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May 28, 2004
I give blood... quickly.
I gave a pint of my blood away yesterday. The blood-people love it when I come through since I'm O-Negative. They practically huddle around me like vampires, just waiting for me to step out of the sunlight that I'm floating in. Okay, not really, but they do appreciate anyone who comes in to donate. As one of the workers said, "we need you, the community needs you." It's so true. It makes me feel good to give to the community like that, especially when I get my cholesterol checked for free, a free t-shirt (I'm a t-shirt whore) AND a free burger at Back Yard Burgers. It's a deal that cannot be beat.
The only drawback is how darned quick the blood escapes my body. The workers now know to prop my feet up before I even start since I've come close to feinting twice now. Seriously. I came out of the question room and laid down while they prepped my arm. A co-worker of mine was half-way through her bag before they even swabbed me with Iodine, yet I finished about a minute after she was done. It's like my own blood doesn't like me, it can't wait to get out of my body... which could be a problem.
Posted by Seth at 10:30 AM | Comments (0)
May 23, 2004
My new graduates
Today I returned home from Fayetteville. I traveled down yesterday morning to see Garrett's (my brother) high school graduation. Two weeks ago, Wendy and I were in Fayetteville for our good friend Trip's College graduation. I'm a bit graduation'ed out now, and I thought May was the time to get wedding'ed out.
I can't express how excited and proud I am for both Garrett and Trip. In this day and age (since I've lived for sooo-ooo long), I think it's becoming harder and harder to accomplish such large things. And now it just becomes even larger. College for Garrett and a Master's for Trip. I wish the both of them good luck and the knowledge that I'm there for either of them if they need me.
Sitting in Bud Walton Arena for both graduations isn't quite the same as watching the Razorbacks play basketball. In fact, it's quite the opposite. You, your friends and family all pile into the stands, after barely managing to meet up in one spot to go inside. You get there early, of course, as to not miss out on good seats — bare in mind that there are LOT of graduating students, better seat = better chance to actually make facial features out.
So after you ramble inside and get your seats, you sit. And sit. And sit. And then, just as you're about to nod off, the procession begins and the students are filing into the arena. You're awake now, looking at each kid, trying to figure out if they're the one that you're here to see. Finally, you give up, it's a lost cause really. Unless they have fashioned some way of letting you know where they're at (a la something on their hat), then it's no use.
The students are seated, then the administrators and faculty are introduced, and then everyone gets the pleasure of listening to students give talks about the past, present and future. PLEASE NOTE: The entire audience would love nothing more than to hear more speeches... no, really.
On rare occasions the speeches are good... like when all of Jupiter's moons are aligned-rare. But 99.99999% of the time they're all cliche:
Cliche 1 My personal favorite is the kid they choose to represent the class that obviously wasn't really a part of the class - the nerd. It's funny that those kids choose to use the terms "we this" and "we that." Come on, we all know those kids had their nose so far in their books that they even freaked out teachers.
Cliche 2 Some kid gets up there and uses some children's book or a movie reference. Please. Nothing you can say about those two could come close to matching up to High School or College.
Cliche 3 "I was told to act natural and be myself" = I rehearsed this speech 2,245 times, I talk in a super-fast monotone voice, and have never said anything like this in my day-to-day conversations with my friends.
Cliche 4 Saying something over-the-top inspiring. I'm not even going to elaborate.
I'm sure there are many more out there, but I think you get the point. If you're going to be speaking at a graduation soon, please do something fresh before I start banning graduations altogether. I'll do it... I will!
Posted by Seth at 06:10 PM | Comments (0)
May 15, 2004
Deliverance in Hurricane Alley
Today was an awesome, awesome day. The weather outside was incredible and I took advantage of it... some. This morning I helped Bev move her stuff into her new apartment. That surprisingly went super fast and was over by noon. From there, we (Aaron, Bev, Wendy and I) were treated to lunch at the Westport Flea Market (best burgers in Kansas City, hands down).
