Dec. 8

Today, I ate a piece of cheese in the shower.
Top that.

Entombed Tuesday

Upon all my hopeful wishes, the city shut down today - well at least for some of us. Cars and busses were icey statues scattered across the streets, stalled wherever they lost the battle last night against the freeze. People, too, were comfortable on their couches and seeing no need to attempt the face-shattering air.

I, however, was already planning on walking to work this artic morning, but that all changed when the ultimate email popped up, "Office closed."

Yay!

Although I worked several hours at the kitchen table, now my makeshift desk, today's elements (frozen infrastructure, frozen blue sky, and a frozen walk to lunch with friends) were just about perfect.

More snow is in the forecast however, and I'm... 

Waiting for Wednesday.

Enchanted Monday

Icey roads, and 40mph gusts of wind have engulfed the city tonight. This morning was different...

Hi.

 I woke up today surprised and excited. The white glow squeezed through the window blinds, but not akin to the usual "morning gray" of cloudy sunrise. This, my friends, was different. Today, there was snow.

All day the white goodness fell from the sky, past the 13th floor office window, and gently burying itself atop the cool Seattle ground, already white.

I caught myself looking over my should several times throughout the day to gaze over the speckled city skyline...no longer emerald.

The adventure home was not as enchanting however. Brake lights and the sound of rubber spinning kept tires from going nowhere. To my left, a car is stranded. The driver succeed in going halfway up the steep hill in the bike lane before subduing to the icy road - facing the wrong direction. How did he do that?

I sat in the driver seat, queuing up the winter driver inside me from years past to go up the hill about 10 blocks. Remember: slow and steady - don't slam on the gas!

I successfully navigated through several intersections of inclined travel before the final challenge showed its ugly face.

The beast infront of me stopped. On the hill right infront of me, the bus was unvoluntarily spinning its chain-covered tires. Sparks rifled out from the underbelly of this road giant as metal hit the pavement. My car stopped moving. Not good.

When my car moved again, we went sideways.

Second Attempt.

More sideways movement, inching closer to the car parked by the curb.

Not good.

The guys in the bar walked out and tried to push us, unsolicited. They slipped on their first attempt to push my bumper and gave up.

"Im going to back up to where its flat," I told him hoping to create a runway for momentum. The man walked down to the intersection to "block" traffic for me.

I followed, sailing in reverse down the hill among all the traffic, and managed to stop.

Here we go...

A slow start, a manuever to the snow-filled median of the road for traction, and a burst of gas flung me up the block and on the path home. Whew.

There are 3-4 inches of snow by tonight.

It was totally worth it :)

Just a couple of things

Nearly a year

Turning the page on the calender Wednesday allowed me to embark upon Seattle in my 12th calender month. To celebrate my one year here, I will travel back to Wisconsin later this month for some cheese...

Turkey Sandwich lunch

Who corrupted the lunch gods and proclaimed that turkey and mustard on wheat is not a reasonable mid-day meal?

Once upon a time one year ago.....

I left a Midwestern state popularly known for it's cheese.
In one month I will be knocking on Wisconsin's door, roughly marking the one-year anniversary of my departure.

This late night flight home will be known as, "Return on the Red Eye," in honor of my recent viewing of that crazy 1980s space/wars movie....

I don't expect to be seat neighbors with any Ewoks, but at this hour, who knows the possibilities?

See you soon Lake Michigan........

