Battle Hymn to the Snow Covered Freeways

Is it completely wrong of me to be excited about going to see the Mormon Tabernacle Choir? Cause frankly I am. It is like the second most famous choir in the world (I will grant the Vienna Boy's Choir is more famous). Actually I wouldn't mind seeing the VBC either, but I am not flying all the way to Austria.

But the spirit of Christmas has finally hit me, and I am stark raving seasonally mad. I am alternating humming between "God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen" (My second favorite carol - and this is the kick ass Sarah McLachlan & Barenaked Ladies version) and "The Battle hymn of the Republic". Yeah I know the latter is not a Christmas Carol. But bite me. It is hummable and uplifting.

It was so foggy outside today that driving was quiet scary. Whats more, you can see the fog literally in front of you as a wall, one side it was nice and sunny, the otherside... it was the wall... and you could do nothing but drive into it.

Well I am going into Salt Lake City tomorrow. And I cannot wait. Hopefully I get to see "Return Of the King", get to see Jill and give her the potato peeler I got her for Christmas, eat some Sushi and see some lights and hear some music.

Oh and if beer is to be found anywhere in between those activities, I will not be saying no.

These boots where made for skiing

Finally did another major chunk of my Christmas Shopping today. And got the major presents for both my brother and my sister out of the road. My brother was quiet easy to shop for suprisingly. I was told he wanted slippers, as I just got him a pair. Easy. My sister on the other hand was an absolute menace to shop for. I refuse to get her smelly stuff like perfume, soaps or make-up (if she wants it do damn much, she knows the way to the mall), so I was in a bit of a panic. I even thought for a while about getting her a lava lamp or a faux Tiffany lamp, which I saw for pretty decent prices at the store, but I chickened out. In the end I got her a new wallet and socks. Yes sock. I think socks are under-rated.

Well hopefully I am going skiing tommorrow. Unforunately I need to get up early to go. I don't want to get up early. I have not had a full eight hours sleep for a week and it is starting to effect me.

Still, I could just say no, but I will not. I actually want to go skiing. Even with my wide feet.

Yep, wide feet. I know the manufactures of the ski boots always say to get a ski boot the same size as your normal shoes, but I cannot even get my foot into a 10 1/2 ski boot (which corresponds to my shoe size). I have to go for a size 13 1/2 just to not cut of the circulation in my feet! Argh!

Fat Cat, Sleepy Cat, Hungry Cat

I swear I am turning into Garfield. This week I have done nothing but sleep and eat (abietly it is only Tuesday).

I had to cancel with Lennie to see "Lord Of The Rings: The Return Of The King" on Friday since I will be doing my defensive driving driving that day. I couldn't get any other time before Christmas, and I want this course to be over and done with by the last day of Christmas or there will by no maids'a'leaping or geese'a'laying for me.

The sun will come up tomorrow...

I finally purchased the RAM upgrade thingy for my Computer. Well I didn't purchase it by myself. I had to get my fathers help in figuring about which specific RAM thingy I neede. Obviously since I am calling it "thingy" shows my complete lack on knowledge as to watch goes on inside a computer. For all I know "TRON" could be taking place inside of a computer. Well hopefully "TRON" has upgraded itself at least to a "ReBoot" level if it is taking place inside my computer.

I use to love "Reboot" it was the perfect Saturday morning cartoon series. Though heck if it doesn't look old and antiquated these days!!!

But hopefully once the RAM thingy arrives in the mail, I can finally do some serious damage on the computer.

Well tomorrrow is looking like it will be an exciting day. I am going down into Salt Lake for the first time since two Thursdays ago. It is the longest I have not been down their in a long long time.

Having breakfast with all the old crew will be majorly cool. Especially with Laurie presenting the often mention by never seen scrapbooks to Rocky. Those scrapbooks have become legendary. Laurie has even joked that she has spent so much time on them she wants visitation rights!

I think I am going to ring up Kimmy, back in Melbourne. I hope she is home. It is the right time...

...why the heck not.

Martinis, Girls & Guns

Well with a thread title like this, one can easily guess what movie series I am watching at the moment.

Well I went to bed really early last night as I was completely exhausted after a hard day out on the town Christmas shopping and looking at scrapbooks. Laurie's scrapbooks for Rocky where wonderful. FIVE volumns. And they looked professionally down. They where absolutely beautiful.

