Can I dry ice in the oven?

After hearing about the ICE! Exhibit from my friend Angel, I decided that since Orlando was on the way to the NYE weekend camp out that I would go check it out. I talked to Mammaries into attending the event with me since I knew she wouldn't be leaving her veterinary clinic until just before we got to Orlando anyway and found that Kiddie and VC were interested in going as well since they were riding with me to the campout (and probably just didn't want to stay in the car while were were inside). The tickets and parking (yes, we had to pay for parking!) were a little expensive, but overall the experience was worth it! We stopped by a Walgreen's store on the way to the show and picked up some coupons that we used and gave the extras to some other folks in line [for good karma].

The exhibit was created by artisans from China mostly using hand tools for all the carvings. It takes 30 truckloads of ice produced in Georgia to put together the material needed for the event. Besides the different clear and pure ice that uses hyper filter de-ionized water, there are ten different colors of ice that make up the displays. After witnessing this, I am sure that I would love to someday see the Harbin International Ice and Snow Sculpture Festival in China that is hundreds of times larger than this small event. I really enjoyed the different displays and was particularly impressed with the use of all the different colors. Fortunately when reading my friend's blog post about the event I was able to best prepare by bringing extra hats and gloves as well as my own coat that had pockets for the hands, since the provided parkas lacked those. Since I was dealing with the camera, I gave my gloves to someone else but found that even at 9 degrees I wasn't too cold except for the hands after a while. At the end there was even an ice slide that I decided to wait out and try. After we left we got some hot chocolate at the resort and walked around to enjoy the grandiose decor, gator exhibit, and overall atmosphere of the resort (though I couldn't take any photos since it took an hour for the condensation in the camera to dissipate after leaving the cold air for the humid environment).

If you want to see most of the photos I took at the exhibit, then go to: http://www.kodakgallery.com/I.jsp?c=vnlbugz.937lxfr7&x=0&y=-3bci7d

Hanging with a cool jolly guy.


Ice ice baby.

Leaving the ICE! exhibit. Goodbye from 'chilly' Florida!

Kayakers do it hard, flip over, and do it again.

I had to work on Thursday but got back just early enough time to get ready for the hash run and drag Jason out of the computer room. Houston residents Finger in the Dyke and Goldilocks (old time Tampa hashers) were haring the trail in South Tampa. One what was promised to be an easy trail, Goldi lead us on another 4-5 mile death march that I actually enjoyed since I hadn't been running in a couple of days and needed the exercise anyway. We all convened at Tiny Tap and had a really good turn-out (~38 folks showed up) with several visitors as well. We didn't get to stay too late and really hang out since we had to get up early in the morning for a trip to Crystal River for some manatee viewing and kayaking.

It was a bit tough to get myself up at 4:30 so I could load up the kayak gear and take off some of the extra kayaks from the previous week's trip downtown. I finally got everything together at we took off around 5:30AM. With no traffic and the Veteran's Expressway, it took a lot less time to get there than I had expected. We parked at a hotel/marina right across from Banana Island that is the place where most people go to see the manatees. We paddled over to the island (only a few hundred feet) and swam around for a while with the manatees. I took a small 40cf decompression bottle and regulator so I could swim around the cavern for a little while and not have to deal with all the dive gear. I did get a few strange looks from divers when I swam to with just a tank, light, and dive reel in my hand without any other dive gear in the back of the cavern, but otherwise the cavern was empty of anyone else. This was the site where I did my first open water training dives so many years ago, so it was nice to be back for a bit.

After playing around Tarpon Spring, we decided to leave the packed area and head around King's Bay a bit. I had never really had a chance to explore the area, so I really enjoyed paddling among the various islands in the bay and checking out the local wildlife. I've always wanted to check out several other numerous springs in the area. Unfortunately, I don't have a depth finder, so finding a particular fifty foot hole (Shark Sink) in the middle of the bay somewhere is a bit hard. Since Jason was done with swimming, I didn't want to take a lot of time to keep jumping in the water in a search. We paddled around toward the Three Sisters springs where I happened to run into my friend Jon and his son. I liked paddling around the area but had to leave sooner than I would have wanted since Jason had already headed back to the truck to rest. I'd definitely love to come back and spend the day when there are no crowds around (the place was quite packed later in the morning with dozens of people). We got back by 2 o'clock, so I had time to run several errands. I had to run to a body repair shop to collected the personal effects in a friend's car that unfortunately got totaled just before they left for a month's trip. I then had to head to the garage in Brandon to take back all the kayaks and then load up the camper for the weekend's events. After getting a quick hair cut I got home with just enough time to have a great dinner, pack some personal clothes, and get some well needed sleep.

Life is a roller coaster, you have your ups and downs; unless you fall off.

The weather today was great, so after a good breakfast at IHOP, we decided to hit Busch Gardens for the day since I wanted to use my pass once more before it expired at the end of the year. Unlike the trip to the Aquarium yesterday, I remembered to bring the flash card from the camera. We hit all the major spots such as the Myombe Reserve for some ape viewing and then on to the Edge of Africa for some walking safaris. I forgot to bring the telephoto lens but was glad to get a chance to play with the camera a bit while Jason was doing the same with his own (a Christmas present from his mother), though all I got was some cereal and toilet paper (my friend's have strange senses of humor).