Camping in Washington State

A little bit of Columbia River gorge, and some Pacific City beach

Wolverine Matt

Headed to Pacific City this weekend....continuing to explore

http://maps.google.com/maps?f=d&source=s_d&saddr=307+18th+ave+e+98112&daddr=Pacific+City,+OR&hl=en&geocode=FYii1gIdLLa1-Cm5crrJ1GqQVDFzpGz2mDjPEg%3BFZa7sQId8Xmc-Cnlev-DOd3qVDHwlQHw6NHI9g&gl=us&mra=ls&sll=45.202326,-123.962895&sspn=0.118534,0.308647&g=Pacific+City,+OR&ie=UTF8&ll=46.346928,-119.377441&spn=6.674066,18.28125&z=6

July 2010

I picked up my guitar this week again.. Wow, I am so not good.
I am rockin' my 2006 Razr cell phone without text for a couple more weeks.
I watched Tony Bourdain visit Milwaukee, more specifically at the actual company I served drinks at for nearly 3 years.
Weeks before that, I saw Tony actually speak in person. Yes, I received an autographed book for free.
LOST is over, and luckily I'm now addicted to Mad Men.
This week I brushed the dust off my large headphones. You know, the big ones that cover the entire ear... It's euphoric when you realize how much you hate little pieces of plastic shoved inside your ear. Hey, Hey, My, My.

The cities of Bellevue and Tacoma very much bother me for very different reasons. I'm sticking in Seattle.
Inception has been dominating my brain the past week. Thank you so much Chris Nolan.
I do miss green skies and tornado watches, lightening and flash rain storms.
I am camping on the Oregon ocean beach and Mount St. Helens the next few weeks. :)

They're Babies!

I don't have much to say about this other than we have the tiniest strawberry ever!

Another night

My new identity brings me faster food

So, it comes as a bittersweet announcement this post where I tell you that I will be throwing out my Wisconsin drivers license in a few minutes. Why? Of course, I have received a shiny, brand new Washington State drivers license, which finally, in my x-th month of actual residency here is a godsend. It's taken far too long: I'm sorry State.

I would also like to apologize to all my "Return to Wisconson" advocates, which is really a one-man group (D. Willis! I forgive you. D. Willis never ever reads this). Yes, this means I'm sticking around for a little while. Have you ever taken in a breath of a newborn Seattle summer?! It's a drug!

But, best of all, no more will I have to point out the large, red and bold birthdate that lies in the middle of my former midwest I.D. (You have no idea how many times I needed to point it out to servers and bar tenders in this city.)

"It's right there!" I tell them.

Here's to faster service. *Cheers!

T.H.E....Pigeon.

Friends' hike

Hurry

I find myself in a hurry to do Nothing. Annoying.

My six-word memoir of 6/28

Evening strolls find glowing mountainous horizons

My hike to the top of Mt. Washington. This is the summit. Mt. Rainier is the big white one...

When yoga and bartending combine....

I thought I left my mid-western, country-living ways of life behind me before I jumped in a car and headed to the Northwest.

Today, well actually, this evening, my "duct-tape-patch-the-hole-in-the-boat" creativity resurrected itself.

We bought a used TV stand from a yard sale knowing that there would be a good chance this stand would be too big for my Sable.

And...it was.

I opened my trunk of goodies seeking any rope supplement I could find. There sat my aging bartending apron with a glowing golden 6-feet of tie. Beside it, sat Taiece's purple yoga mat.   Bingo!

Out went the yoga mat on top of my car. The apron was tossed up and around the tv stand and tied inside the car to the "Oh, sh**! handles." 

Off we went; with the stand on the top of my car.

I smiled at the curious guy smoking his cigarette in amusement, and he nodded.

It's become obsessive.

Ok ...anyone out there that is reading this, please listen. That bird has eyes of stone. I could feel them zeroed in on me for hours as I typed my work. When I finally decided to look, there it sat. It's pudgy, greasy body somehow balancing on one leg. QUIT looking at me stupid pigeon! WHY dont you use both legs!?

Whatever, I am leaving.

I'll see YOU (pigeon), tomorrow.......

Hungry Puddle

Yesterday my Converse All-Star pulled my left foot into a hungry puddle. Yes, my other foot remained dry, and has kept a close eye on the street ever since.

The sun and the return of the pigeon

Today I came to work to be stunned by a burning glare on my computer screen that seems to be the..sun.  I'm not really sure anymore as it has been bashfully hiding behind the clouds for months. 