After lunch, I ran home and grabbed my softball bat and headed to the batting cages. My softball team's first game was last week - but was cancelled due to rain. So, Monday is now the official first game of the season and I need to be ready (I promised Brett that I'd hit four home runs this year, heh).
The batting cages were fun, although I re-opened some scarred blisters from last year. Oh well, the sooner I do it, the better. After four rounds of hits, I took my car to Hurricane Alley to wash her up. Then, I took the squeaky clean car over to the vacuum cleaners so I could Armor-All the inside.
I left my car running so that I could hear my cds playing, but quickly realized that I was wasting gas because two spots away from me (on my right) was some girl in super-short shorts, skimpy shirt, and pig tails blasting out to Master P and the No Limit Soldiers. I had to chuckle because she obviously was out there to get the attention of someone.
Right as the soldiers were getting heavily into their groove, the guy who was in the spot next to me (on my left) decided that he was sick of Master P so he turned up his cd player - which was some other rap group, but he obviously didn't care about the lyrics because his windows were rattling due to the bass that was a-kickin'.
The girl seemed a bit mystified, thrown off her game - if you will, so after taking a swig from a coke that must have been hot (she made an icky face), she went back to her vehicle and turned her music back up. Who knew, right here in Hurricane Alley, that we'd have a present day rendition of dueling banjos!?!
So now, we have two rap songs, blasting as loud as can be. Curse words were flying, bass lines were dropping, and I could've sworn the guy and girl were doing "West Side Story" dance moves around the car wash. All I hear is noise and then as if the music attracted her, an elderly lady drove up to vacuum her car. I winced just thinking about what she was thinking. Surprisingly, she went about her business... no shaking of the head or anything.
I left shortly after the lady arrived. Who knows, maybe she enjoyed the music, perhaps joined in the battle as well. Only Hurricane Alley knows the full story.
Tomorrow morning is the Corporate Challenge 5k, yaaaaaaaaaaaaaaay (sarcasm). I'll check ya'll fools later.
Posted by Seth at 07:50 PM | Comments (0)
May 07, 2004
New license Plates
Well, well, well. I FINALLY have new license plates for my car. But it came with a hefty price tag, and lots (and I mean LOTS) of annoyances. It was about all I could take, and then it seemed to keep going. I'm glad it's over, because I was about to go postal.
Almost a year ago, the lease on my car was up and I needed to make a decision on whether I was going to purchase the car or give it back to VW and get something new. I decided on keeping the car and applying all the lease payments to the purchase price. It was an easy process, I got a loan, they sent me the title, and wolah... the car was mine.
Apparently, I made a mistake. No one ever told me that I needed to go and register my car. Nothing in writing, nothing from VW, nada. I know that these things are supposed to get done, and usually don't happen automatically, but I figured there would be some type of reminder or booklet explaining how to do this. There's not, but after going through what I went through, there should be.
This March, with my tags severely expired, I decided to go and get them renewed. I went down, got the car inspected, no problem. Then I went to the Department of Motor Vehicles. Waited in line for 20 minutes to see a representative there. I wasn't quite sure why I was there, so I went in a bit under prepared. The lady looked at my title and told me it wasn't my car. How could that be? I bought the car last year. Well, she needed to see the paperwork. So, I drove home, got the paperwork and came back (it was cold and rainy, by the way). I waited in line again, and after another 15 minute wait, I showed a different lady the paperwork. She, also, told me that the car wasn't mine. I asked why they keep telling me that, and she showed me on the title that VW didn't sign it over to me... thanks guys.
So, from the Department of Motor Vehicles, I got a form that said I didn't have to pay property tax on my car last year, since I didn't own it a full year. From there, I walked to the Department of Revenue. Keep in mind, all I wanted to do was re-new my car tags. Here, I waited in line for 20 minutes, and finally got to talk to lady there. We talked for about 30 minutes, and it boiled down to me HAVING to have my title signed by VW before I could do anything.
