Nine Holes, Please.

Ah, crap. . . the blog. Yes, it has been forever and in my usual procrastinator's style I will go back and make blog entries for the time I missed. Now that it is summer, I can effectively catch up. In my defense, I am also penning 3 other blogs (man, have I turned into a conputer nerd or what?) simultaneously. This, the original and most fun for me, was relegated to the back burner. Sorry, blog.

So here's the update: I can scratch Go-Carts off my list. The other night a few pals and I had dinner and drinks, then went to Fun Plex across the river. That evening also taught me the essential flaw of miniature golf: It is only fun for about 9 holes. After that you play through just to get it done. I am happy to report, however, that I was not the biggest loser of the evening. In fact, I came in second. :-p

Brian Haner, Jeff Dunham, and a lighthouse

Yup. So that was my weekend in Connecticut. I'd tell you about the (baaaaad) hostel we stayed at but I'm too worn out from writing a review and giving it a crappy rating on another site. :-p

Day-om! My Car is Tired.

One of the Many Reasons I Love NYC

Performance Art. This lady was spotted hopping across the street on one foot (as the other is being eaten). I snagged this pic when she sat down and eventually smoked a cigarette. No idea if that was part of the piece or just a break for the artist.

And. . . I went to the Museum of Sex. The His and Hers Urinals are from the current exhibition focused on advertising and design. There is some pretty nifty stuff there and there is nothing like hearing, "Wimmern, Blick auf, wie groß, der ist! Das ist das größte cockring das ich überhaupt gesehen habe!"

I guess some things aren't lost in translation.

If any portion of that text was not written in proper German, blame Babelfish. . . I don't want to hear it.

Ouch!

Hope everyone had a better Easter than this guy.

I'm a Legacy

No, not of a sorority.

For Christmas, however, my father got me a lifetime membership to the National Rifle Association. Today my packet showed up complete with certificate, pin, info, patches, and stickers.

Watch out, boys!

I Like 'em Big, But. . .

I got a new phone yesterday and it has a full texting keypad (yes, I'm a text whore), ten alarms, two world clocks (so I can tell you at a glance the time in Reykjavik), etc.

But I feel like I'm holding a calculator to my head!

Completely off topic: Snowboarding is over, Ballroom dancing is over, and I'm a little behind schedule on my "52 Things" list. HELP!

A Flip of the Finger to. . .

. . . the bagage handlers on my flight home. They must look like this:

Because the inside of my bag was covered with this:

>-P

Go Ahead, Drink the Water in Texas

I crashed for a night at the Westin in Dallas and it is a fairly swanky hotel. It is attached to a shopping center complete with an indoor ice rink. Nice, but
man the prices!

B-b-brrrr!

So one day my friend says to me, "I'm going to do a Polar Bear Plunge. Wanna come?"
"Are you nuts?!" I respond.
"I can't believe you won't do it," she charges.
"Oh, no," I counter. "I'll do it. I can't let you out-crazy me!"

This was the site of the Polar Bear Plunge.

Festival workers were breaking up the ice and trying to float it away from the plunging area. It was cold (duh), but I'm glad that I did it. It wasn't as bad as I expected, but it sure does hurt the feet! If I ever do this again, I'm going to wear shoes, because running on ice with wet bare feet is just crazy.

Make that TWO ice packs, please!

OhHolyCrap! Tonight was my first snowboarding lesson and I don't think I've fallen this much since I was learning to walk! I'm afraid my knees are going to be black and blue by the morning. So we'll see. . .

In Bed. . .

This is the best fortune I've gotten in a really, really long time!

BEHOLD!

This is St. John Evangelical Roman Catholic Church.

I went here for Christmas Eve Mass (and I'm not even Catholic!)

It is the most beautiful church I've ever seen.

Absolutely gorgeous!

Two observations about Catholic services:

1. They are big fans of recitation. A line or two I get, it was the 5 minute speeches that stunned me.

2. For Communion they offered wafers, but no wine or grape juice. "Excuse me, where's the blood of Christ?"

And if anyone is wondering, no, I didn't wear a dress, but, yes, I did don my pearls and heels!

Really??

Am I the only one who reads this as "Travelin' Phoney"?

And the Magic Continues. . .

Well, what do you know. . . the photos were found in some obscure computer file. Maybe I uploaded them in my sleep.

So here are some of my images from the Shaolin Warriors performance at Proctor's. It is one of those gorgeous old buildings that I love. (sigh)

I know it is difficult to see, but let me clue you in on the happenings in the last picture. The monk on the floor is laying upon a bed of nails. There is a slab of concrete across his stomach which they will bust into pieces with a sledgehammer in just a moment. Ouch!

I Know What True Evil Is

What sane human being leaves this little bit of ice cream in the carton for others to find???
My roommate, that's who.

The tease.

Whoa. . . magic!

Well, I had a photo to post here. A photo of the Shaolin Warriors taken at Proctor's Theatre (yes, I know you aren't allowed to photograph the performances there). I snuck a couple anyway, most of them sucked - too dark and those guys just move so fast! But as I sit to add this event to my list of 52 Firsts, all the pics have dissappeared from my camera - nothing else, just those.

Hmmmm. . .

I suppose my place isn't that difficult to break into. I mean, any ninja worth his salt could do it. Whatdyathink?

Can I Drive the Zamboni?

I'm not that used to taking photographs for anything other than art purposes. The idea of "Hey, look at me at such-and-such place" doesn't quite suit me. I don't like feeling like a tourist (even if I am one).

But I feel the slight need to have proof of my 52 Things. So here's a shot from the ice hockey game.

A curious thing. . . the fans had this overabundant and extreme hatred of one of the opposing team players (#24 Robitaille). I've never heard SO much profanity screamed at one person before. I have NO idea why the Albany fans hate him, but I kept thinking "poor kid!". He did, however, provide me with the most embarrassing display of cowardice I've ever seen. The players all seemed to be waiting for the right time to kick his ass and when the moment came and one of the Rats threw a punch, Robitaille dropped to the ice, face down in a protective fetal position.

WHAT?! Either fight back or take your beating, but don't do that! What kind of a hockey player are you?

My Big Fat (Yawn) Life

"So what have you done in your life?"

This is what I was thinking as I listed seemingly simple activities like riding go-carts on my future activities list. (Yes, I never did that as a kid). I can think of a few nifty things, but unfortunately they were, in most cases, a long time ago! SO. . . I have:

* Riden an elephant

* Traversed a corn maze (and somehow exited at the entrance, oops)

* Auditioned for a movie

* 'Surfed' the dunes in White Sands, New Mexico

* Experienced the Dragon's Wing - a distant cousin to bungee jumping, but close enough for me!

* Rappelled down both a tower and a cliff

* Helped break the record for most Volkswagens on a ferry.

Hmmm. . . still thinking. I'll update if anything else comes to mind.

And Mao said, "Let there be light."

The best asian food around here (that I've found so far) is at a place called Dragon Buffet. This is the wall right behind the cash register. I have to wonder about their electrician, though.