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March 31, 2006

the place to be

When I was in college, we went to Memphis and New Orleans for spring break. How the times, they are a-changin'...

http://www.cnn.com/2006/US/03/29/walmat.spring.break.ap/index.html

Posted by ben at 10:40 AM | Comments (0)


March 29, 2006

stupid

After much deliberation, it has become clear to me that I have yet to learn how best to balance life and writing about life. By life, I mean work. By writing, I mean writing. Grad school left ample time for the sort of flights of fancy that I so enjoy journaling. Working life does not afford the same gaps in my daily schedule. On one hand, that is good. I don't have to sit around for anywhere from one to four hours waiting for my next class, client, or meeting to start. On the other hand, busier schedules don't easily lend themselves to reflection and contemplation. Without this time, my writing would consist of details of the daily grind. And I always swore I wouldn't do that kind of writing. Ha. Wouldn't that be convenient?

Honestly, I just don't know what I would write regarding what I do every day. I go to work. I come home. I care for the cat (who is definitely losing at least a little weight). I eat like it's going out of style. I do crossword puzzles. I play video games. I eat dinner. I watch TV. I go to bed. Doesn't that sound exciting? This is why I don't write much about it. Not to mention the fact that I am bound legally by confidentiality and morally by ethics from detailing anything regarding my students. Isn't that weird? I know something you don't know (sung repeatedly using an overly superior intonation).

Just to balance that out, here's a story that makes me feel like just about the stupidest person on the planet:

I ran out of pants. For work, that is. I can't wear jeans. Corduroys are permissible. Khakis or dress pants are preferred. I've been wearing the same three pair of khakis (all of which, ironically, are not khaki-colored) for about three years. Clothes shopping is not my favorite of endeavors -- it is performed semi-annually. Well, I ran out of pants. For about two weeks, I survived on the last pair standing, but they eventually succumb to old age and burst a gigantic hole directly in the crotch. Let's put it this way -- if I needed to make number 1, opening the fly of the pants would not have been a necessity.

A few weeks ago, it was absolutely beautiful outside. And I was out of pants. So we went to the Gap to do the semi-annual clothes shop with the windows down in my car. It was so great outside. Only they didn't have any pants that fit me. My, uh, slim physique requires that I steer clear of the so-called "relaxed fit" pants, as they make me look like a clown. But they didn't have any non-relaxed fit pants. I guess baggy is in. Again. Who knew. So I got some shirts and we left to do the weekly grocery shop, windows still down. When we got home, I was backing in to the garage, as I have done, oh, I'd say about 250 times in the past year. So I wasn't really paying much attention. As I backed up, I started to hear the most excruciating sound. My head quickly pivoted only to see that my driver's side mirror was caught on the side of the garage. I'd gone back so far that it had bent to the point that it was about parallel with the car. Man, now that was stupid. It cost about $400 to fix. Stupid.

Posted by ben at 4:50 PM | Comments (0)