I left there and went to Commerce Bank, where my auto loan is. I talked to a lady there who called the auto-loan department. They both told me they couldn't do anything about this and that I'd have to call VW. So, I got on the phone and called VW. After another 30 minute phone call, I was told to FedEx the title to them, and they'd FedEx it back to me, signed. You're kidding, right?
Nope. I got my "signed" title back two days later... eight months AFTER I bought the car. So, I loaded up all of my papers and headed BACK to the Department of Revenue (which, by the way, is one of the hardest places to get to from downtown with all the stupid one-way streets and what-not). I talked to the same lady from before, who didn't remember me, so I had to explain it all again. I gave her all of my stuff, we talked for another 30 minutes, and she told me that I owed somewhere around $1000 - sales tax, late fees, new tags, etc. She wrote down on a slip of paper what I owed and told me to bring that amount back in. I asked what if I came in a month later (since I was about to go on a trip), she said it didn't matter, the fee wasn't going to get any higher.
Fast-forward over a month (yesterday). I decided it was time to go and get this all finished out. I run to the bank to get a cashier's check for the amount the lady told me. Of course it's not an easy process, you have to find a spot downtown first off, and then wait in line, yadda yadda. Twenty minutes later, and check in hand, I fumbled my way through the maze downtown to the Department of Revenue (I think they make it so hard to find that you'll always be late with payments).
I took all of my paperwork to a lady there (since the one I've talked to before wasn't there) and explained all of my work. Eurkea! I had everything I needed!!! She typed up everything, grabbed me a set of new plates, and told me my total - $1119.20. WTF!?!? A month ago I was told that it wouldn't go up from what I was told then!!! The lady didn't understand why someone would say that and told me they were wrong. Well, that doesn't really help me now does it? Isn't a slip of paper given to me from a worker there some type of legal binding document?
Grrrrr... well, apparently there are tons of "processing fees" that the other lady didn't take account for. Still, $70 dollars worth? [NOTE 1: The reason there are so many processing fees is because the State doesn't pay their banking fees anymore. Ahhh... that makes sense. Wait, AREN'T THEY THE STATE!?!?!]So, I had to rush home, write a check to cover the amount, and then fumble my way BACK to that damned place. [NOTE 2: I had to write a check because while I can buy a hamburger, fries, and a chocolate shake with my debit/credit card, the DEPARTMENT OF REVENUE doesn't accept them.] I go inside, hand my checks to the lady and get my plates.
I was not happy. What a long and drawn-out process. I kept thinking they would have me go get tested for HIV or complete a family tree as well. Ah well, what can you do? I suppose I could have kept driving the car as it was. I've been pulled over in the past year, and the cop said nothing about the tags. And since the title was still in VW's name, hmmmmmm.
Posted by Seth at 11:08 AM | Comments (0)
May 02, 2004
Sunday, Rainy Sunday.
After being cooped up all day yesterday, I decided that I'd venture to the Plaza for a little afternoon shopping. I had lunch with Wendy and one of her co-workers (Danielle) and then bought me some clothes. I wasn't ready to call it a day after getting my new rags, so I headed over to Barnes & Noble. Looking for the latest book on CSS, my ears heard the funniest live exchange of words between two people who weren't in a movie. At first I thought I heard the same voice, but upon closer eavesdropping, it was an elderly man and, presumedly, his wife. Their conversation went something like this:
Man: Here. Here's the book. (handing her a dictionary) Use both hands.
Woman: Oh. Oh no. I can't lift that. It's too heavy.
Man: Here, use both hands.
Woman: I can't. Look how thick it is.
Man: Okay. (turning away)
Woman: It just looks so hea... here, give it to me.
Man: It's too hea--
Woman: Give it here.
