Welcome to Sad Salvation. Day by day by day by day ... this is my attempt to make sense of the world.

Current | Archives

Saturday, November 19, 2005

Travel-blogue Day 4 Part 2

The sports coat
Originally uploaded by earthdog.

The Sports Coat

I bought a sports coat for the anniversary party. I have not owned a sports coat in years. Now that I own a sports coat I need to go to events that I can wear a sports coat to. I need to get my money out of my sports coat. I do not want to put this coat away and never wear it again. Yes, I still do not own a dress shirt. I do not want to buy a dress shirt either. I still want to find more places that I can wear my sports coat.

Anyone have any good ideas?

PS. If anyone is wondering this is my parents’ living room. This is the standard place to take pictures whenever anyone comes to visit. There is a good chance I will be posting more pictures from here later in the visit.

- Rich, 10:34 PM

Travel-blogue Day 4

mom & dad
Originally uploaded by earthdog.

Mom & Dad

Today we celebrated my parents’ 50th wedding anniversary. Everyone had a great time at the party. It was great to get together with my Aunts and Uncles. I do not see my family often enough. I really do not get the chance to see my to seem my extended family. It was great to see everyone together.

It is amazing to think that my parents have been together for 50 years. That seems like a really long time. I cannot think of what it would be like if they were not together. It was great to celebrate this kind of love and commitment. I am very happy that I have been able to come home for this party.

- Rich, 9:41 PM

Friday, November 18, 2005

travel-blogue Day 3

Great Overheard Quotes

“That makes me almost ashamed to tell you what my son does. His is a chemist and he makes the filling for Pop-tarts.”


The Cold

This morning was cold. It was cold enough that there was ice on the sidewalk. It is never this cold in San Jose. When I packed my coat, it was still where I put it two years ago when I moved into my new apartment. I never need my winter coat in San Jose.

I miss this cold. It is not so cold where I am freezing, but I still need a coat. There is something about cold weather that makes you know you are alive. It is just cold enough to make you like warming up. Some times walking around San Jose I wish it would be this cold. Looking at Christmas decorations above freezing is just not the same.

When I was lonely I would want it to be cold because it fits that mood. There is something about walking down a cold street that shows you just how alone you are in the world. Now that I have Dreamgirl I want it to be cold so we can warm each other up. There is something special about sharing your body heat with someone else.


The Hairdresser

I am at my mother’s hairdresser to get a haircut. The name of the shop is Creative Impressions. My mother has gone to the hairdresser every Friday for my whole life. It was the one luxury that my mother indulged in. My mother deserved it raising eight kids.

There is a real beauty shop culture there. She would always see the same women other week. They all know each other’s children and families. It has always been an important social scene for my mother. It is interesting to see all the women at the shop. They are all around my mother’s age. They all look so happy to be at the hairdresser. I wonder how many of them have been going there as long as my mother.

My mother’s hairdresser loves my hair. The last time she cut my hair she just gushed about it. Dreamgirl likes my hair long. I have to get it cut for the anniversary party. It is a little too messy to let it be. I hope that Dreamgirl is not too upset when she sees my hair next.

- Rich, 8:23 PM

Thursday, November 17, 2005

travel-blogue Day 2

The Old Home

I have not been back at my parents’ house for 24 hours yet. This is the place where I grew up. I lived here for 22 years of my life. That being said, I do not feel a nostalgic connection to my parents’ house. It might be because it does not feel like the place I grew. It does not even feel like the place I left seven years ago to move out west.

I think that is because my parents have been living here all that time. The house has been changing along with them in that time. It does not look like a place where a family with eight children lives. It looks like a place where three adults live. My old bedroom is not a monument to me. It does not look like it did when I was in high school. It was converted to an office/storage room a long time ago.

When I walk around the house I think about the last few times I visited not back when I was growing up. There are very few things around that spark memories of way back when. I think that is a good thing. I come here to visit my family, not to revisit the past. I think that is healthier in the end.


The quality of the light

There is something different here about how things look. As I drove to the airport with my father to pick up my aunt I noticed it. I want to say there is something about the quality of the light here. I am not sure if this is true or just perception. I want to say the air is different because of less smog. It is colder and windier here right now. Maybe that does something. I always have the feeling that things look different here then in San Jose.


Travel Notes

-I had forgotten how back dialup sucks.
-I wish my parents had Wi-Fi
-For some reason toast always tastes best at my parents house.
-Driving with my father I saw lots of things to take pictures of, but I could not stop with him because he would not understand.

- Rich, 9:04 PM

Wednesday, November 16, 2005

travel-blogue Day 1 Part 3

Pizza Toppings

I spent the flight from San Jose to Houston talking to a Muslim man named Ashraf. We spent much of the flight talking about Islam. He told me that I did not ask him the questions that most people ask him. I think he was trying to convert me.

