Wishing for Rocks

After growing up in Colorado and moving to Nebraska, I make it a special point not to be a mountain snob. I had several friends that came to Nebraska for a while for college, and they were especially obnoxious about the scenery. "Nebraska sucks," they would say. "It needs mountains." Though I can't say it has been scientifically proven otherwise, I'm pretty sure jagged eye-candy on the horizon doesn't instantly improve quality of life in any given area. However, given the massive amounts of snow that have buried my town, I would really be into some mountains right now.

I think the appeal of the mountains is a general feeling of "I'm being earthy." There's something about having your view of the sky obstructed by something natural and massive and immovable (except by the mustard seed faith), and it makes you feel insignificant and privileged at the same time. Most of the time, I don't think much about not living in a mountainous region, but with the snow piled high, people bundled up, and my sitting in a coffee shop all morning, I really wish there were a a rocky canvas or two for the snow to dust and the sun to paint.

Back Home

On Monday, my wife, fetus, and I returned to Nebraska. I don't know what I'll do with Colorado--each time I go back, it appeals to me more and more. I love where I live, but you can't compare Nebraska to Colorado (unless it's the third of Colorado that is east of Denver and is far more hideous than the completely flat state I now call home).

But being back has already been great. I've had meetings (not necessarily great) that started yesterday and will continue until Friday. These are to set new testing for English Ten teachers in the district, and it has been way more fun than I would have thought possible. Working with quality folk makes all the difference in the world...and I get paid more (yea!).

I played Risk for the first time in maybe a year. That game so rules. The hardest part for me anymore is choosing a color. I always took green until I met my wife who would punt a puppy if she didn't play green. My older brother was always red, and my other brother was always black--so those colors don't feel right if I try to be either of those. So I moved to yellow--a color that I figured would never be desired by anybody. I mean, who chooses to be yellow. So it became my color of choice for a few years. Enter Chris Smith. When he and his wife moved to Lincoln, life was awesome, but it brought an unforeseen darkness into the land of Risk. The first time we played together, he reached for the color that he lovingly refers to as "the PeePees." So again I was a man without a color. All that's left is blue and gray. Anybody can choose blue, and gray seems kind of woosy. Alas, I will forever live in torment.

In other news, I'm going back to Aikido today. I haven't been thrown around in two weeks, so I'm thrilled, though I'll likely be sore tomorrow.

Colorado

I have always held the opinion that Colorado (along with Texas) is the most arrogant state in the country. And though I've been frequently annoyed with Colorado-natives wandering into Nebraska, or anywhere else that doesn't have mountains, and reminding people of their lousy scenery, I can totally see where they get it from.

On Wednesday, we went down south to Durango. It's close to a four hour drive, but more than half of it is through some of the most beautiful country you've ever seen (pictures coming later). It was fantastic--so much so that I can't really explain it in any other way. Durango is a touristy town, but it's awesome because the attractions are generally low-key and native-performed. So we had a great time going to the Bar D Chuckwagon and coming home to stop in Ouray--probably my favorite Colorado town--to eat at a stellar Mexican restaurant.

Now it's pure relaxation day. We may go see Public Enemies this afternoon and head back into the mountains tomorrow.

Road Trip And Books

I'm in Colorado now. The main thing I have to say is, "I forgot how miserable humidity can make life." Summers in Lincoln usually aren't that bad according to a thermometer, but with the humidity, I kind of want to die sometimes. The last few weeks, Lincoln has been in the 80s I think, but has felt like hanging out in the bowels of Satan. We rolled into Grand Junction today when it was 90 degrees and it felt awesome--just great. I stepped into the shade and instantly felt cool.

Anyhow, it feels good to be back in Colorado and hanging out with my parents. Had some homemade icecream (pure awesome) and we're trying to figure out what we're going to do for the rest of the week.

In the car, I got a lot of reading done. I read out loud for part of it--Serman Alexie's The Lone Ranger and Tonto Fistfight in Heaven. Alexie is just one of those author's that everybody needs to check out. Aside from being a groovy writer, he brings the Native American life into your brain. The first book I read (The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian) of his was hilarious, but with Lone Ranger, you definately get a lot more of a depressing reality.

Also, I finished Big Fish. The film by Burton has been at the top of my list for years (though Pan's Labyrinth has been fighting for the number one spot), so I've been wanting to check out the book for quite a while. The two compliment each other well. And I liked the book quite a bit, but Wallace isn't the most stellar writer, so with a Summer filled with Bradbury, McCarthy, Alexie, and DiCamillo, Wallace just doesn't stand up as well. It's still worth while, but I like how the film took the material and wove a more cohesive story from it.

I'll try to keep updated throughout the week, but like I said yesterday, things might get busy. So at least I'll try to get some pictures up.

I Ought to be Packing

Today my wife, fetus, and I are heading to Colorado. This is a vacation that we've been working on for quite a while. It started with my parents' idea of trying an Alaska cruise (suggested two years ago), but with economic insanity and other financial restrictions, we opted for a visit to the folks' place and gallavent about the mountains and nearby sights. It's going to be awesome. So I'll be out there for a week, so I don't know how often I'll get to update. So I should be packing things as our departure time is about three hours from now, but I wanted to rave a bit about Away We Go.

This film is great, though I don't know how everybody will react to it. Really, it's a fantastic flick for the sake of mirroring a lot of what my wife and I are experiencing. The story follows a couple with their first child on the way as they try to figure the best place to settle down and start a family. It is a legitimately good time, and rather humorous (if you like John Krasinski, you can't go wrong here). But the thing that really stuck in my brain were the similarities between either the story and characters and my life. For instance:

1. In the movie, Burt and Verona find out that the only family they have in town is moving to another continent a month before the baby is born. My brother and his wife are moving to Guam and will be missing the arrival of our kid.

2. Some friends of Burt and Verona miscarry. I found out that some good friends of mine who we expecting also recently miscarried.

3. Burt in general reminds me of the way things work in my brain. I don't act like Burt usually (though there were some blaring similarities), but the things he did in the film mirror much of what goes on in my head.

Anyhow, go check it out. I'll try to see it again if it's still around another week. It definitely has that indie film flair, but not in such a way that you can tell the crew were trying to strike and be different for different's sake. And with a summer of such a crap-load of lousy movies, this should rank pretty high on your list.

Colonel Pickering and the X-Men

Over the weekend, I went to Colorado to see my youngest brother perform in My Fair Lady. It was awesome. He not only did a great job, but did all he could to steal the show. And steal it he did. The thing that threw me off was that a lot of his antics were not cleared with the play's director. Gutsy. But for this show, it worked well. The best part, is that he dedicated his performance to my other brothers and me.

However, the good times were slowed as I was battling a cold for most of the weekend. Grr. It's still hanging on, but I hope to be rid of it by tomorrow. If not, then life will be quite irritating.

Wrath of the Lich King looks awesome, but I have yet to really play it. I got on last night expecting more people online, but was all alone. So I dropped it and moved on to my newest obsession: X-Men the animated series. This gem of the mid-nineties has been great entertainment and fed my nerd-hunger for many hours last night. So good.