leak in my shower when it exploded and blasted my body with blistering hot water. then i sliced my thumb trying to stop it. then i finally went to pick up my piano and while moving it the damper pedal broke clean off. the 100 year old pig iron damper pedal.
yesterday was dumb. however i realize now that the way i let it distress me is even dumber. things happen. crappy things. crappy shitty things. such is life. deal with it. at least thats what i paced around mumbling to myself all day.
today was interesting. i hired a mexican named juan felipe to help me spread gravel in the ol' driveway. he was nice, and i've never done anything like that before so i'm glad he was nice. we talked, i practiced my spanish, then i drove him to his probationary drug test, payed him, and that was that.
tomorrow i will sleep in, in an attempt to shake this illness. then i will take my hard workin mama some lunch, then we will go to san pedro for the southern california music awards, which should be... wierd.

give me ten-eye-see!

holy crap i'm bored! i'm about to jam this white out in and around my eyes.

i look forward to:
getting off work,
eating a hot pocket,
watching lost,
falling asleep to linda ronstadt,
and dreaming of whale riding.

amber and i just purchased two pickets to titsburg, i- i mean two tickets to uh, nashville.
this excites the both of us very much. we're going with some friends, to see some more friends as well as to see dolly world, to see graceland, and to get in a pool cue type fight with some real southern tavern divers.
any guidance?

thank-you jj

matt and i finally rented the first season of LOST. it rules. i had seen a couple of episodes before, but it is best to start at the begining and watch them in order. so far we have watched the first four episodes. i would like to give some shout-outs:
first to jj: you gave us "felicity", one of the best shows ever. my college experience would not have been the same without her. next came "alias". i've only watched a little here and there, but i think it's pretty cool. and now LOST, a brilliant show from a brilliant man. and i like the fact that you give greg grunberg ( he played sean on "felicity) a part in all of your shows. i was excited to see him as the pilot on LOST.
second to matthew fox: i loved you in "party of five", glad to see you've made a come back.
third to blockbuster: while i do not agree with your ridiculous late fee policy, and i'm still considering signing up for netflix, you are the only video store in big bear that carries LOST. i appreciate that.
last, but not least, the dinosaurs: i know you're on that island somewhere.

now for some ramblings:

i had a really lovely weekend. on sunday, as you may have read, matt went to a wedding reception for one of his cousins. i've been working way too much and was tired so he let me stay home and he went through the ackwardness without me (thank-you husband, that was amazing of you). so i had a relaxing, leisurely day. i had lunch at bailey's, read my book and wrote in my journal, went shopping for jeans ( i didn't find any), and then i got myself an italiano calzone from maggio's and watched "the office".
i have a crush on tim from '"the office". he looks like jeff tweedy, that might be part of the appeal. he's also really funny. i enjoy when he "winds up" gareth.
february and march are going to be fun. we have st.valentine's day and st.patrick's day: romance and green beer! the boys have their residency at the detroit bar. rosie is coming to visit. becca and darren are coming up for a visit and we're going to go skiing. the supper club is coming up; we're also going skiing. matt and i are going to nashville and i'll be going up to portland to visit suzanne. what a great two months. food, folks, and fun.
my new favorite pizza product is the above mentioned italiano calzone at maggio's. i had it for the first time on friday night when nadia was up visiting (it was great to see you). it has meat sauce, meatballs, pepperoni (which i get in place of italian sausage), and cheese. mmmm...

song i have stuck in my head today: man of the hour, by pearl jam

here

thursday: arriving home amidst the freezing ass and windy expanse of the surrounding evening, i entered my humble abode upon a most blessed sight/sound/smell. a warm and toasty dining/living/kitchen (if you've seen the house you know) area. a wife in her jammies spinning a little chet atkins and putting a kettle on. a few oatmeal cookie smelling candles, and a freshly cracked beatles puzzle awaiting our fiddling fingers. being married.

friday: i worked until eleven. then met up with mikey and put a whole bunch of the family guy on the ol' ipod. "P..., tear, griffen. P tear griffen. Peter Griffen, Damnit!" acually i think it's, "Ah Crap!"