Since Jason didn't want to do any of the roller coasters, we tried to hit a lot of the other attractions such as the Pirates 4-D show, bumper cars, carousel, and animal exhibits. There were some nice fireworks around 7:30 as the park got dark and we had an enjoyable time at the park with the evening ambiance. I used to really love going to the park an hour or so before closing (since I live a few hundreds meters from the park anyway) and liked the overall look of the place when it was near empty. While there were a lot of people around, it was still a great time and we finally got to see pretty much everything that we wanted.

So far the week has been a great release, but unfortunately I have to spend most of the day Thursday at work preparing for the end of the year accounting. I recently realized that it will soon be a year since I started blogging. When I get back from the New Year's Eve Campout next week, I'll probably put together some 'year in review' and see what lessons I have learned, what changes I should have made, and what I plan to do in in the future. I'm sure there are some realizations that I'd recognize and maybe even some I haven't determined yet. Overall, I think this year had been among the best of my life, and a lot of that is due to the fact that I set out so it would be that way. sure there are some things i wish that occurred differently, but I suppose if I can walk away with just one major regret, then maybe it was all worth it. After all, good judgment comes from experience, and experience in turn comes from time of bad judgment.

If thanks were fishes, I'd buy you an aquarium.

Since it was a bit cold and rainy, we decided to head over to the Florida Aquarium instead of doing Busch Gardens. since we couldn't go for some reason last time Jason was here, we went to check out the Victory class merchant ship, 'American Victory' that is berthed behind the aquarium complex. Since it was relatively late in the day, we pretty much had the ship to ourselves and after paying the entrance fee went off to explore the many areas of the ship. I've always been enthralled with old places such as historic ships, old factories, hotels, tunnels or warehouses for a little 'urban spelunking'. It is a shame that these places are either so closed up due to liability concerns or destroyed by transients that don't allow the curious to really appreciate them.

The difference between this ship and those found at Patriot's Point in Charleston is that this is still an operating vessel that does tours and trips in the area as well as working as an educational platform. Very little of the ship was actually blocked off from access, and we took that to our advantage in really getting a chance to explore. Besides all the different rooms, this was my first chance to really check out an engine room since most exhibits are all closed off because it is so difficult to block the numerous small nooks and crannies. After bypassing a few signs that I figured would not apply to us, being natural explorers and all, we found ourselves in many great spots, including tall ladders heading up the smokestack and into the bottom areas of the ship. We were found out by one of the custodians of the ship, however he seemed more pleased that we were enthralled with the ship and really curious than he was annoyed and left us to continue the 'self-guided tour'. Since it was near closing time we quickly checked out the bridge area and the front portions of the ship before heading out. Prior to leaving, we did a brisk walk through all the aquarium exhibits.

Afterwards we headed home to check out the movie show times and decided to go see 'Eragon' at the theater. While the acting and graphics were good, the storyline/plot was really, really lacking of anything decently substantial, so I wouldn't recommend getting thus until it becomes a DVD rental, even if then.

A radical is a man with both feet firmly planted in the air.

The weather Christmas Day precluded being able to go to Busch Gardens since the forecast was rain for the while day so instead Jason and I went with some friends to MOSI to check out the 'Monsters of the Deep' exhibit. The exhibit spans 360 million years and included prehistoric reefs to the whales, sharks and turtles that inhabit today’s oceans. The exhibit also included life-size specimens of whales, aquatic reptiles from the prehistoric, as well as the giant squid.

After going through the exhibit and part of the Disasterville exhibit, we headed over to the IMAX dome to see another movie, this time the commercially released 'Happy Feet'. I was pleasantly surprised by the film and thought it was a nice story with some decently funny lines. After the show Jason and I walked around the museum a bit more to play on ..er.. learn from some of the displays. Then it was back to the house where I cooked up some chicken/pork chops, spaghetti, green bean dish, and watch a movie for a while. While I was disappointed to not be able to enjoy the park today, I still think it was a relaxing way to enjoy the remaining opportunities.

Man is not the creature of circumstances; circumstances are the creatures of men.

After sleeping in today, being exhausted from the paddling Saturday, Jason and I decided to hit the IMAX dome theater at MOSI to check out one of the movies. since we're planning on seeing the 'Monsters of the Deep' exhibit by the end of the week, we figured this would be a good preliminary exposure. The movie was produced by James Cameron and covered a short story of marine biologists and even astro biologists diving to the ocean's bottom (e.g. 3,500 meters) to explore life in the most harsh of environments of chemicals and physics where there are extreme pressures and temperatures within inches (where many of these creatures thrive) ranges from freezing to boiling. The show ran a bit longer than most of the IMAX films tend to do and was quite enjoyable and interesting. There were so many great displays of some wondrous and truly amazing creatures. It would be amazing to see the kind of things that the human imagination would barely be able to conceive. A good point was made in that the study of these creatures would be vital in learning about life that is so detached from our own, such as may be the case if anything is ever found on other planets, for example Europa. Visits to the deep such as that really can color the imagination.

Kayaker Philosophy: Turn over and smell the fishes.

