GuitarCast

Now that I'm home for the school year, I'm having adventures of a more domestic nature. Here's the story of my day today:



And the song...

MJ 2.0

About two years ago, I got an email from a stranger on MySpace. In his message, he asked me about my interest in travel and briefly told me about his recent back-packing trip in Europe. For a few weeks, we exchanged emails almost every day, and eventually, we went out for coffee.

That was how I met MJ.



After we'd had several months of dinners, movies, fine wines, and good times, he decided to move to Los Angeles. From previous unpleasant experiences, I'd already learned that there are generally three ways these scenarios can play out: 1) You can feel abandoned, throw a fit, and break up with the person before they leave; 2) You can attempt a long-distance relationship, make lots of promises neither of you will keep, and break up after they've gone; or 3) You can quit your job, pack your things, and go with them, which is no guarantee that it'll work out once you get there anyway. Cynical? Yes, but not without reason.

Dissatisfied with all those options, I decided to invent an alternative strategy: 4) You can be unselfish and let them go. Now I'm no saint, and I don't mind admitting to you that I was pretty bummed at the thought of losing him, but I also knew how badly he needed the change and how well LA would suit him. So while he was making arrangements, I went full-tilt into supportive friend mode, and when he left, I sent him off with a hug and a smile and never expected to see him again.

And I didn't. We spoke on the phone once or twice when he was first settling in, but then we got busy with our own lives and left it at that.



Until two weeks ago, when I got another email. It took me a few minutes to sort out who it was from as the address was unfamiliar and the author signed it with his initials. Something about how it had been a long time, an apology for not keeping in touch, going to be in town for a few days, really want to catch up, lots to talk about...

So after not speaking to him in well over a year, I suddenly found myself sitting across from MJ at one of our favorite haunts, talking jobs and families and traveling as if he'd never been away.

Since then, we've spoken several times, and a few days ago, he called to ask if I want to go to Spain with him. Ah, that unbridled spontaneity! Welcome back, MJ. I've missed you.

Indecision '08

I'm not normally one to get into politics (or Matt Damon), but my friends (mostly my religious friends) are all getting up-in-arms over this video at the moment...



Irrelevant remarks about dinosaurs aside, Damon's point that Palin is a wild card is valid. We really haven't seen her in leadership enough to know who she is or what she's about. I think she's been chosen for two reasons 1) she's a young woman, which they're hoping will sway young voters and Clinton supporters, and 2) she's deeply religious, which should appeal to those on the right who think McCain is too socially liberal.

I don't know about you guys, but I'm not about to vote for someone based on what religious beliefs he or she claims to hold any more than I'd choose my heart surgeon based on whether I thought he was a nice guy. Show me training, skill, and experience. Show me an intricate knowledge of foreign & domestic policies, a history of prudent financial decisions, a deep thirst for justice, and a stomach strong enough to take the world's scrutiny. I'm glad Sarah Palin loves Jesus, but I know a lot of people who love Jesus and still aren't qualified to lead the free world.

I'm right with Damon on this one, especially that priceless Disney movie analogy. I just do not care what a swell gal Palin is. She has no business being in a national executive office.


And that is all I wish to say about this election.

Hawaii Photo Blog

Rather than attempt to recount all my tropical adventures, I'll let the photos do most of the talking.



If you like to relax on vacation, Hawaii may not be the best place. Our trip was the Fear Factor© version of vacation -- nearly everything we did required us to sign a waiver in case we were maimed or killed whilst doing it. That included kayaking on the open sea, which is pretty hard work, but well worth it to get to reefs, beaches, and bits of coast like this that are otherwise inaccessible.






These are the little touches that make Hawaii so awesome.




The west coast of The Big Island has top notch scuba-diving. This is Eric, our dive meister, who is a fine man and an expert in his field, and who also nearly killed himself the first time he took us out. When we got out to the reef, he leapt gracefully into the sea to moor our boat to the buoy. A few moments later, he came back to the surface with blood streaming down his face and neck from a massive gash on the top of his head, which he had slammed at full-speed into the hull of the boat. He was quite dazed, bleeding profusely, and lucky as hell that he didn't knock himself unconscious. His boss, who was captaining, helped haul him out of the water and said, "Duuuude, you gotta be more cogniscent of where you are in the water, bra." My favorite scuba quote.