saturday: amber's working on the slopes by 8 am. trooper. dead beat hus slept in to around ten. sat in bed and watched family guy to around eleven. shaved some handlebars. went to bj's sandwich shop for a patty melt and two budweisers. suns out. went to lumber yard, loaded up squareback with stacking stone and spent the rest of the afternoon landscaping the back yard. so that was pretty much man day. i guess, until i pulled into the lumber yard where a bunch of lumber yard type flanel wearin' men stared me down in the cute little yellow car i was in. that night we grabbed a pizza, a six pack, and sixteen episodes of lost. then we grabbed a little bit of each other.

sunday: attended a mostly akward (dry) wedding reception in san diego. on the way home we stopped by the real b.j.'s where sean (now nic'named mentone) proceeded to turn 21 in proper form. had a couple j. reds, discussed plans to fly to nashville, then made friends with a homie/gangster who bought me a bloody mary. i love making friends with gangsters. i absolutely love it!

so here i am again writing about what i did. why do i do this. who the hell cares? nobody.
anyway, tonight josh and i will play some music, then it's time to get serious. amber and i have got a lot of lost to watch. i hope everyone is well.

postscript: customer service is a suck ass thing. i hate bitches.

here

tim- "are all these questions going to be about war?"

gareth- "no i've got loads of ques-, i've got some on tennis, one on the suez canal, loads."

gareth still- "right. next, name the body of water connecting the red sea and mediterranean sea."

just a few random facts about chuck norris as i sit at work and hang ten the web over my stouffer's lean cuisine three cheese chicken and broccoli with red peppers. no preservatives.

fact #1: chuck norris does not hunt because the word hunting infers the probability of failure. chuck norris goes killing.

fact #2: chuck norris counted to infinity twice.

fact #3: chuck norris sold his soul to the devil for his rugged good looks and unparalleled martial arts ability. shortly after the transaction was finalized, chuck roundhouse kicked the devil in the face and took his soul back. the devil, who appreciates irony, couldn't stay mad and admitted he should have seen it coming.

ohhh man.

does anyone remember that kid "verno" from "stand by me" who always said, "sincerely!" and also brought a comb even though he had no hair?
thinking of the chuck norris days made me think of that.

i'm bored.

spent two days in silverlake

where i/we:

slept on becca's wood floor.
was/were inebriated four times.
raced my wife to ralphs for more beer.
made new international friends at a red lion:
-a german who hated america pre living here.
-a russian who hugged me and sang to me.
-a native american who tamed a stallion.
-a lithuanian who spake japanese.
ate at a backdoor bakery.
yodeled along to 'focus' with some pattersons.
quoted christmas vacation in it's entirety.
talked with a longshoe and wife and dog.
reacted allergically to shellfish or saki.
took two benodryl and went to cha cha's.
fellowshiped with lutherans in pasadena.
made and ate baklava c/o a shant and jen.
listened to art bell.
was/were home by sunday midnight.

dumb lists.
i can't stop.
things to do this week:

tune and play guitar.
tune and play ukulele.
pick up tune and play piano. not gonna happen.
start puzzle with wife.
rent the weather man with wife.
make dinner for wife.
up and drive to vegas. hopefully soon rose.

question:

if you could change your name, what would you go with?

i'd go with either emmett, lyle, or rocky.

click this'n here

please do yourself a favor and take a gander at this.

be mine until the end of lunchtime

i remember when i was in or around the fourth grade, it wasn't un-heard of to have three or four different girlfriends in one day. sometimes two at a time, and i was just thinking to myself, "man thats kinda sleazy"
with that thought; i was at the market last night. amber's been under the weather, and i was in line with some chicken noodle and some saltines gazing over the magazine racks when i birthed a concept: hollywood love is very much like that of an elemantary school. that and, how the crap does bat-boy gain three hundred pounds in two weeks? but all these glistening sex symbols that line the covers of "us" magazine and what not are douche bags. it's a formula, become an actor, become a douche bag. however the one difference between l.a. and school, for me at least, was the guilty party. the males weren't doing the dumping, at least in my case. i was doing the getting dumped. apparently i was tight, as opposed to being loose. what are you going to do?
dylan said it best, "all I really want to do is baby be friends with you (cause your tight)." i think that's what he meant.