Except the horrid pictures of me in it. I wonder if Laurie purposely went out and found the worst photos of me and put them in the scrapbook. Lets see. I did like the photo of Laurie & myself at the Salt Lake Stingers 4th of July baseball game. But the photo of me reading "Catalyst Magazine" on the couch was bad, and lets not even go into the photo of Rocky & myself. I looked like I had no teeth!!!

Though she did put in my favorite photo. The one of me at the Manhattan Club against the fake New York Skyline. Puffing a Cigar in my right hand and a glass of Merlot in the Left Hand. Then again I drank so much Merlot that night, it isn't funny.

Afterwards I went Christmas Shopping. Or at least that is what I set out to do. I ended up buying nothing for those who I was meant to buy for, but when I saw a copy of the 1978 "BattleStar Gallatica" telemovie at "Borders" for $14.95, I knew I had to buy it for my mother, since she loved the movie. Unfortunately my mother is the one person whos present I already have. Ack!

Well since I was that tired, I went to bed after "The Simpsons". And that isn't good. I know I have a rule of not going to bed before 9:00pm because it would just mean I would get up to early.

Which I did. I went to bed at 7:30PM and woke up at 1:00AM. And what is worse, I woke up with a killer headache. Well I will spare the grusome details, but lets say it wasn't pretty (and I couldn't find any pain-relievers).

I finally started to feel better around 5:00am and went back to sleep.

Luckily I had nothing on today but the defensive driving course, so I was able to sleep in a bit. But I still have felt groggy all ickky all day.

This has not been that great of a day really.

When in doubt, get a haircut

It is odd how somebody can have an entire new lease on life with one simple haircut. I woke up this morning for a 9:30am appointment with Missy only to discover after having a shower and getting dressed that my travel alarm-clock (which I used since my normal alarm clock has been acting up lately) was still on daylight saving time! It was only 8:30am. And my four hour sleep deprived mind could of had an extra hour of sleep on the house!

I was so PO'd with myself. But thankfully it all changed once I got to the hairdressers.

Missy was as usual, absolutely wonderful. Plus she did a nice job on my hair. I just feel so dirty having the hots for a married women. Oh why oh why! She was extra cute as well today wearing a new pair of glasses. Then again even before Missy got married in the summer she proberly wouldn't of dated me, since she is a good Mormon girl, and I am... well... a gentile...

Then again, I need to stop looking backwards and start looking forwards. While Holly is "technically" Mormon (ie - in name only), she is very open-minded and a fun great person (though she did admit to pulling off an Academy Awarding Winning performance to get into BYU Hawai'i - only to choose to leave it 6 months later). Then again, who wouldn't want to have a cheap tertiary education in Hawai'i!

I popped by Albertson's to pick up Jill's Christmas present - a new potato peeler!

But anyway, with my new haircut I had a new lease on life. With that lease I went back to bed until 4pm (And I had some trippy dream involving Big Bird trying to find his long-lost daughter - even though Big Bird is actually a "she"). But after waking up (one bad thing about that being I will never get to sleep tonight), I got ready for the Red Lobster Christmas Party.

The food was only so-so, but the atmosphere was fantastic. Still the night was great, and I got to be camera-nazi. I love being camera-nazi and taking all the photos and forcing everybody to smile, yet not having a single photograph of me taken - even with my new haircut.

Tee Hee Hee.

Defensive Driving for the Spotless Mind

Well Holly couldn't make it. Darn Lindsay had to go and get better! So with no Holly and no Jill/sushi tonight, I went and started the defensive driving course I have been planning to do for a long time. Yee Gods... I know they played videos from 1972 in normal Drivers Education, but the videos they played tonight where flabagasting. A Disney sancioned Goofy Short?!?!

Is it just me or these driving schools playing it by ear instead of actually having a proper thought out process for these lessons, the lady was nice and all, but she spent half the time on her phone and we marked our own theory tests!

What one does for lower insurance...

I cheated on my diet today. I am a bad boy. A bad bad boy. I ate two Tim-Tams my Grandmother sent over and a whole bunch of preztels. I don't even like preztels, but when I diet, I crave them!!!

I need to ring her up. I have not spoken to her in a while, plus I really want her to send me one of those Northern Rivers Calanders for me like she did for my dad last year. Knowning all the landmarks around Ballina and having them on a calander in your office is a pretty cool idea.

Paid my phone bill today. Bleeh... I am going to just fork over the $15 bucks and get the lower-rate plan my phone comany is advertising at the moment.

