airport SBD

we all know that airports can be a pain. we are all aware of the frustrations of airport security, and sometimes those frustrations can lead to foolish actions (believe me, i know). obviously, traveling would be a little better if a few people out there took a few deep sighs, closed their eyes, and took a moment to relax. however, this does not necessarily entail whipping out your tights, yoga mat, and etherial music in the middle of the concourse. or outside the gate. or anywhere. in fact, it SHOULDN'T BE DONE.



unfortunately, not everyone realizes that. please--keep yoga for your own special time-out and off the tarmack. i implore you. please.

sundancing

with my third day at the sundance film festival underway, i am ready to make the most of my last few screenings. up next: little miss sunshine, which has been recieving fine reviews.

my favorite flick viewed so far: adam's apples, a dutch film that tells the story of an unlikely group of companions holed up in a country church. truth and denial, consequence and redemption weave a beautiful and comical story in the lives of theses people.

on another note: i ran into my friend jeff who is performing in a slamdance entry this year. the sasquatch dumpling gang is the newest film by tim skousen and jeremy coon, two of the guys who worked on napoleon dynamite. quirky, clean and funny, the film is made by it's dynamic compostion, trading a linear narrative style for a twisting shift of perspective, telling the story from all points of view.

i HEART a new friend

i'm happy to see that beka has a new myspace profile. it's about time that she trades in her silence for a little romping fun with the ones she loves. although i don't usually endorse myspace, i'm happy to welcome beka into the fold.

a good day on the mountain

my hike up ajax the other night was killer. not only did it nearly kill me, but it was invigorating, breathtaking, fulfilling. 3,000 feet of vertical--and i mean the kind of vertical you can't do in the summer unless you are climbing hand and foot. there's nothing quite like a midnight mountain moonlit hike. i was tired, i was freezing, i was happy.

today, in the sunlight, this other hike was even more amazing. aspen highlands continues to be my favorite aspen moutain. this proabably has something to do with the breath-taking hike to the bowl and the phenomenal snow on the descent of the face. pictures will never do justice to the sense of awe and peace experienced from such trek.

the amazing snow, the spectular views, the vigorous lifestyle: just a few of the reasons i HEART aspen.

last night was a full moon

but tonight i'm taking advantage of it. despite the delay of one evening, i will take full use of a (mostly) full moon later tonight when i hike up aspen mountain to snowboard down. it's sad that i have not yet taken a moolit hike in the winter, let alone that i haven't done any night time riding. so tonight is the night. finally.

i HEART album art

kudos to steel skies for a thoughtful recreation of the record store for our own computers (and thanks to mark for mentioning it). cover flow is a beautiful program which compiles a visual representation of your itunes library for browsing and playing from your mac's desktop. still in development stages, cover flow let's you browse your albums as you would handle them in a record store or in your home. in the creator's own words "one of the big appeals of a physical album is the beautiful packaging and aesthetic appeal, something that’s sorely missed with the digital equivalent." well, miss it no more.

available ony for mac osx tiger, of course.

as if it weren't enough

i recently learned that one of my friends got the boot from pensacola christian college. because of me.

as many people know, the school does not like me at all. in fact, the administration kicked me out when they found out i am gay. and now, they booted a friend because i got together with a group of students over christmas break. that night, my friends and i went out to eat, got some starbucks, watched Narnia, and enjoyed being together. at the early hour of 2am, i decided to hop in the ocean in my swimsuit. i dried off, put my warm clothes back on, and we all headed back home to get some sleep before leaving the next day.

sadly, the school thought that those things were reason enough to make my friend pack her things and leave. at least, i believe that was their reasoning. i have attemted to contact dean barbi bear many times to see if i have the facts straight, but she has yet to return my call.

i don't think i will ever understand the administration at the school. i have felt only deciet and malice from those in the administration, but all i can do is forgive them. i know more is bound to happen in this situation, and i am certain the administration will continue to keep their eye on the things i write. but i will say no more. i am letting this go. it's time to move on.

besides, i'm in aspen now; and i really need to get out to the mountain and get some snowboarding in.

i HEART a short blog

all my blogs are long
and my camera is broken.

i HEART top 10's

everybody loves a good top 10 list. well--a top 5, at least. and as the last days in december are here, everyone is clamoring to be the first to repeat what everyone was saying sixth months ago.

you can read the top 10 music pics from mark or marian. or you can head over to the (apparent) latest essence-of-cool guru, josh spear, and read about his pics for the top music/books/food/design/trends/(OMGjoshspearis socool)
of the last year. everyone wants a piece of the action.

in honor the new year, the last year, and all of my friends and their love for the top 10, i will post my very own. the top 10 SHOULDN'T BE DONE's of 2005:

SBD #10: shopping at wal-mart. as always.