i am a ninja turtle

i can't stop. every morning i tell myself that this day is going to be different, and inevitably i do it again. i generally don't eat breakfast, unless matt and i go out or we have friends up or something. so in a given week i'll eat 14 meals. out of those 14 i would say that at least 10 are pizza. lunch time will roll around and i may have planned all day to get a sandwich, but suddenly i find myself dialing the number to maggios and ordering a couple of slices of cheese pizza to go. or for dinner i may have been planning on making an actual three-course meal, and there i am at maggios picking up a pesto primavera. i'm addicted to pizza. and why should i stop? i love it.

for all of the struggling musicians

"We don't like their sound, and guitar music is on the way out" -Decca Recording Company, rejecting the Beatles, in 1962

This morning I got up early and went to Snow Summit to pick up a Christmas gift to me from the company. It was a ham and a bottle of wine! I felt very corporate receiving such a gift and it made me laugh. But I certainly won't complain, tonight we will be having a lovely dinner and it will make the holidays last a little longer. Afterward I grabbed a quick cup of coffee and headed to my new job. That's right friends, I have a new job! Although I'll still be teaching skiing and snowboarding on Saturdays (so you all can still be hooked up with lift tickets) , Monday-Friday I am working at DOVES domestic violence shelter. I just started this job and so far I really like it. For the first time, in quite a long time, I feel like I am headed in the direction that I want to be going and I'm making a bit of a difference. When I got here this morning I found out that one of our domestic violence counselors resigned and her position is now open. I really want that job. For now I am the shelter secretary. It's a silly title, really, because I do just about everything there is to do here. But the DV counselor job is exactly what I want to do. I would work at the outreach center office and counsel domestic violence victims and their families on a daily basis. These would be people that do not live in our shelter but are locals needing help. If I'm going to pursue becoming a therapist and put time and money into grad school, then I definately need this experience. After all, what if I hate it? Then I can go in a different direction before I spend a lot of time in this field. I can run away and become a writer. Anyway, I'm giving you way more information then you want to know. I basically just wanted to ask that you guys would pray for me. I get a buzz just thinking about getting the job, so I would appreciate your prayers. Thanks!-a

Also, why don't you bums come to Big Bear more? We miss our friends and we've been coming down to the rough city quite a bit lately. So it's your turn!

arbitrarily weighing up

i'm always way behind with this kind of shit, but i just happened upon an album entitled "howl" by the black rebel motercycle club and it's pretty damn inspiring. i had an old record of theirs that wasn't much to speak of however this new one is worth some typing. i recommend it.

on the first of january, some close friends of ours move to nashville for a few months to make a record. so tonight we will join them in saying farewell and good luck at the lava lounge in l.a. i'm prepared to put a few away if need be. an example of successful marital compromise is this: she gets to spend money on a new shirt. i get to spend money on new beer.

i was talking to brandon vedder on the phone yesterday, when i was interrupted by a scene that transpired before my eyes. i stopped one sentence, and began verbally unfolding what it was i was watching. when finished brandon asked me if i was even aware of what i had just said, and added that it was a perfect example of where and how i live. he also stated that it would be genius in a script. so now that i've built it up when it's really nothing, what i said was,
"i just saw my mechanic drive by in my wifes volkswagen with his dog riding shotgun after he asked us four days ago to borrow it for one day to go feed his moms cat."

i've grown aware as of late that i am a big fat advantage taker. give me something to take advantage of and i'll swipe it from your mits before you even knew i was there. not to proud, maybe that's something to remedy with the new year.

and with that by the way, happy new year. may your celebrations be blessed and safe.

ten

in 1990 i was ten years old. for christmas that year i wanted the lab tech jr. chemistry set, i wanted the he-man vs. skeletor castle grey skull, and i wanted rock'em sock'em robots. i got the lab tech jr. and ended up lighting my sock on fire and burning my eyes. i didn't get castle grey skull, but seth allen did. from that day on we weren't best friends anymore. and i got rock'em sock'em robots, and couldn't be beat.

when you were ten what were three things you wanted?