The good news is the wireless connections came via FedEx today! I know can use my own computer in my room for the internet instead of this tired old thing I am using at the moment. Well I am defraging it at the moment... so may I can use it tomorrow.

I cannot wait until tomorrow! Red Lobster!!!

Nobody does it better then me

Absolutely one of the most non-interesting days of my life.

Jogged 7.2kms (4.5 miles)

Defensive Driving lesson - Wet weather stuff. Video Sponsered by Goodyear Tires. Bleeh. At least it was made in 1992 and not 1972. Though Scott Bakula in his "Quantum Leap" persona was quaint to watch.

"Anne of Green Gables: The Sequal" (aka "Anne of Avonlea") is playing on KBYU as a part of their never-ending telefone. I want to visit Prince Edward Island now.

When it rains, it pours christmas parties...

I cannot believe I have been invited to THREE different Christmas functions this Thursday. Two of them where invitations today. Holly wanted to go out and see the Christmas lights (finally she rang me up to reschedule)... it pained me to tell her I already had plans on Thursday. She said she'll ring me back to see if she can do tomorrow instead. She originally had plans with Lindsey tomorrow night, but Lindz has been sick, so she might have to cancel.

Then Claudia rang me up asking if I wanted to come to an impromtue little mexican fiesta Christmas Party she was throwing!!! Argh!!! I want to go to them all!!! But I am going to be up north in Layton for a Christmas Party I booked a month ago for the Davis Dems at the local "Red Lobster" (actually that isn't that bad since I love "Red Lobster") Apart from the fact I have already forked over the money for the event, I have already promised to be the offical photographer for the event (note to self... remember to buy film).

I have had so many phone calls today it isn't funny. I have not had as many in the last two weeks that I have had today. I missed four of them outright. One was Jill saying she'll have to cancel our regular Wednesday sushi-dinner tomorrow due to a Christmas Party she has to attend (See! Again! Christmas parties are EEEEEEEEEVIL!).

Well since Jill cancelled tomorrow night hopefully that means I can meet with Holly now (actually It was still do-able before, since I would of been done with the Sushi dinner before I met up with Holly), but now it means there is no excuses on my own behalf. Hopefully Lindz is still sick and thus cancells on Holly.

Okay, that was really really mean of me to hope that Lindz (who is arguably my best-friend) will still be sick. But I REALLY REALLY want to see Holly again!!! Argh! Conflict! Conflict! Will Robinson! Conflict!

On the plus side I did 8kms (5 miles) on the tread-mill today. Nothing interesting was on tele while I was jogging and ended up watching some MTV reality junk (A year in the life of a Cheer Squad) *gag*

Let it snow, let it snow, let it snow...

It snowed today (well actually it snowed in the early hours of this morning) and everywhere is looking like a winter wonderland. It is amazing how snow can turn the ugliest most unattractive things into beautiful pieces of white art. I guess that is the major benefit of snow - for it doesn't really have any other redeaming qualities. It is too wet, too cold and is more hassle then it is worth otherwise.

I had weird dreams last night. I seem to have the wierd dreams when I sleep in and end up sleeping for 10-12 hours. If I sleep the normal 8 hours I tend to avoid any of the surreal stuff that plagues my head otherwise.

Well I am offically counting calories again. I did 6.4kms (4 miles) today on the tread-mill (I ended up watching the latest version of "The Real World-Road Rules Challenge") The producers love to think about more cruel and unusual ways to torture the contestants - not that I don't get a secret satification out of seeing America's most beautiful (and dumb) people get battered, bruised and crying like a schoolgirl.

Reality TV is almost as bad as Lifetime & Oxygen. Though it passes the time when jogging. It's isn't like I am going to be grabbing my crotch and watching SpikeTV anytime soon.

I better get darn well into shape. I should start up with the pilates again. Though it is incredibly boring when one does it alone. It definately is a social exercise.

I really need to find myself a life. I cannot go on with all this sleeping and eating. I cannot turn into Garfield (and since I am watching what I eat now, it makes what little enjoyment the comes with being Garfield disappear). Hopefully this staffing offer comes through. I know Donald is the guy that keeps his promises (and a really nice person to boot) and thus I have the position regardless... but still I will fret and will not be satisfied until I am dressing up in a suit and tie again.