SBD #9: the atkins diet. the south beach diet. dieting. it's so 2002. let's all shop at wal-mart.

SBD #8: hitchhiking on milwaukee's i-94 on-ramp.

SBD #7: spederline. tomkat. jen + brad. the newlyweds. or knowing anything about them.

SBD #6: wearing a speedo to the airport.

SBD #5: especially after the world's disasterly year of storms, riding anything but a vespa.

SBD #4: michael jackson. neverland. his trial. but never his music.

SBD #3: iraq, and it not being over. let's just eat cake: welcome home, martha. welcome home.

SBD #2: the world as we know it. i'm calling for a recall of the world. make i-heart the new world. no--pink is the new world. make american idol/lost/trading spaces the new world. or starbucks/wal-mart/fedexkinkos. something. anything...

SBD #1: blogging. and everything involved.

happy new year! take a little SBD out of 2006 and have a super sweet new year.

casino christmas

from the beginning, i was skeptical about spending christmas in minnesota. the truth is, i would rather be snowboarding in colorado than ice fishing in the frozen north. however, like a good son should, i made the pilgrimage.

my family and i arrived in st. paul within an hour of each other. they picked me up, and we headed 1.5 hours further north. the plan:
1) get to the timeshare
2) purchase groceries
3) find a christmas tree
4) make dinner, decorate the tree, and have a beautiful minnesota christmas.

plans changed. by the time we found our accomodations, the five o'clock hour was nearing; we soon found that any chance for grocery shopping had ended at 4pm. my idea was to play "family christmas scavenger hunt" going door to door asking for the dinner ingredients. mom mumbled something about "oh patrick, i'm sure you would love that--" and i got the feeling she wasn't all that into the idea.

our only hope: an indian reservation with a casino and market 30 minutes north. we hopped in the car, ready to meet the ojibwe tribe at their hot casino. but to my mother's dismay, this market, too, had closed at four. the family had a moment of silence. . . and we headed for the casino. we were greeted with large signs blaring the "$12.99 prime rib special," the noise of the slots, and the omnipresent cigarette smoke.

i could only squeeze about two dollars out of my dad to play the 5¢ slots, and after a family conference on how to actually play the thing, i promptly lost it all. sean and i proposed the greatest casino heist of all time: the little tree in the corner could easily become our own. mom rolled her eyes.

the new plan:
1) find a christmas tree
2) eat dinner at the casino

we rolled down the road toward a gas station. plans changed again. sean and i decided to shop at the convenience store for christmas dinner. a box of pasta, jar of sauce, and loaf of bread later, we drove on, hoping to find that special christmas tree. squinting out my window, i barely spied it. across the highway, under a darkened porch, were the remains of a christmas tree sale. as we approached, mom's eyes lit up, and i knew she wouldn't mind that we would be performing a more subdued heist. i soon found out that mom would be the one to manhandle the whole thing.

we stepped out of the car, surveying what was left of the sale. simultaneously, mom and i walked toward the same tree. it was perfect. the branches were sturdy, and the smell was invigorating. we knew this was it. the only problem: it was nailed down to a board to keep it there--i mean, to keep it standing up there. with more family unity than i have seen since my dad tried moving the family to kansas, we pulled and pulled, un-securing the tree, and quickly shoving it into our trailblazer.

the ride home home was nice. mom kept commenting on how good the tree smelled, and i kept thinking how i would enjoy the convenience store dinner. ah, yes. a casino, a pasta dinner, and a fresh christmas tree: mom's perfect minnesota christmas.


p.s. - mom wanted to be sure everyone knows we will be paying for the tree as soon as we can. of course, mom. of course.

