n8 foo

Russ W invited me to a Padres game. As much as I don't like baseball, I really like going to the games. It's fun, the beer is decent (RedHook) and even the seats up in the 3rd level aren't too bad.

It is pricey tho. $14 for the cheapest seats. $50 for the better ones.

Althought we didn't do this, my recommendation is to park and take the Trolley down. It's usually free parking, the trolley is $4.50 round trip and the ride back gives you some time for the buzz to die away.

This weekend, Tracy and I celebrated 2 years of knowing each other. Last year, we rented a cabin up at Big Bear, it was a good time...but rather expensive. This year, due to budget and time constraints, we decided to go camping in a near-by state park. We had originally looked at William Heise, but the ranger told us that it had been mostly burned down by the 2003 SD fire and to check out Dos Picos instead, "it's beautiful and really green". So, we re-set our sight for Dos Picos and made reservations ($12/night, 2 nights + fees = $27).

It was a good time, but a little disappointing. The park was a lot smaller than we had imagined it. Our camping area was right against the park edge, which was someone's back yard. It didn't look like what we had thought. The rangers said it was 'very green', which was attractive to two people from back east that are tired of looking at sand and boulders. The pictures from the brochure showed streams and a lake sized pond, which turned out to be a 50 foot wide puddle with some skanky looking ducks in it. And a bunch of frogs. And millions of bugs...that wouldn't leave us alone. But it was low on water because they were pumping out of it to feed dozens of sprinklers on a few large mowed lawns that they had at the park. Including a large jungle gym for kids. Which just seems backwards to me for a place of 'nature'. And we didn't expect it to be loud...the people...they let the kids go nuts! Yelling, screaming, early in the morning, just loud as hell, and rooting through our stuff too! Brats! And people were blasting music. I mean, really, who does that in a nature preserve. Well, these people do, I suppose.

But, we did get to spend some time alone in a large grassy field under a pretty oak tree, that was really nice. And we went on a morning hike, which was also pretty fun. And we spent Friday night looking at the stars, which were incredible from that location. But we decided to come home a day early anyhow since it had become uncertain if Tracy would have to work Sunday afternoon.

So we packed up and headed out back to civilization. And spent the rest of the weekend relaxing at home. It was quite nice.

Sunday, we went out for a nice dinner downtown, to the "Dakota Grill". Neither Tracy or I had been there and the prices were reasonable. The food was good and we each had a nice glass of wine. I could have done without the waiter staring at Tracy, but other than that it was a good place. I'd go back.

I just finished watching Signs, by M. Night Shyamalan. That is one of, if not THE worst movie I've ever seen. It tops that dusty evil car movie that Andrew and I watched in college where the driver is never shown and in the end it drives off a cliff onto a pile of dynamite. I mean, the aliens were terrible looking. Some gangly green humanoid thing with big claws, huge fangs and teeth. Give me a break. And the plot was moronic. Aliens decide to travel across time and space to take over our planet for it's natural resources. And they do this with hand to hand combat!?!? And WATER KILLS THEM? What in the hell! That is the dumbest thing I've ever heard. They have the technology to travel across the galaxy but can't wipe us out with radiation or a virus or bullets or *something more advanced* than hand to hand combat? And they picked a planet to harvest whose surface is comprised mostly of a substance that kills them? Did they not see that it rains the stuff from the sky? Good lord.

And the main character, a preacher, has tossed away his faith after his wife is killed by a car. With a horrible scene of her dying, pinned between the car and the tree. And if the car moves, she'll die, yet she's totally able to have a conversation laid out on the hood...'somehow' held together. SO LAME. And in the end, when it's out in the open that aliens exist, bam, he's a preacher again.

Did he do any research before developing this story? Did he watch any other SCI-FI movies? Did he even hire consult a technical writer?? I have to imagine that Mr. Shyamalan is just as much of a moron as he thinks his viewers are.

The thing that gets me is that I loved Unbreakable. It was great. And although I didn't like it, the Sixth Sense was very successful.

Please, don't waste your life by watching this movie. Wow.

So my feet have been hurting more and more lately. Both of them. I can barely stand for more than 10 min at a time. And it is starting to hurt to drive a clutch. No effin clue why. My pediatrist thinks it's complex regional pain syndrome. So, he sent me off for a "bone scan". Whatever that is.

See that big scary machine? The one they put 'terminally ill' patients in on shows like ER? It's what's generally referred to as a Nuclear Imaging machine. Basicly a $250k, computer controlled, nuclear camera. That's what they use to watch the isotopes flow thru your bloodstream. Isotopes? What bloodstream, mine? Needles? Again? Jeez. I had this done to check for blood clots in my chest after my accident. One of the most painful trips across a hospital I've ever made. Second only to the trip to the X-Ray with the careless gurney cart driver. I swear to god I shit my pants. Wait, I wasn't wearing pants.

Anyway, this is how it goes:

11AM: Technetium Isotope injection and simultaneous flow scan.

3PM: Return for 2 more images of calcium activity in my feet.

24 hrs later: Piss out the last of the radiation in my urine.

Not too bad. I will post images of the results soon.