Well the one good news is I will proberly be doing the California trip after Christmas (abietly avec family, sans friends). Well then again I am saving up for my own trip to Los Angeles next year (though after last years problems, it is definately goint to be sans Tim (to whome I have not spoken to since then - well there was the phonecall he made to me asking where to drop off the book I left in his car - but that doesn't count), so I guess I should be grateful I am getting a free holiday out of this and not spending my own money (much of it anyway). The scary thing is this is going to be the first time I have been at sea level in 2 years (actually 23 months, but who's counting).

Walking With The Dinosaur

Well I had my first ale last night. I went to The Bayou down on State Street with Lindsey and Blythe. It was a Belgium import. Chimay I believe it was. Wasn't particularly impressed with it. Rather sweet really. I'd rather just drink champaign then drink a beer that tastes like champaign. Abietly it still didn't stop me drinking it. It did go down. All five bottles I had went down pretty well.

Still all in all, if that is what all ales taste like, I think I am just going to stick with the lagers. I don't need sweet beer. It is just not right.

Then again the highlight of the night was definitely the sweet potato fries that where on the menu. Talk about yummy! I really should make some of my own. I really love sweet potato. Though I cannot confess to completely understanding the American obsession of mixing mashed sweet potato with marshmallows. Not appealing...

I got a weird phone message this morning. I didn't have my phone on last night, but when I turned it on this morning, there was a voice message on it from 2.55AM. I listended to it, and was rather shocked. It was one of my friends and his girlfriend, and they where... doing something naughty... From the sound of it they mustn't of realized they had rung the phone and that I'd get an earful of... their role-playing game...

Dear lord, if it wasn't for the fact I have this message on my Voice Mail machine I wouldn't believe it. Though how am I going to approach my friends about this... tell them a paddle is better? Dear lord, what a quagmire...

There is a production of "Oklahoma" on the television at the moment. I wonder if it is the Hugh Jackman West End version. Either way, I am going to go watch it.

Pirates are taking away my sanity!

What can I say, I watched "Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl", and as much as I tried not liking it, I have to admit I really really did enjoyed the movie.

I know it has been said before (and I will say it again), that a movie based on the lamest, most boring ride at Disneyland (which I didn't particular care for myself - I want roller coasters not spinning teacups!) would actually turn out to be extremely entertaining and top notch.

I think the successful formula that made it work was that the people in charge made the movie for entertainment value alone - they had a gay old time so to speak. BUT the catch was they still in the end make a decent movie by not going overboard and camping it up. (ala "Batman & Robin").

We have all viewed those movies that had the formula of "It is a fun movie, not a serious one, so laugh dammit", but those movies still stink worse then a Slaughterhouse - in Florida - in July. It is difficult to pinpoint the exact magic formula they used that combined the two elements of "fun" and "good" together so well, but hey, they need to bottle that formula (and then sell it to Adam Sandler - PLEASE GOD give him a CLUE!!!)

Keira Knightly definitely is the breakout star of the movie, she provided life to what was a cliche paper-thin character and turned her into a corset wearing Xena for the 18th century (well a whalebone wearing corset anyway - we have all seen the leather one).

She is beautiful AND she has the talent and the gumption to become the next English Rose (move over Jane Seymour, shoo Kate Winslet). There is just so much to rave about her, but so little hours left in the evening to do so. She has the charisma to really carry a movie like this in her own right.

Orlando Bloom was fair enough, but he did come across as a weak link and just another pretty face (even though ironically his character was central to the plot). I guess they needed some Orlando 'ying' to Kiera's 'yang' (or would it be the other way around?)

Admittedly it was rather fun trying to spot his Elvish tattoo on his wrist. Even though they kept covering it up throughout the movie, it did appear at least partially in various scenes - like the original sword fight in the Black Smiths.

And okay... Johnny Depp. What can I say? He was amazing as Jack Sparrow. I guess I need to take back most of my pre-conceived notions of him. He isn't necessarily the dark brooding anti-hero that only ever plays characters more depressed and miserable then himself.

Pity he hasn't played more fun and light-hearted characters, he is really good at this particular style. Hopefully we will get to see more like this out of him. Heck, we know we will... he signed up for the sequel!!!

The only negative was the ending where I felt that Elizabeth and Will should’ve jumped into the water after Jack and went on with him living the pirate lifestyle. The ending given was a little to Disney-esque for me (I kept expecting Mickey and Donald to pop out and shake the Governors hand). But oh well, cannot win them all...

Maybe I should have seen this on the big screen; I definitely did miss out on seeing something spectacular. Cause everybody was a little boy (or girl) once, and what little boy (or girl) didn't at some stage want to be a pirate sailing the high seas chasing Spanish Galleon?