milwaukee. or busting out and hitch-hiking fun

a moment comes in each of our lives in which we must depart. say goodbye. so long...farewell. auf wiedersehen, audieu. to you and you and you.

and to milwaukee. i had a fantastic time and all, but i needed to go. unfortunately, the day's only greyhound to the twin cities had already left while i was still sleeping that morning. amtrak was somehow full until christmas eve, which wasn't very helpful. all i needed was to go cross-state and end up near the minnesota border so hinkel could pick me up. all of the trains, planes and buses were full--at least, they were totally overrated (and over my budget).

so. hitch-hike, then. i HEART hitch-hiking. and i HEART allison, the very nice pothead of a girl who picked me up just blocks away from the amtrak station. what i didn't like was the fact that allison only needed to go midway into the burbs of waukee, leaving me at the very in-opportune on-ramp somewhere near 82nd street.

i was cold. it was dark. there was a street lamp over me, illuminating my frozen thumb for the vehicles speeding my. early on, i had two offers. when they told me they were going north, i thanked them and sent them on their way. after all, i needed to go west. so i would stay waiting, in the cold. 40 minutes slowly passed, each moment my two thumbs feeling the frosty biting cold.

suddently a car starts toward me. then it pulls over to the shoulder. and then the lights. oh, those lights. blue, white, red, flashing whirling, spinning.

"young man, you can't be here. hitchiking isn't allowed on the interstate."
"i'm not on the interstate. just the on-ramp."
"hitch-hiking isn't allowed here."
"is it allowed anywhere?"
"well. . . i need to get you out of here. i have had a few calls about you."

apparently there were a few folks out there threatened by my frozen presence on the side of the interstate--i mean on-ramp. obviously they couldn't pick me up. and they had to be sure no one else helped me out meeting my parents for christmas. crap, i couldn't even hitch-hike right.

the night had only begun. i didn't sleep that night; instead, i caught the red-eye bus to Madison and thought of how nice it would be spending christmas with my family.

i HEART a cup of joe - milwaukee

the best award for milwaukee's coffee scene goes to alterra coffee. with two locations and a heckofalotta good coffee, alterra has been serving waukee since 1993. i visited the lakeside location several times, and i experienced one of the darkest, richest, earthy cups of joe (alterra's java estate) i've had in months. not only does alterra roast its own beans, but it has a sweet aesthetic sensibility to its goods, wares, and shop environment.

i guess the good ol' midwest may be a ok after all. well, they brew good cup of joe at least.

milwaukee or bust

there is little similarity between the sunny south of florida and the windy north of wisconsin. and that's a good thing.

saturday morning, i left pensacola for the last time, headed to bigger and better things in--none other than--milwaukee, wisconsin. that morning, i headed towards the city of steel and ice that i knew so little about. i suppose i was really the odd man out, as both my friends were headed to the place they have always called home, while i was merely off to another unknown on my journey of unsettling travel.



later that night, we stopped for a coffee break in northern alabama, only to find. . .nothing. except a small road sign that said "detour band tonight 7:30." i looked at my watch and the minute hand was barely grazing the half-hour mark. we were just in time.

soon, we were at this alabama music venue called the country music barn. funny, becasue that is exactly what it was: a barn in the cornfield. inside was music and outside was a lot full of pick-up trucks. later that night, we met the band, their lead singer beverly, and a host of other colorful characters, straight from the alabama countryside. we danced and danced, to the likes of rollin on the river and our request sweet home alabama. although the band was on till eleven, we had to say our thanks and goodbyes at 9:30 (while the band pleaded for us to stay).

a road trip wouldn't be complete without getting pulled over. it happend around 1am that evening. this time, it wasn't for speeding; it was for making an illegal turn. fortunately, the cop decided to follow his fellow officer who flew by us with whirling lights. he quickly handed back our id's and said goodbye, with wishes for a good night.

the days were long, but the christmas lights in the car made us happy. we sang, laughed and slept. we thought of the frozen north ahead of us and forgot about the place we left behind.

later that same night...