My old high school buddy Jason is in town for a couple of days. When he get in on Thursday we were able to meet up with another friend that had just gotten to town for a couple of days. We had dinner at the local Ale House and a quick game of darts at another nearby sports pub before heading home for the night. On Saturday morning I noticed that where was going to be an electric boat parade downtown and decided to go check it out. After a few phone calls, I found a few friends interested in joining as well. Marianela and her sister had a cousin from DC visiting, so I was fortunately able to get enough gear together for everyone. Jason and I headed to Brandon and loaded the 4 kayaks and gear and drove down to the public boat ramp and unloaded the gear before the rest showed up. After a brief false start (when the nice marine patrol officer reminded us of the need for lights [doh!]) we headed towards Channelside where the boats were hanging out. As we headed up Garrison Channel we were able to enjoy the line of boats as they followed the Starship Dining Yacht on their way back out. There was a short drizzle of rain for 10-15 minutes, but it was light enough to not be a pain. after it passed the water was like glass and the air temperature quite comfortable. After some hard paddling, right at 5 miles for the entire loop, we headed out to get some food. We just missed the operating hours of every place that we could find on Davis Island, so we ended up heading to Channelside for some food goodness at Bennigan's.

Overall, it was a great way to enjoy a comfortable evening, get some exercise, and experience some different perspectives on the water.

The serpent beguiled me, and I did eat it.

The week was spent at the office trying to catch up on some insanely neglected accounting and paperwork with my evening working at the office until 1:30 in the morning Friday night. I overslept a bit and had to rush to get out the door to run through Orlando to pick up a friend to head over the Melbourne on the east coast to attend a holiday party (more of a pub crawl, but holiday themed at least). The event itself was a lot of fun, but I unfortunately left my camera in the truck when we changed vehicles, so do not yet have any pictures to share. We hit a couple of different spots with the end being an old theater called 'The Metro' that has a couple of different screens where they show independent and other artsy movies. There was food waiting for us as well as the hash tags and other give-aways. although not as many people showed up as were expected, it was a fun time.

After the hash group's time was up, apparently the next group was more of a gothic toned crowd with some S&M kind of displays. Apparently the highlight was a half-clad girl getting covered in plastic wrap and whipped cream so people could pay to lick it off. That was pretty much as boring as it sounds, so I went to the other side where a few bands were playing. I walked in half-way though the set list of a band called 'Lennex'. Apparently they came in fourth on some recent reality show called 'Rockstar Supernova'. I was really impressed with the vocals and music and enjoyed sitting there for a while listening. I wish they were coming through Tampa so I could hear the whole set, but unfortunately Orlando is as close as they'll be. AP was kind enough to house us for the evening and even made waffles in the morning!

I came back Sunday afternoon with just enough time to get to the TBPAC to see the performance of 'The Serpent' that was produced by the Jobsite Theater Company. Being more of an abstract performance art piece rather than a typical play with a dialog, plot, and other normal aspects, it is hard to provide a synopsis, so if interested just check out some of the links. Since we hadn't done anything in a while, I invited my dad to join me, though I'm really not sure what he thought of it since I do not think that he had never really been previously exposed to something like that. After the show I walked around downtown for a while enjoying the wonderful weather while I waited for a friend to finish errands to meet at Channelside for some sangria at Tinatapa's. Overall it was a great way to end the weekend. The past couple of weeks have been really stressful with work and other aspects, so I really needed that chance to relax and wind down.

My old high school friend Jason will be coming down from Charleston for a week's stay at the end of the week. Besides some of the usual stuff, we'll probably take the kayaks over the Crystal River one morning and do some swimming or paddling with the manatees.

The thrill is not just in the winning, but in the courage to join the race.

I suppose I can no longer say that I have never won anything. I received a call today from Creative Loafing (publisher of the 'Weekly Planet') to say that I won two tickets to a performance at the Tampa Jobsite Theater for Sunday afternoon. It'll be nice to be able to check out a new performance, especially after I promised myself a few weeks ago to start attending more productions after enjoying the play in St Petersburg a few weeks ago.

Rumour has next shuttle mission carrying several cows. It'll be the 'herd shot round the world'.

After what has been one of the best years ever, I suppose it was time for my karma to be a bit depleted. I was planning on checking out the shuttle launch last Thursday, but the weather and other things had darkened the sky too much, so it had to be scrubbed. I was hoping the weather would stay bad through the weekend since I already had plans, but apparently it cleared up enough on Saturday for what i heard was a pretty spectacular liftoff. I suppose misfortune is really the kind of fortune you just cannot miss. I have been in Florida for 10 years and have yet to see any kind of smoke or light plume from a launch. Hopefully if things go well, they will have more missions and not wait another 4 years before the next launch.

Still not sure what is going on this weekend. There are a few outdoor events in South Tampa that might be interesting. I'm still planning an Everglades trip for the end of the month since the new sea kayaks I picked up a few months ago are looking lonely hanging on the garage wall. I'd like to do the 100 miles, 6-7 day trip between Everglades City and Florida City, but have to somehow work out the logistics of getting back to the start. I figure it'll be a good way to get away for a while and enjoy the environment for a bit.

Great musical clip.

