just a few words now. I am getting ready to go to bed soon. I work tomorrow and the next 4 days after. I am not looking forward to it in the least. Though I really shouldn't complain, it isn't that bad. I will just be tired of waking up so early so many days in a row. After that I will hit the road heading for good old PA! I am excited to be going home, and of course it is my little sister's graduation which makes it especially special. Yes Emily, you are my LITTLE sister:) even if you are bigger than me now:(
I seem to have managed to waste my two days off doing nothing in particular, and not really accomplishing anything. I had all these things that I wanted to get done. I even made a list. I think that I was able to cross two things off of the list. Actually one and a half. I only partially finished the second thing. I am just terrible. I am trying to make a point to discipline myself to do things, but it doesn't seem to be working too well.
I have recently purchased a book on cd. I bought it thinking that I could listen to it on roadtrips, such as my upcoming trip to Pennsylvania. I told myself that I would not start listening until I was on the road, but yesterday I couldn't help myself, I just wanted to hear what it sounded like and then I was in big trouble. I couldn't stop listening. There is something that is amazingly soothingly hypnotizing about someone reading aloud and I am completely vulnerable to it's allure. So I spent way too much time listening to this book being read and accomplishing nothing else. I must confess that the book I chose is well...rather disturbing. Lolita. I did not realize what the book was about. And you cannot necessarily discern from the description on the back that it is about an older man who is obsessed with young girls and falls in love and lusts after this one girl, Lolita, in particular. He is really quite sick. There are occasions when I have to turn it off because it starts to get to me. But since I bought it, I must finish it. It is read by Jeremy Irons. He has a good reading voice and does a good job. I think I like this book on cd thing. Though it could never replace reading a book yourself, but it is definitely still something worthwhile. Funny too that just today I noticed an article in the New York Times about books on cd and how it is really becoming popular. Some people however think that it is cheating. As i said, it cannot replace reading a book for yourself, but those people must not have ever experienced the joy of being read to and I would bet you a whole lot that it is beneficial to the body and mind.
My eyes are burning and no longer want to stay open, so it is off to bed with me.
Oh one last thing. I cut my hair today. Well I didn't cut it drastically or anything, but I think I cut probably close to two inches off. I did it myself too. First time I have done that. Doesn't look to bad either.
Song for the Day: Enya-Orinoco Flow

The Capitol Building-Raleigh NC

I spent the day yesterday exploring some of the downtown Raleigh area as I had not gone there yet. It was very nice. Not too cityish, but not just town either. I suppose that I might compare it somewhat in feeling to Austin. Though I think it is not quite as big. Anyway, I went to the capitol building and explored around through there. Went to the Natural Science Museum and saw that, then I was just walking through the streets to see what there was to see and came upon the art festival. They were having this big Artsplosion festival and they had all these booths with different things, paintings, photographs, sculptures, clothing, jewelry, etc. Some of it was very nice. Then there were of course all the food booths, as well as live music. It was interesting. I wandered around there for a while and then headed back home. It is really interesting to me. I have been doing all these things for the first time by myself and I am actually really enjoying it. I can wander around through a museum for instance, see what I want to see and leave, or stay, however long I choose. No one else to consider. But then when I have something to say about something there is no one there to say it to. So there are good things and bad about it I guess. The other night I went out to eat by myself for the first time. I had never actually done that before, where I actually went and sat down in a restaurant for dinner. It was really fun. One of the funner things I have done so far. People look at you strange and wonder I suppose, and I just sat and relaxed, had my dinner and read my book. It was very nice. I enjoyed the fact that I had the nerve to do something that a lot of people would be afraid to do. and for what? It can be very enjoyable. Why should you have to have someone with you to go out and eat. I mean people alone get just as hungry as people together don't they:)
I have completed reading another book and begun another. I am reading In Dubious Battle right now. It is good so far. I have always enjoyed Stienbeck. I got into conversation with the car dealer salesman who I bought my car from. He told me that he had done the whole travel around on a motorcycle thing and that he had written a book. He also likes to read, though hasn't been doing as much lately and so we were swapping recommendations. So i gave him a list of books to read and he recommended that I read some of Kurt Vonnegut so i might possibly look into reading some of his books next. He said I will be hooked once I start. Other than that I bought so previously viewed dvd's from the video store and when I came home to watch them found that there is some problem with the sound on my dvd player. So though I can still watch dvd's it sounds rather like some robot or something has gotten inside the sound. It is really bad. And quite annoying. If any of you computer savvy people know what the problem could be and how to fix it please let me know. I took it to Best Buy and had them look at it, but they were really no help at all. So I am not sure what the next step is. For now I guess it is go without movies. Well that's better anyway I suppose. I should be reading more than watching videos. And thats the update for the moment.

Song for the Day: Chopin-Valse Op 69, No 2

My new baby!