after my flight from palm beach international airport, i landed in a much less exclusive locale--namely, pensacola. my motive? one last romp with college friends, a night dubbed movie night 2005. this was a moment that this group of students--namely, team group--had been planning since the semester's onset. as those familiar with the workings of a certain independent-fundamantal-baptist-bible college know, it is impossible for a group of students to "hang" together off-campus, especially after the darkening hours of 11pm.

the semester had ended. the rules could be broken. team group could now frolic in the glory of their unchaperoned bliss, deep into the hours of the night. despite (or perhaps in spite) of an administrator's--namely, joel mullinex--warning that the hours between 12am and 6am are frightfully evil hours, the group of students charged their way into a reckless evening of merriment.

after a victory parking lot dance awaiting my arrival in a neighboring city--namely, fort walton beach--we headed for dinner. a fender bender and a few showers later, we were sitting down to our first meal together outside the bounds of the school. in darker and later hours, we went for a visit to the movie theater, starbucks, destin's largest christmas tree, krispy kreme, *-mart in pajamas, sweet-wannabe-karaoke, etc., etc.

not least in the night's reveling was a visit to fort walton's own 40º beach at 2am. this was perhaps the crowning moment of my night, as i began to realize the true significance of not having done laundry for the last week. due to my lack of underwear, i was still wearing my speedo from the morning's airport misadventure: perfect for a chilly dip-in at the beach. certainly, this could have been performed au naturel; however, i decided my new swimsuit deserved its own christening.

one by one, each team group member dropped off to sleep or into his car to head to the airport. the friends were fantastic, and the frolicking was fun. a true blossoming moment after a disasterly autumn of a semester.

airport fun 2

early this morning at palm beach international airport, i stood scoping out the security line for a willing accomplice--someone to document my imminent task. the victim was a kind twenty-something chick flying to the midwest to visit friends. her curly purple hair was a dead giveaway that she would be up for the task.

after loading my bags on the belt, i continued through the metal detector. promptly, the tsa security guard told me to take off my hat and jacket. unfortunately for him, there was nothing else covering my florida-tanned chest other than that same jacket. and just to be sure, i thought, why don't i make it easier on everybody and take my pants off, too. that way, they won't have a question as to whether i am hiding anything or not. well, my last week of underwear hadn't made it to the laundry yet, so I was wearing a newly acquired speedo in place of my tighty whiteys. i took a breath and prepared to head through the detector, hoping the guard wouldn't mistake my full-bodied speedo for a hidden whatever-they-are-looking-for. they didn't. but then came the screaming from a blond heading full blast toward the security check point.

"sir! sir!! put your clothes back on immediately! what are you--"
"but the gentleman told me to take off my jacket--"
"yeah, but did he tell you to take off your pants??"
"i thought it would be easier--"
"did he tell you to take them off?"
"well, i had so many things in my pockets--"
"did he tell you to take them off?"
"no."
"put your pants on now."
"i guess--"
"screen this guy. i'm keeping an eye on him!"

i began un-stripping while listening to the bustle of murmuring tsa agents behind me.

"when you're through with the search, i want to speak with this guy." i heard from--obviously an important official--a guy with a sweet cop hat and some sort of badge or credentials or something.

i nodded knowingly through the usual "boy, you are stupid" and "what were you thinking?" and "do you think this is a joke?" but all i could think of was the poor little girl with curly purple hair. katrina? jessica? carol? suzanne? fred-- suzanne, that was it. poor suzanne, an innocent pawn in a much larger and more evil scheme of which she had no knowledge. i was sad for her until i looked at the video on my camera and noticed she captured only .5 seconds of me pulling my pants back on. why suzanne, you little--"oh, goodbye suzanne. have a nice flight to chicago! thanks for helpin'!" ergghh.



so after multiple baggage checks and lectures from a lot of very importatnt people, i was told that i would get a fine of up to $10,000, or maybe even a warning! This issue would be sent to "those guys up in washington" and they would decide what to do.

spare me. those guys up in washington happen to be back in connecticut romping with their mistresses as we speak. either that or they are out with their donut and coffee on a smoke break. but who am i to judge?

so now i know what will happen when you just try to make it easy for those good ol' tsa boys: a man behind you will say "never seen that before" and the angry blond tsa woman will yell, clench her teeth, and let it ruin her day. poor gal.