a tribute to greatness

who am i:

i'm tall. i drink loads of alcohol. ten years ago i bought my first car, which i still drive. i go to vegas bi-weekly and call matt at four in the morning every time to sing him "sweet child of mine". i call cigarettes dugans. in the fourth grade i rapped, i made up stories about a girl who was six hundred feet tall and wide and came from the amazon eating turkey, i had an ape drape for hair, and if you mock it i wouldn't even hesitate to tear off your arm and jam it in and around your eyes. i'm fantastic.

hint: my name starts with b and ends with unky.

today i didn't even have to use my A K

i gotta say it was a good day. two reasons largely responsible are as follows:

reason #1. to my suprise i have just come across my long lost "21 singles" from the jesus and mary chain, including such tracks as head on, just like honey, and sometimes always. pure genius in its simplest form. this gives me a happy feeling deep down inside my loins. and what the hell does that even mean? i've got a dictionary in the drawer, lets take a peek.

loin \'loin\n 1: part of the body on each side of the spine between the hip and the lower ribs. 2: pl: pubic regions

reason #2. we just booked a february residency at the detroit bar. this as well gives me a good feeling in my pubic region. not literally, but this is very exciting nonetheless. so if your in the area, and you like to listen to live music and drink beer, come. steve d. will be joining us with a banjo... no shit.

owen matthew pool

our nephew was born last night. his name is owen matthew pool (matthew, after his uncle matt). he is perfect, you guys. i wish you could have seen him. he is tiny, only a little over six pounds. his skin is perfect and he looks like a little elf. the family went down to the hospital in redlands yesterday afternoon and he was born in the evening. andrea did great and had a wonderful labor and delivery. only josh was in the room with her, so it was very special for them. andrea got to hold the baby right away and josh got to clean him. it was a beautiful night. being there and apart of his birth, and also of esme's birth almost exactly two years ago, has been one the most amazing experiences of my life.
we'll post pictures soon!-a

masterpieces

Alexandre Gustave Eiffel: The Eiffel Tower
Frank Lloyd Wright: Fallingwater
Charles and Ray Eames: 901 Washington Boulevard
Minoru Yamasaki: The World Trade Center
Walt Disney: The Swiss Family Robinson Tree House
John Steinbeck: East of Eden
Miles Davis: Kind of Blue
Charles M. Schulz: Linus
Bill Watterson: Scientific Progress goes "Boink"
Theodor Seuss Geisel: The Butter Battle Book
Wes Anderson: The Royal Tenenbaums
Steven Spielberg: E.T.
Levi Strauss: The 501
Tacobell: The Carmel Apple Empenada

please opine further.

just a taste

the other night after free drinks in chinatown, i ended up in some designer's 10th floor loft with steve, derek, and luke. it was a friendly little gathering; the kind with crack in the bathroom and sex on the dancefloor. i had a few wine's and some smoke, and tried to dance a bit when i was reminded of the reason why i don't much care for los angeles. i was surrounded by plastic people trying so hard to be seen, however when you do make eye contact with one you get snubbed. people who've spent days planning which leg warmers would go better with which high heels, and which sunglasses they could wear inside, at night, and still see the numbers on their phones. here i was in a place where people were waiting in line outside to get in, and i was bored. these weren't my people. but don't get me wrong, it was like a movie, and i had fun with my friends, whom i love. a few dialogues that stuck with me however were:

me: no way, it's the girl from that keith urban video.
derek: crazy, where?
me: right behind me.
derek: crazy. who's keith urban?

it's a good thing derek doesn't know who keith urban is, i wish i didn't.
later:

luke: you just got your picture taken by the cobra snake.
me: your lying, where?
luke: right there by the fire escape.
me: no way. who's the cobra snake?

later:

steve: matt i just had the craziest idea. (if you know steve this is funny already)
me: what is it?
steve: let's take the ladders up to the roof.
me: nice, lets.

which we did, where we were told to get down by a shaq sized black man. immediately after, steve got stuck in an elevator with 17 other people for an hour. thats all.

top five guilty pleasures

1. eating shortbread products
2. watching kcet antique specials on tv
3. smoking tabacco products
4. pretending to play fleetwood mac songs on piano in my car
5. sleeping in during church

name yours

in response to mr. talbot

matt's elph 607
Originally uploaded by mattamberpool.

contents of 1 gola bag:

1 canon digital elph camera
1 soft camera case
1 old relevant magazine issue
1 old spin magazing issue
1 holiday lego catalog
1 pair vonzipper sunglasses
1 cellular telephone
1 edition of the grapes of wrath
1 box bud light playing cards
1 jameson whiskey flask
1 red journal
1 unanswered letter
1 box colored pencils
1 art journal
1 burton beanie
1 set billy bob teeth
1 egg shaker
1 bic lighter
and a bunch of pencils

joshua tree

joshua tree
Originally uploaded by mattamberpool.

had a good ol' fashioned camping trip up in joshua tree national park with tim and shauna. did some rock climbing. told scary stories. got really excited about our "poor mans dinner" and ended up burning it to an un-edible crisp. good times. who wants to go camping soon? say when and pick a spot.

for my 1/2

buried in your blankets left for dead
my heart beating in my head
i lie still pretending i'm asleep
and i watch you put your clothes on for me
the local pharmacist and his wife
and i'm convinced after your performance
that this world is too small for us
and our stupid instincts
and our stupid desires

this one's for derek

songbird
Originally uploaded by mattamberpool.

that time of year

nunkin
Originally uploaded by mattamberpool.

i'm proud of my carving. check out amber's too.

go see it

tagged, in the wake of my beautiful wife.

originally from lindsay.
i'll try to keep it short and sweet as hell.

10 years ago: i'm 15. freshman/sophmore, somewhere in there. i'm listening to sad smashing pumpkins songs and acting depressed. wearing vans and flannels. staying up late toilet papering houses with kids that are way older than me. i'm probably just starting to branch into the whole skateboard and punk rock phase.

5 years ago: i'm, umm, 20. living in huntington beach. being an asshole. dropping out of college. delivering pizza. smoking cigarettes, and discovering jimmy eat world, clarity.

1 year ago: like she said, freshly married up. gettin busy in the sack. sorry. remodeling our humble abode. discovering things about each other, about giving and loving in the true sense of the words. road trippin. having good old times with friends. drinking.

yesterday: it technically started with the colour boys, then driving home from our show in l.a. getting home at 3am. going to work at 1pm. tearing apart tile and getting drywall in my eyes. watching crash. drinking hot chocolate. going to bed. pretty damn exciting.

5 snacks i enjoy:
must i remind you of the emenada.
7-11 go-go taquitos.
shortbread cookies.
odwalla superfood.
maybe a nice cold mgd.

5 songs i know all the words to:
in my garage, weezer.
lady madonna, beatles.
rocket town, micheal w. smith.
super galactic chick princess, norpain.
and the family guy theme.

5 things i'd do with a million dollars:
get super selfish and buy a bunch of shit.
build my grandma pool her dream tree house.
get my wife a washer and dryer.
build a vintage recording studio.
travel.

5 places i'd run away to:
narnia.
tokyo.
tibet.
tahiti.
my bedroom when i was 10.

5 things i'd never wear:
pretty much nothing, yah this one's really not making me think.

5 favorite tv shows:
iron chef.
american chopper.
laguna beach.
modern marvels.
seinfeld.

5 biggest joys:
my wife.
my music.
sleeping.
eating.
showering.

5 favorite toys:
unfortunatly i don't really have any,
but i want a quad,
a batting cage,
some kayaks,
an x-box,
and a slinky.

no dice. big game tomorrow.

back in it! kind of.

bottom of the 6th, cabrera, two run homer.
sox 5, la 2

game 3, bottom of 3rd, sox 4, la zip

...i'll keep you posted. i know, i know. you can't wait.

i was tagged by lindsay

10 years ago: 15 years old. sophmore year of high school. this year had many different phases for me. the begining of the year is when i ended my little "rebellious" phase. i had too much to drink at a jimmy buffet concert. i vaguely remeber sitting on the shoulders of a large hawiian man, singing along to "fins", which was much to the amusement of the people i was with, expect for jaime's mom. i don't think she was impressed. but after that i said goodbye to rum and anything else that pirates drink. i also became president of the backpacking club at my highschool that year and started hiking to castle rock twice a week before school. and i went to the philippines with josh and nadia. pretty much i was a bad ass that year.