So this is my newest investment. The picture does not even do her justice, but it will serve to give you all an idea of what she looks like. It is a joy to drive her around and I can't help but get a smile on my face whenever I walk out the door and see her there. I even get happy when it is time for me to go to work because I know that I will get to drive her. Pretty crazy eh. Yes indeed it is. So everyone, let me know what you think of my precious. I can't wait to show people in person just how peppy she can be. Anyway, other than that nothing of to much importance has happened lately. I will be flying down to Mobile, Alabama this weekend to meet Danielle and her mom who are driving my old car there from San Antonio. Very kind of them indeed to go out of their way to bring it halfway here from Texas. Now Emily will have a car to drive when she comes here to live with me this summer.
Yesterday I went to the nearby park around a nearby lake which has some wonderful paths on which to bike or run, or just plain walk. And I was just plain walking because I wasn't in the clothing nor the mood to run. It was evening when I got there and I was talking to pfeif on the phone and filling her in on things here. I sat for a while by the lake...so placid and serene. After some time i realized that it was beginning to get dark and that I should probably head back to the car. As I had never been to the park before I did not know the pathways and so was just going by deductive reasoning that the pathway made a loop around the lake and came back to the parking lot where I had left my car. So I decided rather than go back the way I had come I would walk the rest of the way around the path. Well it was getting darker and darker, the woods were thick, there were fewer and fewer people to be seen. I couldn't keep the thought from popping in to my head again and again, no matter how hard I tried to keep it out that I was going to be stuck in a strange woods, prime stalking grounds for some local or even foreign evil doer to take this opportunity to execute some crime. "Oh dear, i thought." "Stop thinking such ridiculous things!" Well thankfully I was still on the phone with pfeiffer who i was keeping informed of the situation and who so graciously stayed with me on the phone until quite some time later, after much walking, a small amount of running and a great deal of worrying I did finally arrive back at the parking lot where I had started. The pathway did in fact loop back, but it had just turned out to be a longer walk than I realized. yikes! what a fright. Next time I will know better than to stay so late on a strange path.
I continue reading as usual. I have recently finished Eleven Minutes by Paulo Coelho and I am currently reading Nectar in a Sieve by Kamala Markandaya recommended and lent to me by my friend Danielle. I am also reading In Dubious Battle by John Steinbeck. The most recent movies I watched were: Lemony Snicket's A Series of Unfortunate Events which I very much enjoyed. Also watched The Silence of the Lambs. Decided to watch that again after getting interested while seeing part of it in prison no less, with a roomful of five prisoners whom I have no idea what their crimes are. Somewhat creepy, but it gave me the desire to see the movie again, so i rented it. Then I watched Mommie Dearest. The story of Joan Crawford and her adopted children. It is based on a book by her adopted daughter. Quite interesting. I would actually like to read the book. Other than that, nothing new going on. It is back to work tomorrow for me. Can't believe my two days off are already over. Ugh!

Song of the Day: Tom Petty- It's Good to be King

Adaptation

So the days go by. I am enjoying myself, but I don't quite know what to do with myself all alone here. There is SO much to do, but I have always been one to enjoy something more if I have someone else with me to talk to, etc. Oh well. I looked at a VW Jetta today. 2004 silver, 5 speed. It is a very nice car. They were so nice to me at the dealership, and they even let me bring it home for the weekend to drive it around. Well actually until Wednesday night they gave it to me. I was so amazed. So i left the crappy little Kia Rio that the rental company had given me and instead I am zoom zooming around in a cute little Jetta. It is splendid. I think that I will probably buy it. I need to have a good car. Then depending on if Emily comes down here to live with me, she can use my old car. That will work out just fine. I am definitely excited and it is a really good deal too.
So today I went and got a library card at the local library. That is always one of the first things I do when I move to any new city. It is an okay library. They don't appear to have CD's and it isn't super huge, but thats okay. I checked two books out despite the fact that I already have books that I am in the process of reading and need to finish first. I can't resist when I see all these books I want to read.
Of course I also found out where the local Barnes and Noble is. I already went and made use of them by purchasing a couple new CD's. Man I am terrible. They are good Cd's though and I got good prices on them.
Today the weather is warmer. It actually was supposed to get up to 80 today. I am not sure if it hit that or not. It was quite nice though.
One more day off then it is back to the grindstone. At least it will only be for two days though. That I can deal with. Tomorrow is Sunday so I plan to go to church. There is an OPC church here in Raleigh. I went last Sunday evening and the people were super nice. I even knew the pastor and his wife from way back when I was a little kid. Pretty crazy how small the world is sometimes. I am going to try to start going to church regularly. I think that is something I need to do.
So...other than that, i miss my people in San Antonio, and of course all the rest of you as always. I want to get a bicycle so that I can start biking around on my days off. That will be my next thing. Now to do something useful with my time off before it is gone.

Song of the Day: David Wilcox- Rusty Old American Dream