i HEART aqua

i have done the hostel thing. many a times, in fact. and i love the hostel thing. meeting the international not-quite-so-jet-set is always eye-opening and captivating.

however, after hours of transportation from the ft. lauderdale airport to south beach, i needed my own space. and the fact that the same crazy guy showed up at two different tram stations and decided last-minute to hop my bus, trying to be my buddy all along--took it's toll.

i like to make a parallel between my hoteling situation and shopping. when you need some hip, cool new trousers, or a jacket, or a t-shirt--but don't want to pay more than...well, as little as possible, actually-- you should shop at h&m. the quality sucks, but most viewers of your obviously un-paralleled fashion sense aren't nearly discriminating enough to make a negative comment.

so was staying at aqua hotel: the service was basic, the refurbishments were cheap, and the price was moderate. and the look was hip and cool. trendy and minimal. and i loved it. plus, there was free wi-fi and who doesn't HEART that? i have to admit: my thin pocket book would have liked the hostel, but my slightly discriminating tastes HEARTed the modern furniture, the rain-style shower head, and the concrete floor that was little more than the remains of ripped up carpet.

thanks aqua. thanks h&m. thanks.

baby, why don't we go?

key largo is a sweet change from the trendster, overidulgent streets of south beach. after an excellent birthday on the beach party headquarters of the south, the relaxed feel of the keys were welcome. obviously, i couldn't stay much longer than a night, as the only signs of civilaztion were the road-side beach shanty motels and an occasional cvs pharmacy. i didn't even find a really great place for a meal.

but something about the local sports bar--with only a handful of 22 year-old kids--felt more substantial than the glitz of the city just an hour north. maybe it was the fact that these kids weren't hiding anything from one another and were content just listening to jack and diane from the juke box. i'm sure key largo has its share of ridiculous tourists in busy season. and i'm sure marie, the cigarette-wearing doll behind the counter at the pelican motel, will always do her best to suggest the restarant down the beach becasue she gets a kickback. but the snorkeling was great, the people were kind, and the traffic was a little less intense. however, next time i think i'll try something a little more "island" and a little less "look! highway 1 has a gas station."

i HEART sobe

american spirit + euro trash + latin soul = south beach. interesting: an american city with a bit of european flare. despite the retro all-american feel of ocean avenue in all its art deco glory, the pedestrian lincoln avenue has a distinct las ramblas feel with its plethora of open air cafe seating. lining the street are euro-trash clothing stores, the staple starbucks, cuban eateries, overpriced boutiques, and the uber-americana ghirardelli chocolate store. it's even a guess as to whether the chick behind the counter will speak english or spanish. take it or leave it, but i'll take it.

i HEART the beach for the day, a meal down española way, and a martini in a breezy delano cabana. and then i will sit and soak in the warmth. becasue soon i will be in milwakee.

welcome to the sunny south

the change was immediately satisfying. the moment i stepped through the automatic sliding doors of the west palm airport (after a few chats with kindly old information lady at the podium) i smiled. then i rushed back into the airport bathroom and stripped down to my skivvies by removing jacket, scarf, sweater, jeans, and shoes - all remainders of a frozen chicago morning at the cta stop. in t-shirt, shorts and flip-flops, with only my overstiffed duffel weighing me down, i hurriedly returned to the bus stop. jed's plane had been diverted by rhode island snow, and he was driving from orlando to meet me. flip on my tunes to the scissor sisters' take your mama--my south florida soundtrack. at the bus stop, gotta find change, ok--ask directions, guess the bus stop nearest the "cool" part of west palm beach, and walk down the street like perpetual tourist i am.

oh, i am so good at finding the right spot in the city. evidenced by numerous magazine write-ups lining the wall, pizza girls will give me the right amount of "patrick, you sure know what's up" and "it's a good thing you skipped buger king at the airport in favor of this diversion." with slices in hand, i was out on the street to wait for jed. with only a hint of chicago still in my mind, i breathe in all of florida's 80 degree humid glory and take a bite.

i HEART fanmail

check out tyler's comment under i-HEART's airport fun! post. next week, departing west palm beach airport, that'll be me. sweet idea tyler! i'll be sure to post pics.