Here is a great clip from one of my favorite shows this season, 'Studio 60 on the Sunset Strip'. This is great intelligent comedy that is well written, which means that it'll probably be canceled since those that cannot get it will not watch, and thus kill the ratings. Anyway, the basic storyline was that a lot of displaced NOLA musicians had wound up in Los Angeles. Since they were not union certified, they couldn't find jobs, so a lot of band players were calling in sick so they could get temporary gigs to send some money home for Christmas. The producers figured it out and got several of them together as the musical act for the show. The video has some of the show's dialog in it, but it really doesn't detract from the overall effect (and I actually received some inspiration from it). I didn't want to embed it in the profile or blog (since I figure it is cramped enough as it is already), so just use the YourTube link below.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LXT83g7wsOs


In the least I recommend you download and listen to the uninterrupted music that was released on the NBC website.

http://www.nbc.com/Studio_60_on_the_Sunset_Strip/music/studio_60_o_holy_night.mp3

Ninja Sminga! Bet you can't karate-chop a bullet.

Don't forget, today is 'Day of the Ninja'. Those Pastafarian Pirates may help global warming, but they just cannot be as cool as the ninja. So, the epic battle between the two groups continues to be waged. If you want to learn more, then simple Ask A Ninja!

How is it one careless match can start a forest fire, but it takes a whole box to start a campfire?

This was the weekend of the annual Tampa Campout. Everything really seemed to come together this year in terms of weather, the folks that came, and logistics. The event tends to be one of the biggest hash events in Florida every year and we probably had 120-130 people there throughout the weekend. Friday morning was spent getting things packed up and ready to go. There was a little stress when the call came in that the truck that was bringing the 12 kegs and refrigerator trailer had a smoking transmission, however after a while, they still made it in.

One of the draws for the site, besides a general open area, was the foam party in the dance area. There was a trail on Friday evening that basically circled the camp pond a couple of times (with numerous stops at various tents for shots of different variety) and ending at the foam party by the pool. There we pretty much danced and chatted for unknown hours. When the party died then people gathered around the camp fire for general conversation and chatting. Though most people don't carry watches at a camping event, I did eventually hear a call out of 5AM and decided it was time to go to bed since I was the hare for the trail the next morning.

When I woke up around 9:30AM, I just had time to get a little breakfast and drop off the extra flour along the trail at some predetermined points. Though I was fortunate enough to get a volunteer to help me, I had to scout and pretty much set most of the trail. Let me tell you, it wasn't extremely fun to sprint off running carrying 5-7 pounds of flour on a 'live trail (meaning nothing was pre-marked) for the 3-4 mile hash. Things were going pretty well for the first half, however my co-hare apparently got sick and got left at the first beer stop to ride with the beer truck. I didn't realize this since I was pretty far ahead and waiting for a while until I really had to take off. I was a bit limited in what I could do since the start an stopping point were pre-determined since I had to lead the pack to a bar about 3 miles down the road, but overall it was a lot of fun and I think they enjoyed being taken through the various areas. We finished at a local 'Moose Lodge' (kind of like the Flinstones Water Buffalo club) where they had lunch cooked up and free flowing beer. After returning to the camp site I crashed for a few hours of well needed sleep. In the late afternoon there were plenty of Hash Olympic games to play that provided a wealth of entertainment; Chubby Bunny, Izzy Dizzy, etc. After dinner there was yet even more foam partying, a midnight trail around camp with more shot stops, and great late night conversation.

Sunday was mostly recovery with a few events. My favorite part of the camping tends to be when everyone just sits around for the final hours of the morning and afternoon to relax and chat. There are so many awesome stories to share and just hearing all the constant laughter is refreshing. Based on past experience, I decided to take Monday off to recover, so I took my time throughout the day to pack up and clean since I decided to stay one final night instead of rush home. As usual I took a couple of pictures during the weekend, so you can check them out if you'd like. I cannot wait until next year! What a great way to wrap up such a wonderful year for me. I've met so many great folks and had several fun adventures and am starting to plan more for the coming year.

I wonder what is next.

http://www.kodakgallery.com/I.jsp?c=vnlbugz.1qj3pmwj&x=0&y=e8fkul

Do you prefer Gin and Platonic or Scotch and Sofa?

This is for a platonic, outdoor chick to accompany on various camping, kayaking, and hiking trips. Applicants are encouraged to make up their own responses. Creativity, humor and references to criminal or sexual deviancy are encouraged and subject to a more favorable score. I first posted this in June, however position is still open. There are several spots available, so check the schedule on the right side of the blog and see if you're interested in adventure

1.) I comfortably climb
A. The stairs at the mall
B. 5.10 or below
C. 5.11 or above

2.) I would complain vocally if
A. I had a sunburn.
B. The incompetent lout at Starbucks made my mocha latte the wrong temperature.
C. Both my legs were broken.

3.) Pancakes and eggs are
A. Some kind of breakfast food.
B. One of the great pleasures in life.
C. I wouldn't know. I'm a vegan and only eat non-violently harvested soybeans.

4.) I would react to a non life-threatening injury of my friends by
A. Turning a funny color and passing out.
B. Rushing to his or her assistance with a first aid kit and the knowledge of how to apply.
C. Pointing and laughing.

