several things have been happening since yesterday. i saw a hawk almost hit a car and a midget driving a minivan, an oldtimer softball game (with really high scores) and some other wacky stuff.

two items of note: last night i happened to see a recently updated blog called "nolans blog spot", which of course i thought was a simply dashing title. i clicked over and was astonished at all of the strikingly similar particulars between that nolan and yours truly. it was like a quasi-outer body experience of sorts.

the other is sure good news for residents of the contiguous western states and hawaii. anyone whos grown up in huntington beach (as i have) knows that the pride of hb eatery came through the heritage of Wimpis burgers on pch and Jose McCoys on goldenwest. both are now defunct. wimpis closed several years ago now. schools were closed to honor the occasion. it was only six years ago, a day which the annals of history refer to as black monday, when jose mccoys closed its doors for the last time. jose mccoys served the best strips and cheese on this side of the galaxy. many of you know that, while a resident of orange county, i have often considered driving the 90 minutes down to escondido to the singular slush puppie dealer that i new of then. i only did this on two occasions. well let me tell you, with regularity would i make the same drive up to oc to get those tasty strips and cheese.

well, my friends, its time to fill up the tank and purchase new tires and a magic tree, cus i was informed last evening that after what biblical scholars refer to as the silent years jose mccoys is reopening just blocks away from its original location. show your support wont you? youll be sure to find me there at booth number five.

attended a wedding in rosarito mexico on friday. my two highlights of the evening were as follows:

number one: my wife had stepped onto the dancefloor to say goodbye to the the bride as we readied ourselves to drive back across the border. she turned around quickly to find a short bald man standing practically on her heels. before she could think otherwise, she delivered this man a swift headbutt and we went on our way. the man was not stunned. apparently this is some sort of college prank and he does it all the time.

number two: we were sitting a table with a beautiful view of the sunset over the pacific. sitting at our table were Mr. and Mrs. M, long time family friends of the groom. the Ms are in their late sixties and were most pleasant for conversation. the capstone, however, was when Mr. M said that what they should do at a wedding was make a pool. the entry would be $50 per person. the question is "how long will the wedding last?". i thought it was pretty clever. it sounds like a better way for the couple to make money than the money dance (which is always better in principle than in practice, am i right?). besides, weve all been to some long weddings and wished there were something to make it all pass a bit more excitingly, havent we? the part that both alarmed me and delighted me was when Mr. M elaborated: "Winner take all!" and as he continued to pound out the details of his idea, his wife chortling on the side at his ingenuity, it became clear to me that he had originally misspoke. you see he said "wedding" but had intended on saying "marriage". "how long will the marriage last?" was the question at hand, $50 a person, winner take all. his motivation was that in the last eighteen years, not one of the couples whose wedding ceremonies he had attended had stayed married. i thought it was a pretty bold move to make sitting there sipping margaritas (three i believe he had had) and watching the sunset as we waited for dinner to be served.

day two:

during the lunch hour. on the pier. i made two dollars and sixty-six cents. one guy even gave me a buck (as in paper money)! good times good times.

today was my first run at street performing. i showed up at the beach in oceanside wearing a pair of wool pants which would extend all the way past my toes if allowed, a sort of seventies style dress shirt, cream colored, a funkly looking hat with a perrier insignia and a pair of womens sunglasses. all of these things were purchased at the thrift store. i found a spot under the pier along the beachs main walkway. i didnt pay much attention to the people, mostly because it was easier to not be nervous if i kept the brim of my hat low. i did notice some people noticing me, and there was an occasion wherein a couple of kids on bikes rode up and asked me how much money id made. of course i maintained a proper relationship with my audience and didnt even acknowledge them.

i played my poor little fingers to the bone for an hour and a half. after that long, my fingers were just to raw to continue playing the same seven songs i was adequately prepared with. i was disappointed to find that the only money in my guitar case was the twodollarsandsevencents i had put there myself to encourage tipping. forlorn, i began to make my way off of the beach, determined that tomorrow i would make two adjustments. the first is to sit on the pier; the second, to plant myself during the rubys lunch rush.

but as i began to head off the morning was completely redeemed. some guy figured i had been there a while, came up to me and started asking me questions about whether i had seen some girl. he gave his best description. i told him that i hadnt paid attention to anyone. as i started to make my way he asked a second question: (pointing behind him with his thumb) "do the other homeless people hang around over here?" i hope he didnt notice the tear of pride in my eye.

ive been subjected to yet another infamous crime against humanity.

if youve paid any attention to the news over the last few days and more, youve no doubt noticed that a lot of terrible things are happening even in our own part of the world. well this is what happened to me: i went to the local fast food chinese restaurant yester. i paid the exorbitant prices without so much as a flinch or groan and, travesty of travesties, horror of horrors, there was no fortune cookie in my bag when i returned home.

on the good side of yester, i did get to drive three quarters of a mile heading the wrong way on interstate 5. now that was awesome!