Ponderings and Musings

Today has been an odd sort of day. Earl had a doctor’s appointment at 10:30, a stress test where you run on the treadmill until you’re in pain, so he came home around 9:45 to change his clothes so he was dressed more appropriately. I think he wanted to show a little chest to Dave, the bearish technician. So his popping in threw me off my game a little bit while I was getting ready to leave for school.

The master clock that runs my collection of school clocks did not survive the last round of thunderstorms we had, so the clocks throughout the house are running on this makeshift setup I have while the clock is getting repaired. I know this is going to sound strange, but with the regular setup the clocks make a click at the 58th second then at the :00 of every minute. I couldn’t manage that with the makeshift setup, which causes the clocks to click at the 56th second then at the :00 of every minute. So the clicks are spaced further apart which is confusing my internal rhythm. It is sort of like Chinese Water Torture.

When I got to class only five of the twenty or so showed up for our final class before the Final Exam on Thursday. This threw me off a little bit, as did the fact that the professor came in clean shaven, where he usually has a goatee.

When I got home from school, ready to make a sandwich and settle down for “The Addams Family”, I found Earl at home surfing on his computer. While he survived the stress test just fine, he has no heart trouble at all, he didn’t feel in the mood to go back to work so he took the afternoon off. I’m glad that he’s home, but I didn’t feel as close to John Astin and Carolyn Jones as I usually do.

By the way, is it mysterious and spooky and all together ooky that I find myself rather attracted to John Astin as Gomez Addams?

After spending the morning doing chores, Earl and I took a few moments to relax on our patio this afternoon. Like the well oiled machine we strive to be, we split up the “honey do” list and just got everything done. While Earl was grocery shopping, I had the task of trimming the out-of-control bushes in the landscaping across the front of the house. We planted the bushes three years ago and haven’t done much with them since. They are now tamed back to a reasonable size. I was expecting to find a buried treasure or something but all I found was cat poop.

After the landscaping was under control and the groceries were put away, we went to Lowe’s and picked up a few goodies for the house, including a bird feeder, some potting soil and geraniums from the abandoned decorative pots along the driveway. All this outdoor activity coupled with my craziness in cleaning the house on Friday has me feeling pretty good about this place we call home.

Now if the weather would just feel like July 1st instead of May 1st it’d be picture perfect.

Earl and I haven’t been on a fun road trip in a while. With sunny skies and moderate temperatures bestowed upon us by Mother Nature, I declared that today we would return to the tradition of going for a “long ride”. We decided to approach today’s ride a little different and explore a little closer to home.

Our first stop was the Rosamond Gifford Zoo at Burnet Park in Syracuse.

I have not been to this zoo since I was 10 years old or so. It was still called the Burnet Park Zoo at the time. Despite the 29 years that have passed, I still remembered quite a bit of the zoo. It seems to be in good shape and the animals seem happy. I’m not sure that I’m a huge fan of the whole zoo concept, however, I do appreciate that the zoo is doing their share to make sure animals that are near extinction are not killed off completely. Plus, zoos do a good job of educating the young about Mother Earth, so there are many good things about a zoo. However, if I had to sit in a cage all day I might resort to throwing my poop, so I guess I see both sides of the coin.

Overall it was a pleasant experience.

After the zoo we headed north to the Oswego County Fair. I had read that this is the 150th anniversary of the Oswego County Fair, so I thought it would be just wonderful. The fair is held in the next town over from where I grew up and it was a regular family activity to go to the county fair, so I was looking forward to the experience. When we arrived I noticed the grandstand was jammed with folks gawking at the demolition derby. I guess it’s still the biggest attraction at the fair. We decided to skip that and opted to walk through all the building, pass by all the food vendors, look at all the arts and crafts and admire the various tractors on display. After about 10 minutes or so it was time to leave as we had seen it all, so we headed out. So much for that 150 year celebration.

After a stop at Smokey Bones for a few brewskis and supper, we headed to Carousel Center for a walk before heading home. One stop at Carousel Center was at the Apple store, where I got to play with an iPhone. O.k., while I think the hype of this thing was entirely off the map I must say that the geek in me really loves this gadget and while I can think of many other things I could spend $500 on, I wouldn’t mind if I had one of these things in my pocket. So I have not added an iPhone to the geek arsenal but I would definitely say there’s one in my future, even if it’s two years from now.

There has been an effort underway for many years to transform Carousel Center into Destiny USA. If the final vision for Destiny USA is ever reached, it could be the largest man-made structure on the entire planet. Even Phase One of the plan is quite impressive, especially in the fact that it is an entirely green operation with absolutely no fossil fuels involved in it’s creation.

To me that’s just cool.