5.) I am filling this out because
A. I fell off the jungle gym and wound up in here.
B. This keeps me from masturbating so much.
C. I like to endlessly tease Mike Blitch by crushing his hopes and fantasies like a kumquat.
D. I want to be the best damn token female camping chick I can be.

6.) I would describe my physical appearance as
A. I'm hot.
B. I clean up real good.
C. I can barely see through my dreadlocks and am currently eating cold refried beans out of a can with a stick. Soap weighs too many ounces.

7.) I would describe my mental stability as
A. I'm fairly level headed.
B. Unfuckwithable.
C. Sometimes I watch you sleep.
D. "It puts the lotion in the basket!!!"

8.) I am fearful of
A. Heights.
B. Unusually large chipmunks.
C. Absolutely nothing, you pansy

9.) My mental acuity would best be described with the phrase
A. What does acuity mean? My favorite color is clear.
B. I'm gonna go to tech school to be a welder.
C. I's smart enough to read this here sentence.
D. I have a Masters degree or Ph.D and can school you into the ground, bitch!

10.) As far as Paris Hilton goes
A. She is my role model.
B. I want to slap her with her dead rat dog.

11.) One of my most defining characteristics is
A. My sense of humor.
B. My ability to push past minor discomfort and focus on the trail.
C. My addiction to crystal meth.

12. The craziest thing I've ever done on a scale of 1-10 would be_________. If "1" were to equal you walking around all day at the mall and not finding anything that fits, and if 10 were to equal you being in a cage fight with a wildabeast while rabid wolves are gnawing on your armpits.

13. My friends would describe my personality as:
A. Bubbly and sometimes a little air headed
B. Fun and witty
C. A tourettic homicidal maniac diagnosed with advanced delusional schizophrenia and involuntary narcissistic rage.

14. When someone mentions "The Great Outdoors" the first thing that comes to your mind is:
A. "Do they take credit cards?"
B. "I hope the showers and toilets are clean...there aren't going to be bugs are there?"
C. "Camping, and having a GREAT time with the coolest Tampa hiker around!"

15. When it comes to drinking:
A. I only have a few...just enough to get a buzz and then I'm done.
B. I don't drink
C. Sometimes I wake up with puke all over my hair and rug burns on my knees.... thats about the time I notice that I'm in bed with 3 dudes, a chick, peanut butter everywhere, and I've got absolutely no clue where I'm at, My keys and purse are gone...and ironically so are my pants....Drinking rocks!

16. When it comes to cell phones I:
A. Had it surgically attached to my head
B. Answer it when it's someone important
C. Hate that godforsaken electronic object.
D. Just turn it on vibrate and write my number on all the bathroom stalls.

17. When it comes to drama...
A. My life is like a soap opera with a shiny smile
B. I hate my parents and the world. The army of darkness is upon us all.
C. Not too much...I try to stay away from it.

18. I make fun of fat people:
A. Only when it's necessary
B. Every chance I get
C. I would never make fun of an unlucky overweight individual.......(don't lie...fat people suck.)

19. When it comes to smoking...
A. I do sometimes when I'm drunk
B. I have a free motorcycle and bedroom set from Marlboro.
C. If I smoke it's probably because I was recently on fire.

20. My occupation is...
A. I am a goat herder.
B. I pay someone to take pictures of me and call myself a model.
C. I don't want to talk about my job.
D. Joe Redner is my sugar daddy.
E. Hurray student loans!

21. Clothing is
A. Recommended during business hours with a professional attitude while conveying comfort, and yet vitality, at evening events.
B. Used mainly to whisk away sweat and block UV rays.
C. Optional.

22. Children are
A. The joy of our lives and best hope for the future.
B. Able to carry 15% of their body weight in gear and food and heal quickly.

23. In terms of spontaneity, I
A. Keep an extra change of clothes in my car at all times
B. Need to check my calendar, ah yes, I can pencil you in for the afternoon of the 12th.
C. Give me 20 minutes and I'll be showered, packed, and already on the road. Tell me what we're doing later.

24. In terms of knowledge regarding nature I
A. Can mimic the mating call of the bald eagle
B. Can usually tell the difference between flora and fauna and categorize by Kingdom.
C. It either comes in a box, the frozen section, or in the produce section of Publix.
D. Hey look, a cute little bear cub, let's go get a closer picture. Hmm, where's mommy?

25. My navigation abilities would best be described as
A. I get calls from Garmin and Magellan looking for insight.
B. Know for sure the direction I'm heading just by looking at the sun in the early morning or late afternoon.
C. On Star!! Help!!

Good teaching is 1/4 preparation and 3/4 theater.

I was at work yesterday trying to finish up some projects and get the place organized when I get a sudden whim to go out and do something that I had not experienced in a while. After taking a look at the local happenings on the TBT website, I decided to go check out the American Stage Theater Company's production of "All the Great Book (Abridged)". The basic premise was that th audience is in a remedial literature class so they can pass the requirements necessary to graduate, which is in about 2 hours. The coach, drama teacher, and a student teacher thereby cover 89 classic books in this time period into what turns out to be a very funny performance. I had seen the same company in only a single previous performance a little over a year and a half ago. About 30 minutes before the show there are rush tickets available at half price, so I arrived about 15 minutes before show time and was able to get a great seat in the third row. I thought the performance was well done and really enjoyed the show and am looking forward to attending others in the future at not only American Stage, but also MAD Theater, Gorilla Theater, the Carrollwood Players and other production companies in the area.

