My Reunion

So, I ended up crashing my reunion. Big mistake. I was out to dinner with a friend, and my phone was being lit up. Basically, I was told to get my ass down to the Hyatt for the reunion.

I showed, immediately ran into the one of the few people I actually wanted to see. Then, I talked to most of the guys I went on the fishing trip with. Other than that, I saw a bunch of people I recognized but didn't really care to speak to.

Let's face it, if I haven't taken the time to track them down by now, do I really 'miss' them? I don't think so.

I left after about 20 minutes. I think this means I've officially crossed the line into asshole territory. I honestly didn't give a rip about these people. I talked to one distant stranger, we went over our jobs, where we're living, what we're up to, etc., and thought "oh my God, I can't have this same conversation again over and over again all night long." Because, again, I really don't care what these people have doing for the past 20 years. I would hope that they wouldn't care what I've been up to, either.

Maybe I missed the point of the reunion. Someone enlighten me! It was a bunch of old people standing around re-hashing the last 20 years of their lives. Spare me.

25 Words or Less: "Love Monkey" by Kyle Smith

Single man, kind of pathetic, who can't date to save his life. Laughed out loud through the entire book. Definitely reminded me of me... only a lot funnier. Buy it

25 Words or Less: "Broken Flowers"

Probable Oscar nom. for Bill Murray, though not fully deserved. It's like watching a spider weave a web... pretty boring, but kind of beautiful and inspiring.

"The One"

Do you believe in 'the one'? No, not the Neo/Matrix bullshit. I'm talking romantically... like in, "I met her and I knew she was the one."

I bring this up because in the span of four days, I ran into three women I've dated in the past. Well, that's not entirely true. I meant to see two of them, the third one, I ran into.

Now, of the three of them... one, I wanted to marry, but unfortunately, she didn't feel the same. One, I think I probably could have married if I wasn't such a jackass. The third, I didn't/don't know well enough to form an opinion. But, my guess is, that it would've never worked out long-term. We just didn't communicate on a very good level. Though, a part of me would've liked to have seen how that one could have turned out.

Here's where I'm going with this. What if there really is only 'one' person for you? If so, I may have already met her and let her go. Wouldn't that be tragic? For once, the word 'tragic' is being used correctly.

So, I have to believe there's more than just one 'one.' If not, I'm pretty much screwed. If the three women I met up with this week are reading this, I'll let you decide if you think you were 'the one' for me.

Running Update

Things are going well with the running. Ran eight on Saturday and tw0 today in my Nike Free's (the shoes that are supposed to simulate barefoot running, but in reality are most likely the invention of a marketing genius.)

I'm on a pretty set schedule of Tuesday and Thursday medium runs (at six mile now, will eventually get up to around 12) and Saturday 'long' runs... which will eventually get up as far as my back will take me. I'm hoping to get up to 24 miles so I can run another marathon. On Sunday's and Wednesday's, I'll do 2-to-4 mile recovery runs in the Nikes. That's three good runs and two recovery a week, for five days a week. I think that'll be OK. I'll let you know if my back thinks differently.

This schedule should at least get me to a half-marathon in November, and hopefully a full marathon in early 2006.

I Miss My Niece

I miss Kaia. My November trip to Maui can't come soon enough.

Had My Review at Work Today

I'm officially a rich prick now. With my bonus, I'm going to pay off my car. I just can't get fired between now and September 15, the day the check drops. Once that lovely Element is paid off, I'll be debt free and ready to take on the world.

20th High School Reunion Tonight

Big happs for the Lake Washington Kangaroos Class of '85. But... I'll be skipping the festivities. I'm not really sure why I'm not going.

I guess what it comes down to is, if I really wanted to stay in touch with everyone, I would have. In this day and age, it's not hard to track someone down.

I hope all who attend have fun. I'm meeting up with some friends after the reunion.

While the reunion is happening, I'm headed to the Melting Pot for some good ol' fashioned fondue with a friend. It's kind of like when I didn't go to the homecoming dance my sophomore year in high school, except on this occassion, I'll be passing time with a hot female, instead of a couple of other geeks.

Something Wicked This Way Comes

I get the feeling I'm headed for a fall. I'm just bored. I need something new. My friend Giles, in the span of five days, quit his job, put his stuff in storage and bought a one way ticket to Australia. I'm not saying I'll do anything that radical, but I need a change.

My life has been way too good up to this point. Something's gotta change. Something wicked this way comes...

Courtney Takes One in the Nuts

The End, a local "alternative" station played a soundbite from the Pamela Anderson Celebrity Roast. It went a little bit like this. From comedian Jeffrey Ross, I'm sure I'm paraphrasing... "So, how is it possible that Courtney Love actually looks worse than Kurt Cobain?"

Are you kidding me? How cruel/funny is that? Oh my God!!!

Say "Happy Birthday"

It's my birthday. Thirty-fucking-eight. Wow. I'm old. I'm also bored.

Somebody tell me a story. Here I am now, entertain me.

I Took a Shower Today

Wait, one more thing. It's Sunday. The last time I took a shower was... WEDNESDAY! Easily, the longest I've ever gone without bathing. I know, that's kind of disgusting, but I have a pretty good excuse.