5 years ago: 20 years old. my junior year of college and i studied abroad in england. this was one of the best things i've done in my twenties. i travelled through europe with this girl named esther whom i barely knew. i ate gellato, sat in the colosieum for about 3 hours because it was so amazing, sang bob dylan songs with a homeless man in hyde park, worked at a pre-school with the most precious little english kids, thought for sure i would marry some hot englishman but after the charm of their accents wore off i realized i was not a fan of tight pants and turtle necks, i was lonely, and i learned more about myself than i ever had before. when i got back from england i lived with rosie and suzanne in the "costa misery". we made big dinners together and watched the same six seinfeld episodes over and over. my lesbian haircut was growing out, it was a good year.

1 year ago: i just got married, so pretty much all i did was get freaky. just kidding. i went to hawaii for the first time and loved it. matt and i were still working on our house when we got back so we lived in his parents' cabins and had to move to a different one every three days. this took about five months and then we finally got to move into our house. i also went up to portland with suzo and rosie, to move suzo there. it was a really fun trip, but sad to say good-bye to suzanne ( i miss you). matt, derek, nate, and i took a little trip up to san francisco for bridgeschool and that was an amazing time. we stayed in a lighthouse/hostel. we went to a pumpkin festival and went wine tasting and then we saw paul mcCartney. this was probably the biggest transitional year.

yesterday: i went to breakfast and lunch with rosie and then i had to say good-bye to her. she will be back in vegas and i'm very sad not to have her here with me anymore. i was pretty much upset about that all day and ended up having way too much to drink while watching "hitchhiker's guide to the galaxy", which i'm going to have to watch over again. matt didn't notice me boozing it up and he didn't figure it out until we went to bed and i couldn't stop laughing at nothing at all, apparently. then i told him i was going to throw up and then i burst into tears and cried hysterically for about ten minutes. the poor boy didn't know whether he should carry me to the bathroom so i could vomit, soothe me so i could stop crying, or let me sleep it off.

5 snacks i enjoy: tacos from jack in the box, 31 flavors chocolate peanut-butter ice cream, carmel apples, hot tamales candy, and chips w/ guacamole.

5 songs i know all the words to: well this is tough because i rule at knowing all the words to songs. but i'll highlight some of my favorites to sing at the top of my lungs when my radio is broken:
1. shoop, by TLC
2. the humpty dance, by digital underground
3. crazy, by patsy cline
4. ticket to ride, by the beatles
5. everyone ruins it, by annlynn

5 things i'd do with a million dollars:
1. buy my mom a new car and put her through school
2. put rosie through school and support her so she can go to india and africa to help sick people
3. buy esme an entire library with any books she wants
4. buy matt 10 beautiful drum sets
5. travel and be a lady of leisure for as long as possible

5 places i'd run away to:
1. portland
2. disneyland
3. london
4. spain
5. interlaken, switzerland

5 things i'd never wear:
1. anything with puffy paint
2. sweaters with apples, teddy bears, or kittens
3. low rise pants with a thong showing, so tasteful
4. leather jackets with fringe, sorry mom
5. "juicy" velour track outfits

5 favorite tv shows:
1. seinfeld
2. wonder years
3. cosby show
4. felicity
5. smallville

5 biggest joys
1. matt
2. my neice, esme
3. having coffee with rosie and suzanne
4. reading in bed/ writing
5. i'm going to agree with lindsay, "when i am really able to rest in god's grace"

5 favorite toys
when i was little: my barbies, my casio keyboard that made animal noises, my paper dolls, my roller skates, anything that belonged to my brother.
now: my volkswagon, my harmonica, matt (my boy toy), my roller skates (still), and my snowboard.