Trains charge those going to rock concerts, said Tom with fanfare.

Nearly on a whim today, I decided to join a couple of friends and check out the Aerosmith/Motley Crue concert at the Amphitheater at the State Fairgrounds. I had seen them in concert previously, so I wasn't about to spend much money and figured I would either get last minute tickets really cheap or not attend. fortunately, not too long after getting there I was able to find someone selling a ticket for $20, which was a good deal considering they were sold at the box office for $40. I took over the grill and cooked up some chicken and corn and had enough for the friends when they arrived. We hung out for a little while enjoying sangria and were able to get a ticket for each of them for $25, so in all, we were able to get what we needed without having to even get out of the camp chairs.

The concert itself was ok, though Aerosmith didn't play the one song I was really hoping to hear 'Don't Want to Miss a Thing'. Both bands went through a fair amount of their well known catalog. Though it was decently cold, it was clear and a pretty fun experience. My friends left early, though I decided to hang around. I've always had a problem leaving a concert, game, or other event early since I figured I might as well get my money's worth. As my standard practice now, I just hung around reading for an hour while the traffic died down instead of wasting time and gas idling in a line of cars.

Skate softly and carry a big tire iron - Women's Figure Skating Motto

I was suppose to go camping Saturday night, but when I got back from the Orlando party, and after noticing the cold weather forecast, I decided to stay in Tampa. I was checking the local happenings website and noticed that a double-header for the roller derby league was going to be playing. The Tampa Bay Derby Darlins have been playing for only a couple months, but apparently they are already pretty good. I really knew nothing of roller derby other than the few matches I think I saw during the time of American Gladiator oh so long ago. It took a little while to figure out what was going on, but after that it did seem to be a bit more fun. There was a decent local band between the two games, but my body started crashing early, so I decided to take off after the first half of the last game. I thought it was something a bit different to check out and am glad I want, but not sure if I'll end up being much of a spectator in the future.

Friday night I crashed your party. Saturday I said I'm sorry.

Friday night was the annual party that Mammaries of Orlando puts on for the birthdays of a few friends. She goes all out for the party and gets 3-4 people to cater it and spends about 2k in food and another 1k in booze with her place getting stocked better than some small store. Kiddie, VC and I headed over after work Friday and had planned to stay the night, an honor bestowed to the Tampa folks for a while now. When we arrived, there were already plenty of people mingling around. A lot of people were coming in an out throughout the evening, so it stay pretty busy. It didn't take too for us to get a game of tippy-cup going until the keg was floating. I originally thought it was a party for herself aas well as others, so besides the card, I got her a gift. Last weekend Mams was telling us how tired she was of noodles and rice since that was pretty much all they had to eat during the trip. Thinking that she might really be missing them, I got her a couple of packages of Oriental Ramen noodles. Even though she lobbed one at my head upon opening them, I think she really liked it.

The food was phenomenal with all kinds of goods being made available. There were wings, fondue, salads, cakes, beef, fruit, and so many other items. Everything was set for a great party, rocking hot tub, warm pool, etc. While the party was going, Mams had pics from her recent Asia trip playing on the big screen and would tell us various stories of things that were going on. I was still a bit tired from the heavy tailgating at the Buffet concert, but somehow I managed to stay up until 3:30AM. Even when going to bed someone yelled out, 'hey, how about a couple of shots before sleep?'. On the lights came and someone scurried off to get some glasses and nameless concoction. When we finally got up in the morning, few people were wanting to move, so the most we did for a little while were mix Bloody Mary drinks and rehash old hash stories, including ones from the evening before.

Here are some of the pictures I took of the event: http://www.kodakgallery.com/I.jsp?c=vnlbugz.bou49h8j&x=0&y=34d4dz

In a concert you just have to face the music.

The concert last night was a lot of fun. I ended up getting to the fairgrounds parking at around 3:30 and the place was already packed. I lucked out in that I was directed to park right next to the entrance, so it made things a lot easier when folks were attempting to locate us through the evening. Apparently the parking opened a couple of hours early (around noon) since there were already a 100 or so cars parked on the highway. I didn't have a chance to really wander too long, but there was tailgating goodness as far as I could see. There had to be a massive amount of food and beverage consumed. I brought out the propane grill and cooked up some turkey sausage and chicken while boiling the corn on the stove. I got to play with my new hand crank blender and it worked great. How can you tailgate at a buffet concert and not have real margaritas? Throughout the evening a bunch of hashers showed up (Slim Prickins, Dances with Dildos, Hops on Pops (and some other Gainesville hashers), BallChecker, Cockblock, Battery Motivated Wench, Kitty Litter, Dabadoo, Hops Her Barley, Smelley, Ben Gay, and other various friends of friends. Corey was awesome in that he went into the amphitheater a couple of hours early and secure some prime real estate on the lawn for the whole group so that we could hang out at the camper until just before show started.