To his credit, once his head stopped bleeding (several hours later), Dive Meister strapped his fins back on and was a pro the rest of the week -- by far my favorite among a stellar crew of people.







Luau food will tickle your taste buds! The pork was buried in a pit and slow-cooked, which is the traditional Hawaiian method. So tender and juicy, it makes me ache just thinking about it.



When we needed a break from the water, we went on an open-range horseback ride up in the mountains. A word of caution -- you cannot go up to high altitudes for a day or so after scuba-diving, so plan accordingly. Getting the bends and/or dying can ruin your vacation. But the view up there might change your life.









Much of the terrain on Hawaii was surprisingly desolate, covered in lava rock and not much else.




Plumeria and hibiscus -- classic Hawaii!






Tracking down a pod of wild dolphins and swimming with them is a pretty popular pastime in Hawaii. Early one morning, we found about 150 of these spinners and played with them for a couple hours. Great fun!

The True North

I'm from Michigan. For anyone whose US geography is a little shaky, -- I'm looking at you, Kentucky -- Michigan is the one in the north that's surrounded by all the water. From where I live now, driving to Windsor is faster than driving to Toledo. Given the option, I'd rather drive to Canada than to Ohio anyway. I have more friends there and I know the area better. This unique border-state position of being closer to a foreign country than to a neighboring state makes for some interesting blending of cultures.

For starters, I have a deeply rooted affection for Canada. Sort of the way I imagine I'd feel if I had a younger brother who had out-grown me. He's bigger than me, and if I really pushed him, he'd probably be able to kick my ass, but he would never do that because at the end of the day, he's still just my sweet little kid brother. And I'd never claim that Ontario was exactly like Michigan any more than I'd claim my brother was a little clone of me. But we can't deny we grew up on a lot of the same culture -- euchre, "The Red Green Show," fantastic winter storms, no shortage of corn fields, and of course, the Lakes.


Ontarigan -- Between the two of us, we pretty much own all the cool beaches.

Ohio's like my stepbrother. We live in the same house. Other people seem to think we have things in common, but... I don't really know him. I'm told they play euchre there, but sometimes they use sixes and fours to keep score instead of fives. And while Michigan has nearly 3300 miles of shoreline on four of the Great Lakes, Ohio borders Lake Erie for just over 300. I can't begin to relate to that.



When I returned home from Seattle, I took a little look-see at my calendar and realized I had two empty weeks before our annual family romp on Lake Huron. I wanted to get out of the house, but after so much traveling, I knew I needed to head for somewhere relaxing. I immediately composed an email message to send to a handful of my Strong & Free friends. It began: "Dear Canada, are you busy next week?"

Several emails, a few pricey phone calls, and one exemplary set of directions later, I set out on the eight-hour haul to central Ontario.



Despite having several friends in Toronto, I decided to spend the majority of my week a couple hours east of there in a quiet, rural area close to the shore of Lake Ontario. Going to another major urban center just didn't appeal to me. So instead, I went to see my buddy Brice -- an old work mate from Japan who, like me, has since returned to his hometown. This made Brice the fourth ex-NOVA friend I got to see this summer. Well done, me! And as with Dave and Jenny in Dublin, I hadn't seen Brice in over two years, so it was a deeply gratifying reunion.



In the first fifteen seconds after I pulled into Brice's, I got three things: a bear hug, a brief introduction to the fam, and a cold beer. That set a pretty good tone for the whole visit.

Despite Brice's assurances that there was absolutely nothing to do in his town, we kept pretty busy. We went to a bonfire and a baseball game; we grilled out every night; we played ferociously competitive euchre (the only kind, really); and we sat outside at their mom's listening to the coyotes. Brice and I went swimming in a rock quarry one afternoon, which is an experience everyone should have at least once. His brother's girlfriend and I got to laugh and roll our eyes while the menfolk attempted to force open a safe they had found, using an electric drill, hammers, chisels, and sheer tenacity. Naturally, we spent a day on a Lake Ontario beach with a bit of frisbee, a bit of sunburn, and a respectable cooler of beer. And at night when I crawled in bed at the family farm, it was pitch black and perfectly silent. I haven't slept that well in quite a while.

I even changed my plans for the rest of the week so that I could stay longer. I guess I just couldn’t think of anywhere worth running off to. :-)