One widow.

One nun.

Two toddlers.

Seven couples.

And me.

That's my family, who are gathered here in this beach house in North Carolina courtesy of my grandmother (the aforementioned widow.)  I like my family, they're as good as any other, I suppose.  But I feel so strange and alone when I'm with them all.  I'm a fifteenth wheel.  I don't particularly ( Read more... )

 
I'm sitting on the floor at LAX.  It's 6pm, my leg is asleep and my ass hurts.  "But it's 6pm, Big Whitey?  Weren't you to depart at 1pm?  And wait, weren't you flying out of Burbank?"  Yes, yes and God yes.

I was picked up for my 1pm flight at 11am this morning.  When I arrived at the Burbank airport, they were already trying to get people to ( Read more... )

Welcome to today's episode of "Actual Conversations I've Had With Real People"!

To set the scene, I am calling the phone company.

Me: "Hi.  I lost my phone bill and I wonder if you could send me a new one."

AT&T Flunky: "Certainly, sir.  I'll need to ask you a few questions to verify your identity.  First I'll need your home phone number."

Me: "Sure.  ( Read more... )

Okay, time for the third promised entry about Saturday night's fun.  Although this one is just plain confusing ( Read more... )

Last night at the bar, there was a band on before West Coast Grand called Leslie and the Badgers.  Leslie was a country singer/songwriter, and she had a very sweet and emotive voice.  And I couldn't take my eyes off her.  My friends repaired to the patio when Leslie started playing, as it was hot and muggy inside.  I stayed inside simply because I ( Read more... )

Tonight I went to my friend Catherine's birthday dinner at Toi.  Mmmm, spicy Thai food.  Catherine got a pro lens for her new Canon 5D (pricey!) from all her friends, and she was truly overwhelmed.  It's great when friends band together to get somebody something cool that they really want.

After the dinner, I took off to see my friend Jason's band ( Read more... )

So, now that my travelogue is out of the way, I can get back to real life ( Read more... )

I awoke to the realization that this was the last day of my cross country trip, and that was kind of sad.  What wasn't kind of sad was the concurrent realization that I would not have to pack and unpack all my crap into the trunk of a Honda Civic every morning and night ( Read more... )

Well, the title gave away my next destination.  But since I've let 21 days lapse since my last entry, I don't think anyone is reading this and following my cross country trip anymore ( Read more... )

Saturday morning I awoke and checked online to see what I should do that day in Chicago. The only thing I had planned for sure is that I had a ticket for the Cubs-Brewers game at Wrigley Field. I was pleased to learn that this was the first day of Taste Of Chicago, which is a festival in Grant Park where many of the city's restaurants set up booths ( Read more... )