A number of years ago, when my sister was sitting in intensive care with something close to Legionnaire’s Disease, I was sitting in a hospital waiting room with my cousin Theresa. Concerned about the welfare of my sister and still reeling from the death of Theresa’s daughter, we were basically “numb” and just talking about the meaning of life. Why are we here, how can we make a difference and all that sort of deep stuff. I’ve never forgotten that conversation. It enhanced a drive I’ve always had to do my part to make the world a better place. This is where Destiny USA intrigues me in many ways. First of all, if it ever comes to fruition, it’s going to be nothing short of impressive. It is being built on an industrial wasteland that was known as “Oil City”, for all the oil storage tanks that used to live there. It lies on the shore of one of the most polluted lakes in the world, Onondaga Lake. However, Destiny USA can be a major force in turning this all around, enhancing efforts to clean up the lake and bringing jobs, visitors and prosperity to the Upstate New York “rust belt”. Many may not agree with this, but I think there’s a solid vision waiting to be realized.

Perhaps a newly educated Civil Engineer could assist in the effort.

MSNBC’s Mika Brzezinski refused to open a newscast with a lead story covering Paris Hilton’s release from prison. The whole thing can be seen on the YouTube video below.

Whether this was a planned protest or not, I found her attitude to be quite refreshing in a world of Mary Hart wannabes covering every movement of Paris’ exposed vagina.

I hate Paris Hilton. I despise everything she stands for. She is an obvious symptom of a very sick society.

By the way, 101 American soldiers have died in Iraq during the month of June. As of today, there have been 3,570 U.S. deaths since the beginning of this war, as confirmed by the Department of Defense.

And I’m suppose to care about Paris Fucking Hilton? Not on your life. That is all.

Before I get into this latest entry, in case you haven’t heard, Apple releases the iPhone this afternoon at 6 p.m. I don’t know if you’ve heard anything about this latest gadget as the media has been very, very quiet about this technological breakthrough so I thought I should warn you that things might be a little crazy around your local Apple and /AT&T retailers. By the way, I’m not getting one, he says rejoicefully.

I am sitting in Panera while en route to my sister’s to do the brotherly chore of mowing her lawn. Since my sister’s boyfriend is a Canadian Hockey Player, she ends up spending a lot of time north of the border in Prince Edward Island. Stateside she has a townhouse in one of those sort of snobby developments so there is much pressure to keep her lawn under control. Therefore, I must drive 100 miles round trip to do this.

This is what older brothers do.

I always find a trip to Panera to be a fascinating experience. I don’t know if it’s the effect of Baby Bush and his cast of idiots or what but there seems to have been a general dumbing down of the American public since the dawn of the 21st century. Panera does a great job of posting their menu in bold print, using words with no more than three syllables to describe what they have to offer. The prices are available to all, there’s no secret handshake required.

Can someone please tell me why almost all customers have such a difficult time ordering at Panera? To begin with, they stand 10 to 12 feet away from the counter, seemingly like they’re fearing an appearance of Barbara Eden (in the dark wig) smoking out of a jelly roll or something. Secondly, those waiting their turn at the register make no attempt to sort out what they desire prior to getting to their turn. They talk on their cell phone, scratch their nuts, leash their kids, lash out at their kids and “ooh” and “aah” over the pastries in the display case but by all that is holy they DO NOT make any decisions or try to figure out what Asiago Cheese is. Why is this?

I would bet one thin dime that they know what they want when they’re ordering a Burger Bomb by yelling into the clown’s mouth.

I don’t feel I’m unreasonable. Perhaps I expect too much from people. Is it crazy of me to wish that people stand in line, formulate their order in advance and move through the ordering process in a timely manner?

Perhaps Panera should install a clown’s mouth on the counter.

Yesterday afternoon I was working on homework when the phone rang. I picked up the receiver and politely said “Hello”, as more normal Americans would do. Was I greeted with a pleasant voice in response? In this day and age, the answer is unsurprisingly no. In response to my pleasant greeting I received three blares of touch-tone goodness followed by a garbled recorded message ordering me to call DirecTV immediately at a toll-free number. Never one to jeopardize all things techie, including incoming satellite signals, I hung up the phone and called them right back.

Them: “Thank you for calling DirecTV, may I help you please?”

I responded by pressing several buttons on the telephone. I figured if DirecTV can greet me with touch-tone noises then I shall do the same forever and ever amen.

Them: “Is someone there?”

Me: “Hello?”

Them: “What is the name on this account?” (Ooh, a psychic, she already knows who I am.)

I gave her Earl’s name, since his name is on the account.

Them: “Is this Earl?”

Me: “Yes.” I love impersonating Earl.

Them: “How can I help you?”

Me: “I was told to call you.”

Them: “By whom?”

I responded with several blasts of the aforementioned touch-tone before I meekly said, “A recorded voice.” Having been in radio for several years I’ve always tried to be armed with a wide selection of character voices, but they all boil down to one: something that sounds like Bea Arthur constipated, so I settled for my regular voice with a meek twist.

Them: “Sir, your account is up to date. There was no reason to call.”

Me: “So this has been a waste of my time, your time and the time of anyone eavesdropping on this conversation.”

Them: “Yes.”

Me: “Goodbye.” I considered playing the first line of “Mary Had A Little Lamb” on the 3-2-1 keys of the phone but I opted to just hang up instead.

