search: empathy

rock band is the new wii sports

just when i thought it couldn't get any better than playing tennis with a bobblehead...i experience "rock band" (the game). imagine living the dream in front of millions of sweaty screaming fans. or, in my case, 3 sweaty screaming friends.

who knew that i was the BEST SINGER IN THE WORLD when it came to NIN's "the hand that feeds"? or that my drumming skills make phil selway cry in shame? yeah, that's right. CRY IN SHAME.

the band (whit, dd, josh and i) plan on a reunion tour tomorrow. just $5 at the door, people.

experience the legend. (insert guitar solo here)

light show

did you ever pile into the family sedan to go ooooooh and ahhhhhhhhh at christmas lights? no? just my family, then. (no shock there) after about 40 minutes the ooooohing and ahhhhhing would become contrived, part of the expected show as our minds wandered to the hot chocolate waiting at home.

but a piece of me still sighs at the sight, even now. i can't explain the attraction. those tiny twinkly lights add an almost magical sparkle to the night, to the season. nothing can go wrong when bathed in holiday radiance. it births a sudden peace to my insides, a smile upon my lips, a prayer behind closed eyes.

simple strands of red and green and white. brilliant.

choose to defy

i have a friend who is dealing with breast cancer. throughout the many biopsies and doctor visits she's remained positive...faithful...hopeful. it's truly amazing to witness. and though her major surgery is tomorrow, she sent an update email today containing a quote that i wish could be written in bold red lipstick on every patients' bedside mirror:

"It is not given to man to begin;
that privilege is God's alone.
But it is given to man to begin again --
and he does so every time he chooses to defy death
and side with the living."

whispers

i have no respect for justice.
i maim without killing.
i break hearts and ruin lives.
i am cunning, malicious and gather strength with age.
the more i am quoted, the more i'm believed.
i flourish at every level of society.
my victims are helpless,
they can't protect themselves against me because i have no face.
to track me down is impossible,
the harder you try, the more elusive i become.
i am nobody's friend.
once i tarnish a reputation, it is never the same.
i topple governments and wreck marriages.
i ruin careers and cause sleepless nights, heartaches and indigestion.
i spawn suspicion and generate grief.
i make innocents cry into their pillows.
even my name hisses.

i am called gossip.

mmmm sweet

about 5 months ago, advertising agencies started churning out the pink-frosted commercials featuring hearts and flowers and lovers gazing contentedly into each others eyes. most of them make me a tad bit sick to my stomach. but somehow SONIC got it right. picture this...

inside your basic 4-door sedan a man sits behind the wheel, his wife separated from him by a bucket seat. they're both enjoying tantalizing bites of the red-sprinkled ice cream held in their hands. a goofy grin grows on each face. dialogue goes a little something like this:

"this is good."
"yeah. really good."
"wow. what a great moment. just sitting here, together, eating this."
"i know. we should savor this moment."
"especially because later we're going to pick out wallpaper."
"yeah...i'll definitely be screaming at you then."
"and i'll bring up the past."
"oh yeah (chuckle) you always bring that up!"
"yeah. but this is good."
"really good."

end scene. insert laughter here. sonic's sweetheart blast...apparently they're really good.

underdogs, whatttttt????

final score: UF 41, OSU 14.

national champs in TWO sports, yeeeeeah baby!!!!! I SAID IT'S GREAT, TO BE, A FLORIDA GATOR!

heroes

"what is a hero? a hero is a person you admire and look up to. a hero doesn't have to be a person on a poster or the front page of a magazine. a hero can be someone who has opened the door to your future or someone that has had a reflection on your life..."

i don't strive to be a hero, i don't aspire to changing the world. many of my decisions have seemed to actualize bursting with personal gain. there were times when i felt guilty calling the time spent in amsterdam "mission work"...because it taught me so much, gave me so much.

but there are moments in life when you get called out. when the stepping stones and forked paths of your walk through this world stand out starkly. for me, one of those moments arrived this afternoon by US mail.

six paragraphs written by a cousin i haven't seen in a few years. a testament to the efforts of my aunt to keep us close despite the miles. proof that someone's watching, someone's listening, that what you do matters...that what i've done mattered to someone.

i am no hero. but i'll definitely keep trying.

dude, educate your kids in europe

this hurts me (from overheard in new york)...

God Insists on Saying 'Between You and I'

Blonde Teen: So I'm taking that religion class.
Brunette Teen: Oh yeah? The one where you read the Bible right?
Blonde teen: Yeah that one. And get this, we are about to start reading the Book of Proverbs.
Brunette Teen: Oh My God! I didn't know the Bible had a grammar section.
Blonde Teen: Me neither!!
Brunette Teen: Oh man, I bet it totally tells you how to speak like God... Except properly, you know?
Blonde Teen: [Gasp] I bet it totally does.
Brunette Teen: Ugh! I wish I had taken that class.

--The Original Ray's Pizza

romeo & juliet

i have this addiction to drama. these days i'm fixated on grey's anatomy, a show that has all the requisite tears and anguish along with an intelligent dialogue that doesn't give me the urge to pull my ears off and stomp on them.

so i'm watching an episode today (thank you christa, my birthday present is awesome) in which this old couple comes in to the seattle grace hospital. a husband. a wife. 60 years of marriage. cups of coffee without asking. holding hands during consults. cancer. 6 months to live. and he doesn't want her to know, doesn't want her to be dying scared. and she doesn't want him to know, wants to take that trip to venice, sit in a gondola, kiss under the bridge of sighs. they leave the hospital, arm-in-arm, smiling and happy, each protecting the time the other has left.

romeo & juliet was crap. it's not the one you would die for. it's who you live for.

someday

i don't know if i'm praying for the "through good times and bad" happiness, or the 3000+ subscribers, but i know this post is something you should read...

(and because links can be crap, the url is http://www.dooce.com/archives/daily/08_24_2006.html)