Jackelopette

I live, I am well, and I have had an excellent holiday season. It is extended by another few weeks – David comes home soon for mid-tour leave.

I can’t wait.

Well, at least not patiently.

Thus, I direct you to my Twitter feed and Flickr account for the details. I’m finding it far easier to do short-form writing and posting these busy days.

Holidays were spent first in Ojai/Ventura/Santa Barbara, then the Bay for New Year’s Eve. I highly recommend spending the Eve in San Francisco with friends, though buying club tickets ahead of time is something I will do differently next year. See Flickr for partial, unculled proof.

and, o’ course, Talk Like A Pirate Day…

we be aimin’ to pillage Chateau Ste. Michelle for the tourin’ o’ their lands and the drinkin’ o’ their grog.

Yarrr.

Visited Mount Vernon today with a new friend from Council.

Much fun was had, sarcasm exchanged, and general merriment made.

Highlights:

• “Welcome to Mount Vernon Airlines…”
• George Washington was a 4-Her ahead of his time… he even planted clover to aid in crop rotation!
• “Please do not photograph George Washington’s dentures.”
• “Your Exalted High Mightiness… Mr. President.”
• Cavies and sheep. ‘Nuff said.
• The two primary house slaves at Mount Vernon… names in common with folks I know now, in (dare I say it) somewhat similar positions.
• A Dargan’s-style Irish pub in Old Town Alexandria. Need I say more?

After a brief Google search and a long IM meeting, I have come to the conclusion that no one has yet posted online rules for a meeting-based drinking game.

This lack must be remedied.

I welcome all suggestions. We tried out a prototype the other night. It was quite amusing. It can also be done with food, cards, whatnot. Dude, with little cards or trinkets, it could be a GREAT way to teach meeting procedure to kids…

I plan to perfect this, and leave it to future generations of legal drinkers and meeting-goers as my legacy.

Thus, it shall be done.

The text from last night’s toast:

To the dearly departed hamster, Flying F-Badger. When I bought you, you were supposed to be male so I could name you Poncy Tosser. Instead, you got your name after launching yourself from everyone’s hands at the pet shop, then reinforced its meaning after leaping from our balcony. We thought you were dead then, but you weren’t.
(Tommy: So she was trying to commit suicide from the moment you met her? Shane: Here’s to your successes)
You survived living with Steven this summer, when all he wanted to do was put you in a dry kiddie pool with the birds and the kitty for afternoon playtime. You survived living in a house with cats for an admirable period of time. I’ll miss your gnawing of everything, the squeaky wheel at 4 AM, and the fact that you never bit me.

Goodbye, Badger.

It’s kind of hard to describe the way I’ve been feeling recently. Sort of limbo-ish, I suppose. On the one hand, being relatively free of obligation (at least, intellectually demanding obligation) has given me a much-needed respite in which to recharge…
…And on the other, it’s given me a lot of time both to think and to shut off that part of my mind that’s always analyzing, and just hang out with friends.

So, in an effort to seize what little summer freedom I’ve got left, I took off with Alli this weekend for Anime Expo. We departed Davis on Thursday after getting Acura’s belts changed, enjoying a sushi lunch with James, and a few other speedbumps. Then we got take-out Dim Sum in Oakland, got a bit lost, and enjoyed the vagaries of my music collection. 1978 War of the Worlds, Phantom of the Opera, Les Miserables, and the UCD Chorus Lord Nelson/Missa in Angustiis performance.

We pulled into Santa Barbara around midnight, which is right about when the Guild Wars “Dragon Festival” event began, so of course we logged on and began playing. When stuff like this happens, it lasts for a few days, people get titles for their accounts and other fun items that the characters can keep and use after the party ends, and it becomes another way for everyone to get together and celebrate online. We, however, treat it as an excuse to get together in person, too, and things get very very crazy.

So we hung out in SB all yesterday, joined by Sam, Kearney, Hammy, Charles, and (Marie?). Madness ensued. Then we left this morning for Anaheim and Anime Expo at the Convention Center. It’s a huge crowd of anime fans, which means lots of Japanese and cartoons and comics and crazy crazy things. Right now I’m chilling in the hotel room while the gang takes in some late-night anime. I hear Disneyland fireworks.

I love the summer.

First, I beg you to note the time of this post. The sun has not yet risen, and therefore it is still night.

Today was cool, in several different stages.

1. Spent the night at Mom’s hotel room, in a lovely bed. By the way, I highly recommend Comfort Suites off Richards, next to Wendy’s and IHOP. Lovely rooms, soft beds, relaxing, well-laid out… and walking distance from semi-decent fast food.

2. Leisurely breakfast, bit o’ shopping in Fry’s, the usual logy unplanned laziness of a warm Sunday in Davis.

3. Barbecue by Steven, with much aid and abetting from Allison, Kyle, and Omar while Mom, Sara, Tilly, Sandy and I hung out and laughed. The majority of Steven’s presents are actually for his car, including the long-threatened “My Other Car is the Dealer’s Shuttle” license plate frame.

4. Warm-up for Carmina Burana, with the usual frenzied Omigawdismyhairallright, Oooohoohdoweexitstagerightorleft, and of course, Likedoesanyoneknowwherethebathroomis? before entering Jackson Hall.

5. Carmina Burana. One of those rare occasions when I stop thinking about the music and simply perform, letting the breath and music combine, and it sounded UTTERLY MARVELOUS. The baritone was a ham, of course.

6. Reception. Brief moments with Mom and friends, a bit of looking off the Grand Tier balcony onto the lobby to get away from the crowd, and a good phone call with my dad. I wish he could have seen it. Also, I successfully managed to avoid people that annoy me. Yay!