And the good times keep comin’! This week it’s all about the intermediate algebra, as I have two major tests, four homework assignments, a paper and a final all due before July 6. My desk is cluttered with scraps of paper with algebraic equations and my head is cluttered with variables dancing and passing like strangers in the night. I have noticed that my professor and the text book are both obsessed with mixing 20% acid solution with 60% acid solution to come up with 45% acid solution in varying amounts using various methods.

I don’t think I’ve ever mixed acid before.

The bright side of the week is the morning weather has been absolutely perfect for cycling. I’ve been getting myself up out of bed early enough to enjoy breakfast with Earl and then jumping on the bike for an hour or so. I’m loving the bike riding again and that’s keeping my head clear and my anxiety of acid solutions low.

Time to go study!

Earl and I made what is becoming a somewhat yearly trek to my alma mater for the annual “Alumni Banquet”. This gathering is a tradition at my high school; alumni gather for a banquet and typical assembly afterwards, where we honor the current graduates and hand out almost $10,000 in scholarships. Tonight’s banquet was the 118th. The oldest alumni in attendance had graduated in 1933.

My father is currently the president of the Alumni Association. This is his first year in the role. He’s going to do it for one more year and he hinted that I should take over the duties after he’s through. Apparently no one else wants the job.

I did take the opportunity to stand up and make an announcement about my efforts getting the Alumni Marching Band together for the parade in August. It’s coming together slowly but surely. Several people are excited about the venture, so I’m glad there’s some interest out there.

I had the opportunity to visit with one of my favorite teachers from high school. Miss Chontosh (though that’s not her name anymore) joined the faculty as an 8th grade math teacher when I was in 8th grade. Today she’s the department head for the math department. I told her about my current intermediate algebra challenges in college and she told me I’d do fine. I also snuck a peek in the gymansium for the first time since graduating in 1986. It looks the same aside from a paint job or four.

It was good to walk through the old halls and reminisce a little bit.

It’s been a year and a half since we welcomed my grandmother’s piano into our home. Even though the piano sits proudly in our front room, the “formal” living room, and is rightfully our piano, in my mind it shall always be my grandmother’s piano. I believe my grandfather bought it for her new back in 1949. When I sit on the bench, I can still smell the scent inherent to the instrument. I can still hear my grandmother playing her favorite song, “My Melody of Love”, made famous by Bobby Vinton.

I have played the piano on very few occasions since it’s come into our home. It didn’t survive the transport as well as I had hoped; several keys ended up in the “down” position and it hadn’t been tuned in at least two decades. But the keys that worked sounded strong and overall the piano is in otherwise great shape, so Earl and I decided it deserved a little TLC.

The kind man from Stage Music made two visits this week. On Tuesday morning he spent two hours assessing what needed to be done and he also brought the piano back to pitch (it was considerably flat). It turns out that there had been quite the family of mice living in the piano at one time, and they had snacked on the felt pads that raise the keys to their proper position. So Mr. Stage Music came back today and replaced all the felt and tweaked the pitch to perfection. To test the piano, Mr. Stage Music played a melody of lounge favorites. I noticed that he gave the piano the firm touch that it requires to make beautiful music. I’ve always been rather timid when playing this piano. This was a result of my playing the piano when I was in elementary school. I was having a loud, boisterous, joyful time with my sister, when grandpa came over and in his stern, rather bull-hornish voice proclaimed, “Do you know what refrain means?” We suspected it meant “stop and move your fingers”, as the lid to the keys was brought to a close.

We used a timid touch when we played the piano after that encounter. Thank goodness Mom and Dad babysat a piano for 20 years so that we had something to bang on.

So now my grandmother’s piano is back in her beautiful glory. I’ve never had an official piano lesson (thank god… we won’t mention the town minister that gave piano lessons only to ‘special young boys’), aside from the piano classes I didn’t finish at SUNY Fredonia. But I can plunk out a few tunes like a drunken fool from time to time, even though I can’t separate my left hand from my right hand and I don’t use the correct fingerings. See if you can identify the two songs I’m trying to play here.

It’s never good to see “You have one voicemail” on the cell phone after math class. Those who would call me know that I’m in school and would usually call me after school, plus I don’t think there’s that many people that would call me anyway, so seeing that I received a voicemail while I was sitting in class gave me an eerie feeling.

It was Earl. He fell asleep while driving on the Thruway today, with the cruise control on, and was awakened by the sound of his car sideswiping a guardrail at 72 MPH.

He’s not hurt and the car has an interesting pattern scraped down the entire length of it but it’s perfectly driveable. It just looks a little ghetto or white trashy right now.

My partner never gets enough sleep and he didn’t eat breakfast this morning. Instead of scolding him, well, maybe I scolded him just a little bit once I knew he was o.k., I told him that I’ll be joining him for a bowl of Cheerios and a glass of juice every morning.

I’ll even be chipper when I do it. Anything to avoid voicemail messages like that.