There was no opening act for the show that started around 8. The concert was very lively and most of the major songs, at least any that I know, seemed to have been covered. With the break half-way through, the music ended just before 11 o'clock. We leisurely made our way back to the trailer and reset the chairs to hang around while the traffic dies down. I didn't want to waste time idling and figure it is just best to relax a bit after the events until the cops kick us out about 90 minutes later. For whatever reason, a couple of us decided to go down to Ybor and close down the Green Iguana until about 3. I got up in the morning, did a few projects in the garage, and now have to pack for an overnight trip to Orlando for a birthday party before coming back to hit Fort De Soto Saturday night. The weather is turning out great right now and is a perfect time to spend outdoors.

We are the people our parents warned us about.

I'll be going to the Buffet concert with a bunch of friends on Thursday. Most of us are taking a half day from work and will be heading to the parking lot around 4 o'clock (if not earlier) for some tailgating goodness.

I'm sure there are a bunch of Tampa friends going as well, so you are all invited to run by and say hello. You are welcome to bring any food you want to throw on the grill or join us in margaritas, daquries, or other different kinds of golden nectar. In the least bring a chair and share in what we'll have.

I'll be taking the blender, grill, stove, awning, and other necessities. I am going to try to see if I can park near the high voltage power line tower closest to I-4 (on the north side) as a rally point. If you come out, look for the silver Nissan Xterra with the small 4x8 silver teardrop camper attached. I'll probably also be flying my green 'Hash House Harriers' flag if I remember to pack it.

Give me a call if you happen to be by and cannot find us.

In a mad world, only greater madness succeeds.

Definitely check out this animation. I saw this and feel that the message is kind of tearing me up. What a way to start a Monday, eh?

Would you take the chance, for one moment, so that you could have the one thing you've ever wanted, thereby dying with no regrets? Would you trade your life for one chance, just one chance, to feel free, to know you'll never be happier?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sdUUx5FdySs

If you really want to be moved, then try listening to it with Gary Jules version of 'Mad World' that was on the Donnie Darko soundtrack a few years and is currently being used in the 'Gears of War' video game commercial. The music video for 'Mad World' can be found here.

I'd rather be over the hill than under it!

Sunday morning I, along with three other Tampa locals, headed to Mt. Dora (a bit NW of Orlando) for a weekend hash campout. The annual Hill Country Hash is held in PatchWorkQuilt's backyard and usually sees attendees from most of the local groups. I took the teardrop camper and after a late start, got there a little after noon. We set the tents and such and hung around for a little while to wait for the trail to start. We were trucked over to the hash start where we mingled for a while before getting the information from the hare and all (probably about 50+ people there) packed into various trucks and cars to be hauled to an Irish pub that would serve as the start. It took us quite a while to get there and many of the runners were getting nervous as to how far we were traveling, assuming the end was back at the camping area at the house. After a few drinks at the bar, the runners headed over to the park across the street to the docks to be picked up by some boats and ferried over to one end of the massive water body (Lake Dora I think). As soon as we got to land we took off after the hare.

The tail is one of the best that I've done. there was a great mix of terrain from well kept nature trails to fields of short (and prickly) brush and numerous fire lanes. There were checks all over the place, so the front runners were kept busy trying to solve all the intersections. I'm pretty sure that we did 4-5 miles (of true trail) at least before the trail ended just at the waters edge. Apparently the front runner just missed the hare by about 30 seconds as an escape was made on a boat driven by Shellshock. We had to wait for some of the other boats to come pack us in, but fortunately a stash of beer was left for the pack! The boats just took us over to another shore spot where we had to bail a few feet from shore and take off again. There were still more checks and such to do, but somehow I lucked out at an intersection and decided to head in a direction that was different than what the 1-2 people in front of me guessed. I found a true trail marker and kept on going until the end that was the home of a hasher that had passed away last year. I was the Front Runner and came to a backyard full of walkers that were milling around and chatting and I got to even goof around on one of the backyard swings. Apparently a lot more people showed up after the runners had left and I got to see a bunch of folks that I hadn't spoken to in months. It was finally getting late, so we loaded up in the boats one last time for a decently long ride to yet another dock and more trail. Fortunately this trail was pretty well marked and didn't have any checks since it was already after sunset and no one had a light (since we had been running since about 4). The trail ended up at yet another house where a meal of two slow-roasted pigs, chicken, and oysters were waiting. We hung around for quite a while chowing down and ended off with a pretty good circle and even a naming for the evening. One major highlight was Moth's off-road adventure. He was taking small groups of folks in his Isuzu vehicle on some insane jungle tours. We were driving at break-neck speeds through the woods with no set path and were literally plowing down many good sized trees, fences, and brush. This was an open backed vehicle and there were leaves, sticks, and vines flying everywhere. We only got stuck once and had to rock the vehicle off a log, but otherwise it was a blast. I was definitely glad to get back from the scary, yet exhilarating ride.

The rest of the night was spent just getting cleaned up and lounging around drinking and such. Though a decent group left for a while to go to a local bar, but the day's adventures were really wearing on me, so I crawled into bed relatively early. In the morning we heading to a local breakfast place (Orange Blossom Cafe?) for a decent meal. The rest of the day consisted of pretty much my favorite part of such campouts, the sitting around and telling of stories. ThanksForTheMammaries had just gotten back from a three week trip to Asia (for the World Interhash event in Thailand) and had a lot of awesome stories of the various adventure. I definitely need to find a way to start doing more world traveling like this and hope to some day experience some of these kinds of things. Except for breakfast and gas, the whole weekend cost only $10 and was a great time! As usual, I took a couple of photos and posted them here:

http://www.kodakgallery.com/I.jsp?c=vnlbugz.29mjvhqb&x=0&y=ew7usy

Culture is the arts elevated to a set of beliefs.