I've been up at Douglas Lake Ranch just outside of Merrit, British Columbia (between Kelowna and Kamloops,) fishing with six friends from high school. Mind you, it's been 20 years since high school (my reunion is on Friday.)

We caught a lot of fish, drank a lot of beer and played a lot of poker. A fun time was had by all. I'm also now sporting a wicked tan.

I also no longer stink.

Back in Da Hizzle

OK, I'm back. I needed a little siesta. Actually, I needed to do some mental housekeeping. Much has happened (and not happened) in the past two weeks. All I can really say about this is that I'm pretty content right now.

You don't need to hear about the crap. So, over the next couple of days I'll fill you in on the good stuff.

It's 9pm and I'm going to bed.

This is Jerry Cantrell

Yes, THAT Jerry Cantrell! More on the previous post.

Greatest Cover Band in the History of Rock

Last night, at the House of Blues on Sunset Ave., I saw the greatest cover band ever. Let's see, on the guitar, we had Slash (Guns and Roses,) Jerry Cantrell (Alice in Chains,) Dave Navarro (Jane's Addiction,) Steve Jones (Sex Pistols,) and Billy Duffy (The Cult.) On drums, Mr. Matt Sorum from Guns and Roses. On vocals, Scott Weiland (Stone Temple Pilots,) Mark McGrath (forgot the name of his crappy band,) Cyprus Hill, Donavon Leitch and of course, Jerry Cantrell.

Covered songs included "Paradise City," Cheap Trick's "Surrender," "Rooster," and "Ballroom Blitz," "(So You Wanna Be a) Rock Superstar."

Really, it was an amazing night. The show took place as a part of the X-Games. Josh works at ABC, so he was able to pick up passes. The problem with LA is the women are so ugly...

I Can't Escape "Rock Star"

The hottie on the left is my friend Denice. The chick on the right is Jordis, who is probalby going to win "Rock Star: INXS." Jordis actually got up and sang with the band, doing a pretty sweet cover of "Should I Stay or Should I Go." The rest of the Rock Star gang was there, too. Most are shorter than I expected.

Beuerly Hills Four Seasons

Leaving for LA

Flying out to LA tomorrow afternoon. Should be a good trip. Thursday night I'm meeting my friends Josh and Denice and dinner.

Meeting a new co-worker in the Santa Monica office on Friday morning, then meeting with a new publicist for Warner Bros. for lunch. Finally, going to hang out with Josh some more on Friday night.

I'm coming home on Saturday afternoon.

I can't stand LA. I'm not really sure why I keep going. I guess I just hate it less than the office...

How I Spent the Last Month of Summer

OK, so with these three books and the new Bret Easton Ellis book "Lunar Park" coming out in August, I should be set for the rest of summer.

Why did I buy three books? That damn Borders "Buy 2, Get One Free" table finally got me. I must've spent 45 minutes looking at books yesterday.

Choosing a book is a huge investment of time. It's not like watching a movie, where you know two hours later you do something else. A book can takes days/weeks to finish. If you choose poorly, your only options are to quit on the book, thereby wasting the time you spent diving in, or muscling through it, in hopes that it will get better.

So, here are my new books. First up, "Love Monkey" by Kyle Smith. It's supposed to be a romantic comedy along the lines of "High Fidelity" and "Bridget Jones."

Next, "The Book of Joe" by Jonathoan Tropper. It's about a guy who writes a novel that savages his hometown. However, when his father dies, he's forced to go back to the town and face the people he ripped. This one's supposed to be funny, too.

Finally, I'm going to take in "The Mysteries of Pittsburgh" by Michael Chabon. This has been on my list for quite some time, so I'm excited to finally read it.

Atkins Eats It

You know, there's gotta be a better and more healthy way to lose weight than cutting carbs. In fact, I know there is... I lost 40 pounds by running. The only change I made to my diet was to ADD carbs in order to give me energy to finish my runs.

Yeah, OK, running marathons isn't the easiest thing in the world and they're certainly not for everyone (training takes up an extraordinary amount of time, and frankly, it racks your body,) but running and a decent diet will do wonders. My mom lost a lot of weight (I'm very proud of her) with a combination of walking and Weight Watchers.

So, it was with great pleasure that I read that Atkins (yeah, that Atkins) filed for bankruptcy. Apparently, the number of Americans on the faddish diet went from 9% to 2% in the past year. Funny how Asians, with all of their rice, and Italians, with all of their pasta, have managed to steer clear of the U.S.'s obesity issues.

How is it that I'm Asian and run marathons and still manage to be obese? Good times. Thanks for the genes mom and dad!

Hot Hot Run, part deux

Made a colossal mistake yesterday. I ran at 4pm, which around here is about the hottest part of the day. It had to be mid-80s. I absolutely died on the trail. I finished the run, but afterwards I was beat to Hell. OK, I didn't actually finish it. Two miles out, I decided to turn around, so I cut my six mile run down to four.

Why did I run at 4:00? I was set to make buffalo wings for dinner, and I didn't want to run after eating them. So, I marinated the wings and threw them on the grill. Good stuff! It took two beers to finish the wings, but man, they were good. I think I actually sweated more eating the wings then I did on my run.