Meanwhile, my nemisis pigeon has returned, still staring....staring....staring...

Evil Pigeon

There is a pigeon perched on the ledge outside the office window. Throughout the day I catch him just staring at me - directly at ME. I'll take a picture of it and you too will be creeped out.

This was my friend for about 5 minutes this past weekend

He didnt seem to mind the photo-shoot.

Take a peek

Spring was closer, but the city was still afar

My six-word memoir of 4/16

Morning sunrise and sipping coffee... mmm.

I remember my 25th year as....

My 25th year as a human being seemed as if someone sneaked some extra days in to it. A lot happened. I was all over the place.

Milwaukee!, lawfirm job, Hot summer festivals, Bartollota's bartending job, Minneapolis wedding, Green Bay wedding, Little Rock, Arkansas wedding, Brewer tailgates, Seattle,Seattle visits me, To Seattle again, public relation firm job,Portland, In the mountains, Through the Plains, Lake Michigan, Lambeau Field, cross country road trip, Pacific Ocean

Sleeping In

I woke up broken this morning.

Actually, it was waking up that was broken. Sleeping through the thunderous roar of my persistant snooze alarm for more than an hour is a feat I can't say I ever remember doing. I never heard it. Really. I was too immersed into a dream that eerily mirrored everyday life.

I eventually woke up to the subtle tone of "Matt."

Thanks.

Unsent e-mail

"By now I am sure you have had enough time to imagine not only the possibilities of events, but also the anticipated sights and sounds of your upcoming trip to Seattle that come with it. We will wake up with coffee every morning. (Starbucks!) We will also sip some before bed. (more Starbucks!)  We will wear our flannels and our torn jeans. (Let’s find Pearl Jam!).  Showers will be reserved for the most desperate of situations. (welcome to hipster and hippie nation!) And of course we will only eat sushi with an otherwise strict vegetarian diet. (I hug trees and so can you!)

Well, you will be arriving on a Thursday night. I of course will be bound to one more half-day of work; however this will not stop us from having a little “Welcome to my new Homeland” dinner.

Below is a list of ideas that have entered into my brain the past couple weeks. They are not in any specific order, but if you can guess which order, well, then you win!"

Can you find the leprechaun in this picture?

Answer is below.

Haha. There is no leprechaun in the picture above!

You wasted your time!

The Biggest Grapfruit You'll ever see... maybe.

25cents

I lost a quarter on the bus today.
I really wanted to find it as it was the the only true ambition I had all day.

A banana (doesn't) split

I struggle. These playful bananas in my apartment have their own clandestine society, I swear.

For as long as I can remember, peeling a banana was simple: Grab the stem, snap back, and pull down. Take a bite - Yum!

Not in Seattle however. They dont work that way -- not for me anyway, and it's uber-annoying.

I cannot open a banana from the top the way normal human beings do so. I even try to pierce the fruitful skin at the base of its stem with my thumbnail (hoping to improve the physics of the process) as I attempt to peel it with no luck. (yuck?)

After a short fight, I recall a lesson from what was either a trip to the zoo, or a Discovery Channel program, I turn the banana over and squeeze the bottom end to watch the sweet goodness inside appear.    :)

Picture Perfect Day

Monday

I smell a brew of dew and budding trees -- It's the morning air.  My eyes open, but at first I see nothing, nothing. Slowly my eyes focus. Don't get your hopes up, it's only the bare ceiling. White, flat and lonely. It looks down from above at every laugh, every bit of excitement, and every frustrating breath exhaled into the apartment. I cannot hide from it.  I roll over and she is gone. I know it is early because my muscles reach back to the bed. Where is she? Was she ever hear? WhaWhat day is it?

A weekday.

Whew, she is in the shower.

:)

An Orange object

Chicago

coffee|break

A Milwaukee 180^