Where have I been?

I am a person of some habit.  There are routines your don’t want to start breaking because it is hard to get back into the groove.  I think this is particularly true of consumption.  When I find an author I like, I tend to read all their stuff and feel unsatisfied when there isn’t a new offering by them available.  In terms of production of items, like this blog, it is also tough to get off the track.  As my schedule exploded I noticed it was more difficult to write the kinds of blogs I enjoy.  I really like finding those odd or silly things we do without even thinking and try to unravel them.  I haven’t offered my regular readers anything good in a week, and I am out of the groove in producing it.

I can rationalize it (though this is a dangerous thing to start doing as well).

All I have been doing the last to weeks is working and I haven’t really spent any time doing anything else other than basic personal maintenance (eating, but not always).  It really helps to have an hour or two without a heaping pile of expectation.  Einstein once said that if you read all the time you are only getting other people’s thoughts and never finding an of your own.  I have found that with blogs: I need to have things happening in my personal life or they grind to a halt.  This can be as simple as shopping or going to a movie, or even watching one in bed.  I’d love to tell you I am even getting that done these days, but no.  I do have a good blog in the pipeline I need to write: Clive Owen is a human sleeping pill.

That is for another day.

Coming Soon

Sorry regular readers, the blog has had a few days off…I can say I was LITERALLY swamped. But the sun is out, I got a full night of sleep and I can see creative posts coming soon.

Happy Holidays

Honestly, it it weeks before Halloween and far more store space is dedicated to X-Mas. My kids don’t seem to mind.

Too Much?

OK, every week people try to get me to do crazy stuff during live shots…but I have to hand it to the folks in Paso Robles..this is the best yet.

See, I told ya!

This is outside the Grover Beach Train Station on Grand.  I was out taking some pictures and there is was right next to me.  It is amazing, it is exactly what I was yammering on about two days ago.

Energized

I am a pretty sad person, viewed independently.  I love the 99 Cent Store.  I now refuse to pay more than 1 dollar for what is definitely not worth it.  Cleaning supplies, candles, lighters, pencils, and bottled water…and I think if you grind up all those you actually can produce Steven Seagal’s energy drink line.  A few months ago I wrote about my glee in discovering the Asian Experience flavor at the 99 Cent Store in Santa Maria.  Imagine my uncontrolled exuberance in discovering Cherry Charge.  OK, to be honest I was as intimidated to drink this stuff as the mythical criminals he subdues in his movies from a bygone era.

Friends advised me not to drink Asian Experience.  These are the same friends who think energy drinks will kill us all in the end (they might be right).  And for some time I did listen to them.  The can sat in the fridge glaring at me with those immovable dark eyes of the early 90s.  But the lure of ingredients “carefully chosen by Steven Seagal to incorporate the greatest treasures of Asian medicine,” was too much.  It “holds untold natural power,” according to the product’s website.  So, gulp…uggg…not good.  I generally don’t drink energy drinks with sugar anyhow (I only really seek the vitamin B and caffiene).  Too syrupy.
I thought my stunned giddiness over this product was somewhat unique…but I have to admit in researching this blog…I found a much better blog on this subject.  I typically don’t push other people’s blogs on mine…but honestly, this guy had a truely inspired plan.  Have a party and make drinks using these flavors primarily.  Drinks like: Long Island Iced Steve

Click on the party picture to read Jon Gingeric’s way of taking this fascination to the next level.

But my friends, you can relax.  I didn’t buy Cherry Charge, I did however buy the 99 Cent Store version of Red Bull and several handfulls of energy shots.  If I am gonna die, I will do it a dollar at a time…and certainly slower than the people at Jon’s party.  I think I wish I was invited.

Where does Superman change?

There are just things you don’t see anymore: pagers, mail boxes on street corners, afternoon papers, and phone booths.  I am not the first person to write about this, but I certainly will not be the last.  Today I will write in my 90-year-old-man voice.

The phone booth used to be important.  When I needed a ride home from the Lark Theater, I went to the public booth and dropped a dime in and my Mom would answer the phone at home.  Now I suspect kids drop Mom a text which she may or may not get.  People used to answer the phone.  Then came caller ID which, at first, people balked at the expense of it vs the benefit…now I think even our closest family members decide if they are in the mood for a chat when the phone rings.  Back back to the phone booths for a moment.  They were useful outside the need to make a call.  They had the yellow and white pages in them, so before Google you had some idea how to find something or someone when you needed to, you just needed a booth.

But the slope into oblivion was steep.  First, when pagers came along, the phone booths were closer to the pipeline of constant conversations.  Ones in the shade or in questionable areas turned into business centers of those in illicit pursuits.  The phone books became ravaged or missing all together.  And if I had a nickle for every booth I saw without a hand piece I’d be wealthy.  Now the once powerful communication hub is almost a signpost for blight.  This was such a cultural icon that Superman and Spiderman would seek them out before getting to work.

I suppose it makes infrastructure cheaper.  There is no repairman out visiting site after site re-installing keypads or pulling jammed quarters out of slots.  There is a notion in business that what you want to do is get people to pay a lot more for something which is actually quite cheap.  Take water for example, 75% of the Earth is covered in it, but we’ll pay $2.00 a bottle for it.  Now the basic smartphone with any kind of a data plan will run you at least 70 dollars a month.  I know a lot of people with cell phones that barely ever make a call.  Imagine how many quarters that is?  I am not saying to go back, but just that we totally eliminated an option without blinking.

Off the direct topic, my current frustration is the lack of mail boxes.  I rarely have to mail anything anymore, but whenever I do it is a hassle.  Do I have a stamp?  Where IS the local post office?  What?  Closed by early Saturday afternoon.  I am not sure what will be obsolete first the mail or hand written checks…probably the latter.  We’ll need the postal service to deliver all the goods and services after all local stores are closed.  By the way most of the local stores don’t take checks…I wonder if they are connected?