He told me that his family owns some pizza places in San Francisco, Nizario’s Pizza. He said that they do not sell any pork toppings at the pizza places. The sausage and the pepperoni are both turkey. He says that I would not be able too tell the difference. He said that back in the 80’s they went to the disturber with the idea and now it is one of the best sellers in the San Francisco bay area. I find this to be an interesting idea.

Has anyone have had pizza from these places? Does anyone know if his or her favorite pizza place uses turkey sausage or pepperoni?

- Rich, 11:34 PM

travel-blogue Day 1 Photo

Airport
Originally uploaded by earthdog.

You would be suprised when you take a picture at an airport. Half the people give you a dirty look and the other half don't notice at all.

This picture is out of focus becuase that is how airports feel when I am connecting from one flight to another.

- Rich, 11:24 PM

travel-blogue Day 1 Part 2

Flight Mix

Wilco – Dash 7
Microphones – I’ll Be In The Air
Pavement – Hit The Plane Down
Dead Milkmen - Air Crash Museum
The Shins – Young Pilgrims
Neutral Milk Hotel – In the Aeroplane Over The Sea
R.E.M. – Half A World Away
Ben Folds Five - Air
Be Good Tanyas – Light Enough To Travel
Paul McCarteny - Band On The Run
Electric Light Orchestra – Mr. Blue Sky
Husker Du – She Floated Away

Is there anything else that should be on a flight mix?

- Rich, 11:14 PM

travel-blogue Day 1

Early in the morning

There are few things in the world that will get me up at 3:24 AM. One of those things is a cheap flight to Philadelphia. I cannot remember my last flight out of San Jose where I left my apartment after in the daylight. It is always dark when I get out of my place.

When flying out of San Jose. I like taking the first flight. I feel that I am getting the most out of my day when I fly early. I guess if feels like my trip is starting earlier.

Flying takes so much out of me. I can never do anything when I get to my destination. The problem is that I cannot do anything before I fly either. All I do is sit around and worry about getting to the airport early enough.

I got here so early this morning that the ticket counter was not even open yet. That is a strange feeling. It is the first time I have been to the San Jose airport before it has been bubbling with activity.

------

The Art of the Airplane Movie

The movie on the flight today was Rebound starting Martian Lawrence. It is surprising that Martian Lawrence can start in a kids movie. I guess this is just part of the fine tradition that includes Buddy Hackett staring in The Love Bug (you know where IMDB is. You can look up the links yourself.)

Rebound if the perfect movie for an airplane. It is perfect because I could follow every moment of the movie with out listening to any of the sound. It is a movie about super coach turning a misfit sports team into champions. I know the story already. All of the good jokes were physical comedy. I did not need any sound to know what was happening when he put Icey/Hot in his players armpits so they would play defense.

I am happy that the airline picks movies like this to play. I could much rather see Rebound then some romantic comedy which would not be so easy to understand. I think the airlines do a pretty good job at this. On my last few flights I have seen National Treasure, T3, Charlie’s Angels 2, and Dragonfly. All of these movies were not good, but good for airplanes.


------

Landing in Baltimore

My flight from Houston to Philadelphia left Houston almost an hour late. The plane landed late and everything seemed to be taking forever. This was not a good sign. I should have known it was going to get worse.

The flight was smooth until we reached Philadelphia. All of the sudden we were riding in serious turbulence. It was so bad that the plane was making motions that a plane just should not make. We circled for an hour. After that we ended up being diverted to Baltimore.

The moment I found out I could get off the plane, I was out of there. My sister picked me up in Baltimore. I was in no mood to get up in that weather and try to land in Philadelphia again. It was not my idea of fun. I am not sure what kind of start of a vacation this is.

- Rich, 10:53 PM

Monday, November 14, 2005

The Value of Music

I was talking with Eric about the whole Sony Copy Protection debacle. I am not so surprised that Sony relented so quickly. This is the not the first time a record company has given up on a copy protection technology. It looks like Apple was smart to not license Fair Play.

The reason that record companies want to put copy production on CDs is because they want to protect their $14.99. The record companies want to make sure that as many people as possible pay that $14.99. The problem is that the record companies do not know what their customers expect to get for that $14.99.

If the record companies want to restrict what can be done with a CD, they should lower the price. If the new Sony CDs were $3 or $4 with copy protection, there would have been much less backlash. For $14.99 I want to be able to make unlimited copies, make MP3s of the songs, and put the songs on as many mixes as I like. Many people think what I am asking for is within fair use.

There would be a problem with this copy protection because hackers could exploit it. I do not want to install any thing on my computer that I do not control. This is one of the reasons that there was so much backlash.

I know if anyone from a record company reads this entry they would tell me that I am out of my mind. They would tell me that I want too much and that I do not understand what I have the right to do. I would tell them that they do not understand their customers. If they did understand their customers they would give us more. They would let us do what we want with their product. If they did let the customers do want they want with the product they would sell more product. The problem is that they do not want to treat us like customers.

Links:
SF Gate - Sony giving up

EFF: Sony-BMG's EULA

The Big Picture

- Rich, 10:35 PM

Current | Archives

Contact me