7. Choir party. 10:30 PM to 4:30 AM. Including drinking games to Carmina Burana movement #14, In Taberna, aka the Endless Bibit song. So, “Bibit” and its various other forms/references appear about three dozen times in the song, and naturally we had to drink for each one… Ex-TA Dave claimed the win both times, but Britney and I know better. Then the strip-off between Dave and Stephen(?), the various dance-offs, and the lapdance-offs, all of them by choir people who simply can’t dance (with the exception of the lovely Claire of course). After the complaint by the neighbor at about 2:30, we moved into the garage. Er, we being Jeremy S, Dave, Margie, Claire, Britney, and alumni-Paul. We hung out in the garage till 4:30 admiring the wall (on which only drunk people are allowed to write), the mattresses attached to the wall, each other, and most of all, carrying on ridiculous conversation. I wish I’d started going to these sooner. And no, at no point was I drunk, and wimpy beer doesn’t offend my taste buds nearly as much as normal beer/ale/whatever.

Speaking of daily life here in Davis…

At the toga party, Sandy and Kyle attempted to make a vodka watermelon. It didn’t work. The fruit flies seem drunk, though.

Naturally, we’ve started asking our fellow creative Davisites what we should do with it…
- drop it off a building?
- smash it with a hammer?
- roll it down a hill?
- burn it?

2006 National Collegiate 4-H Conference…

• “Sometimes the furnaces worked to keep us warm, and when they didn’t, we all got a little more friendly.” ~ Larry the speaker
• “I thought he was just a really tall guy…”
• “We don’t think that’s safe.”
• “Could you guys not gather, please?”
• “It’s against the mall rules to gather…” (as we stand in front of the rules reading them)
• “I vote to vote that we amend the amendment…”
• “UC Davis: one yes, one no, and a RESOUNDING KUMBAYA!”
• “I remember going to the second National Collegiate 4-H Conference… we were talking about constitutions and amendments there, too…”
• “And the hotel is just a block or few from Baton Rouge’s best bars and clubs…”
• “YOU LEFT THE QUOTE PAPER BACK IN THE HOTEL?!? HOW COULD YOU?”

As usual, the conference was full of fun people and the drama was more entertaining than harmful (for once)… but I think that our own club is tanking badly. It depresses me to think that I wasted three+ years on something that doesn’t accomplish a whole lot of good compared to the hours we invest. I could have done a lot more with my time.

I guess February delayed itself a bit.

Pre-Break
December 13: After Sandy exercises her dominion over a double final, we celebrate with a wine party. Beaujolais Nouveau, Syrah, Shiraz, and Sauvignon Blanc over about 4-5 glasses, and I was pretty gone. As always, I love my roommate for she watches out for me and my hydration needs.
December 14: A bit of a blur in the morning, but Sophie gets her rabies shot, Rainman gets some goodies, and I get the news that I can (on a technicality) graduate in June. I also manage to show my Latin final who’s da boss despite my slight haze. The much-accursed professor brought hemp brownies. I kid you not.
December 15: I conquer my Bio 1C final and pack. I am still feeling a wee bit muffled, thanks to the wine from Tuesday, but I am more than able to slap it and remind it of its place in the world. Ha!
December 16: Steven and I pack Sophie into her carrier, and my junk into the car, and head southward to warm weather and good friends.
Break I
December 17: Russ and I applaud Foggy Dew (another Irish gang) at Dargan’s (SB), then I meet Amy and Elizabeth for a night of reminiscing at their house.
December 18: The Richardsons and I leave Camarillo at 7 AM to make it through the Dizzyland gates by 9. Although the park is hardly empty, waits for the good rides are minimal, especially with the blessed FastPass. I enjoy myself heartily.
December 19-23 Quite the blurry recollections, although I know that we had the usual Trivia game at Pangea’s on Tuesday the 20th, a lunch with my dad’s work buddies on Thursday, and a tiny gathering at our place on Friday the 23rd. Much shopping and frantic preparation for a typical family holiday. Whee.
Intermission: Christmas
December 24 Not terribly much to report, other than a pleasant gathering at our place for turkey and other edibles. My dad and I took a very relaxing bicycle ride up the coast to Hobson’s Beach and back, complete with requisite photograph and reminiscing about telling a biker gang that “real men don’t need motors.” A cut-throat game of Super Scrabble and another of Tribond later, all are content except the losers. Ha ha!
December 25 Much with the chocolate and presents and whatnot. Family fun time, and a cousin I’ve not seen in a good decade. Sophie goes hog-wild with the leftover paper and curly ribbon… and hasn’t stopped yet. Fun gifts and other stories for another day.
December 26 My dad’s birthday, and a Very Sperry Christmas (although no arguments). Took Grandma on a drive up the coast to Lompoc and back, stopping at the beachside cafe in Goleta. A surprisingly relaxing and enjoyable day. Aunt Cindy and her kids (plus Uncle Richard) spend the night.
December 27 Cousin Faith wakes Aunt Cindy (story to follow later) in a most hilarious manner. Two meals out, and trivia in the evening. Whee.
Break II
December 28-30 Various trips, gatherings, lazy days, shopping, and photography. I’ll post the resulting images soon.
December 31 Torrential rain, shopping at The Oaks, and the traditional New Year’s Bonfire at the Holmes Home. Yeah, THAT gang deserves an entry allllll to itself.
Today Kinda weird not waking up to the Parade, but oh well. Music and conversation at Dargan’s (Vta) were lovely as always, plus more weirdness at Zoey’s with Jonathan McEuen.

And now, having shamelessly teased you all with tiny tidbits of titillating information, I retire to my bathtub and book. Ha.