5 fine folks who can now consider themselves tagged:
becca, linda, joey, derek, josh pool.

tahoe whereabouts pt. 4

biggest little city
Originally uploaded by mattamberpool.

homeward. our fourth and final voyage log. as i said earlier, we took reno like johnny depp in fear and loathing, but came out cotten picken' broke. well other than the stuffed purple bear we won esme. we said goodbye for now and plotted a course south, down the redonkyless 395, and by redonkyless i mean spectacular in it's beauty. along the back side of yosemite, erick schat's bakery in bishop came highly recommended. eat there. we too recommend it. soon after we stopped at a world war two japanese relocation camp called manzanar. this was very interesting, emotionally, and deserves a blog of it's own to describe. all that remained were the foundations of a post office, a hospital, baseball fields and shack upon shack bordered by what appeared to be rock or bonsai gardens. the most moving was the cemetary (in photos). the remainder of the drive was to a purple sky over the mojave, and before long we returned to reality in the form of a warm bed and an alarm clock set for 6:30am, when it's workin time.

tahoe whereabouts pt. 3

tahoe
Originally uploaded by mattamberpool.

at a chilly 2 in the a.m. we arrived at the doorstep of the casa de castaneda (chris & sarah in photos) to a charming tray of cup cakes (also in photos) baked by the mr. of the home. we were taken right in with such warmth and generosity. in the days to follow we toured the valley and were persistently taken aback by its beauty. we shopped candy and toy. we boys kayaked the truckee river (in photos) where i grew too brave and challenged a rock that turned me over, literally, to the icey rapids. we gambled in reno (photos in pt.4). we hiked the mountain. and, if i may be so bold, we very much enjoyed "13 going on 30". all in all we were inspired by chris and sarah to live the life of a toyota commercial as they do.

tahoe whereabouts pt. 2

tunnel
Originally uploaded by mattamberpool.

in next to no time we said farewell to josh, nadia, and ewan and were back in the saddle singing over the all too familiar hum of the 101 at seventy m.p.h. it's one of the more beautiful drives in california, the tunnels and trains and pea soup. we passed and were passed by friends all pointed to the same northern nuptials of kristen and dan. kristen was the first girl i ever shared a saucer sled with. an old beloved friend. good food. good drink. good company. and again as the sun tucked itself into the sea, my wife and i were back on the trail, en route for the sierra nevadas.

tahoe whereabouts pt. 1

denim josh
Originally uploaded by mattamberpool.

end of september. part one of the travels my wife and i shared. we drove toward the west's swiftly passing sun, through the wintry air and red leaves, down the mountain's side , through the vaporous city of angels, to arrive at the blessed home of the talbot family. together at sea level we ate fish, puffed smoke, played gap-hide-and-go-seek, all in all spending (not enough) much needed time being friends.

part 2. (wedding)
part 3. (truckee/tahoe)
part 4. (homeward)
all to follow

pointlessness

sitting here in my chair, trying to think of some original or fun locale of my life to log, and i have nothing. amber and i journeyed our little pettuties up to tahoe over the weekend. i wanted to log that however my photos are not on this particular electronic computing device, so that will be next. i do have something, and at the risk of sounding totally obtuse i will ask this:
in the movie bambi, is that his father, or just some random elderly buck that shows up during the fire and jumps off the cliff with him?

the empanada

i ran for the border and fell victim to a love affair with the sixth food group. before there were five: (1) grains, (2) vegetables, (3) fruits, (4) milk and dairy products, and (5) meat, beans, fish, and nuts, right? the sixth, the taco bell caramel apple empanada, with it's intensely crunchy shell, it's soft innocent buttery breading stuffed whole with warm, possitively sinfull golden brown caramel apple filling, is the youngest addition to the pyramid. this (6th) group is soon to be discovered as the only group required to necessitate a further flourishing and successful occupancy of our own planet earth.

Rosie passed onto me this gem

If you want to pee your pants, go to the following link. -a

www.theonion.com/content/node/33930

classroom wisdom

I was subbing at the elementary school the other day and this quote was hanging in the classroom. I was really inspired by it and I wanted to share it with you guys.

"A day spent without the sight or sound of beauty, the contemplation of mystery, or the search for truth or perfection, is a poverty-stricken day; and a succession of such days is fatal to human life." -Lewis Mumford

Since I read this I have been thinking about whether or not my days are filled with these things. I decided that they used to be but I've greatly neglected them. I've been neglecting the most important things and for no good reason. God is at the center of these things. I want to open my eyes again, for all the beauty and mystery and loveliness and truth. If you want to, post in the comments section how this quote affects you and what ways you fill your days with these things.-a

too late

guess which two places i would love to visit before:

a.) they are under water

b.) someone flys a 747 into their buildings