Man: Use both hands. Here. (handing book to her)
Woman: Ohhhh. Oh no, this is too heavy. Are you sure you got the right one?
Not sure of what they were looking for, I kept browsing for my book, now out of range to hear the conversation. I couldn't find the book, but now their conversation had become louder... so I stuck around to hear what was going on.
Man: No, no, no. I'll move the chair for you.
Woman: I don't like that chair. It's too hard.
Man: I know. So I'll move the one you're in.
Woman: I don't want that chair. I like this one.
Man: So I'll move it.
Woman: Which one?
Man: The chair you're in.
Woman: This is too much exercise. You can't move this chair with me in it.
Man: No. You stand up and I'll move the chair.
Woman: I don't like those chairs. They're too hard. They hurt my back.
Man: That's why I'll move that chair.
Woman: Which one?
Man: Read my lips. The chair that you're in.
Woman: Why are you going to move this chair?
Man: I'm going to move the chair over to the map section so you can talk to me while I'm looking over there.
Woman: That's too far. You can't push me that far.
Man: That's why you're going to get out of the chair. So I can push it.
Woman: That's too much exercise.
I was about to laugh hysterically at this point, so I moved several aisles over. It became quiet again and I saw the man pacing back and forth throughout the section. Eventually he went back over to his wife and told her he moved a different chair for her to sit in. He started to walk her over to the new chair.
Man: Come on, I moved a chair for you.
Woman: Where?
Man: Over by the maps, so you can talk to me.
Woman: How long have we been here?
Man: About fifteen minutes.
Woman: Oh. It feels like more than thirty.
Their voices trailed off as they made it over to the map section. As I was leaving, I could hear the lady talking to someone else, and could only imagine how that conversation was going.
And to top off the day, while watching a movie this afternoon I noticed something outside and just HAD to take a picture: Vertical | Horizontal | Wide-view
Posted by Seth at 08:48 PM | Comments (0)
May 01, 2004
Ed Gein, Role Model?
Last night I sat in my darkened living room and finally watched the remake of "The Texas Chainsaw Massacre." When I saw the full trailer for this movie, I was so excited. That trailer is the way that trailers should be made... not only did it sell the movie, but it effectively set the tone that the movie carried out in full.
I use Netflix to rent DVDs, and strongly recommend it to anyone who rents movies. They recently set up a new distribution center here in KCity, so I send movies back and receive new ones in two days tops. I ordered "The Texas Chainsaw Massacre" just over two weeks ago. I was notified by e-mail that the movie had been shipped to me (as is their method of communication). Two days later, I was again notified by e-mail that the movie had been returned to them and they were asking me to rate the movie. Problem, I never got the movie. Something must have happened in the shipping process. Anyway, I re-ordered the movie and received it last week. Last night, I had nothing to do, so I caught up on some television and then decided to watch the flick.
The movie was fantastic. The acting was believable, the scenery outstanding, and the storyline... creepily entertaining. That's what fueled the movie. It wasn't the gore or sex appeal of scantily clad teenage girls, but how the story played out. The movie ended and I sat there nervously jittering. Creepy, creepy, creepy. That's all I can say. And to think that it was based on true events.
Or... was it? It's very popular for Hollywood to embellish stories to make money. Lots of movies come with the notice of "based on a real story." This one, however, stretches it. To you, I introduce Ed Gein, a true freak that was caught in the late 50's. As you can read, he was a nut, and his nuttiness has inspired many a movie: "Silence of the Lambs", "Psycho", and "The Texas Chainsaw Massacre" are among the most popular. I think that "Friday the 13th" was also inspired by Mr. Gein... he basically made the whole "mother made me do it" storyline popular.
So, now you know Gein, and now you get to find out what REALLY happened in Texas. That's right. Nothing. The writer just had a simple idea about a chainsaw and built a creepy, Ed Gein-based story to go with it. Well, congratulations. Mission accomplished.
Posted by Seth at 09:13 PM | Comments (0)