At the urging of a more culturally-enhanced friend, with whom I had not spoken in a while, I decided to check out the Gala Corina local art display. This has been going on for about 8 years where local artists, seeking to use another medium instead of traditional art galleries, display some of their works. At the opening night event there was a fashion show, silent auction, DJs, free wine samplers, and even a live band. I was extremely impressed by the whole event since it was put on entirely by the community with only a $5 donation requested. There were about 140 different artists that used every kind of media that I could imagine and even a few materials that I did not think possible. I spent most of the time browsing among the different works and taking in it all.

After the fashion show was finished a live band set up. Lounge Cat was an incredible swing-style group with a lot of use of brass and played not only some great swing tunes but also covers of well know songs with a swing flair. I was really impressed with the show and recognized some of the dancers on the floor from some of the Sunday night swing dancing at the Zendah Grotto. I'm definitely going to plan to check out the band more often whenever I get an opportunity and hope to find more music like this in the Tampa area. I am very glad I went and hope to run by again this coming week before they close next Friday so I can get a chance to take a better look at the various works.

When regard for truth has been broken down or even slightly weakened, all things will remain doubtful. - St Augustine

This weekend was spent on a little road trip. Two of the Tampa runners were getting married (to each other even!) in St. Augustine on a weekend which happened to coincide with the annual pub crawl held in the city. I have been there a couple of times before and have always enjoyed the area, especially the beaches and old fort. I've also been dying to really try out the teardrop camper I picked up a few months ago and decided to take it with me, especially since the hostel was all booked up by other runners and folks that were with the wedding party. I got a late start on Friday since I had to run a bunch of errands to do.

After arriving, I found a place to park, put together my bike, and found the place folks were meeting. Most of the people there were wedding party members milling about and dancing. We hit a couple of different spots such as Tradewinds Tavern, the local VFW, and St. George Tavern. After shutting down the last bar those still standing grabbed a couple of slices of pizza before heading to the hostel. Apparently some folks were asleep, however we soon took care of that little issue. I didn't want to hang for too long and soon left to to ride over to where I was parked, throw the bike into the truck, and crawl in for a nice rest.

When I got up in the morning, I decided to bike around the city for a while to take in some of the nicer areas. I first hit the old Spanish fort, Castillo de San Marcos, since the National Park Pass that I got for the California trip allowed me free access. As I was going in, I happened to run into a couple of Tampa hashers and watched the cannon firing demonstration with them for a while before starting to head off again. The reenactment is done several times a day by local volunteers that give up their time to help teach visitors about the fort's history. I then did a quick ride to the Mission of Nombre de Dios that is readily noticeably by the 200+ foot steel cross looking over the city. This is a site of some beautifully maintained grounds and holds the Shrine of Our Lady of La Leche. After reflecting here for a while I checked out some of the numerous art galleries and gift shops that make up much of the downtown area.

Around one o'clock I loaded up and drove across the bridge to Anastacia Island to where the pub crawl would start. Using the camper kitchenette I made a couple of sandwiches while taking the time to relax a bit and enjoy the weather (which was considerable warmer than the previous evening). Much of the rest of the day was a lot of fun as I met and chatted with new folks and even ran into some friends that I wasn't expecting to see! We hit numerous pubs including The British Pub, Nubby's Sports Bar, Santa Maria Restaurant, Tradewinds Tavern, VFW, Milltop Tavern (good live music), St. George Tavern, and another bar or two of which I cannot remember the names. At the last bar the wedding party (or those still moving) caught up with us and livened things up a little bit, however it was already pretty late and people were dropping out.

I caught a ride back to where my car was and followed some folks to the Anastasia Island State Park since they already had a spot reserved. After getting cleaned up, I quickly crawled into the camper (being very thankful for not having to set up anything) and quickly crashed. In the morning I made some portabella mushroom sandwiches and elected to stay at the park while the others took off for breakfast and home. The park offered several hiking trails, including an ancients dunes interpretive trail that provide info on the local flora as it looped around for a couple of miles. I then headed to the beach and rode the bike one a 7-8 mile round trip to go around to the inlet so I could get some shots of the approach to the fort and enjoy a nice bit of peddling. After making a quick lunch, and getting stopped a couple of times by people wanting to check out the camper, I took a last stroll in the park along the old Spanish quarry and made a quick stop at the St. Augustine Light Station for some photos, though I didn't have time to climb to the top.

Overall it was a great weekend and a nice way to not only hang out with some old and new friends, but also take in the sites and enjoy some of the Florida resources.

Where do Ravens go for a beer? Crow Bars!

One of the personal Halloween traditions I have held over the years is a reading of Poe's 'The Raven'. This was always one of my favorite narrative poem that told of the narrators increasingly terrorous night. While I will not quote the whole poem here, I'll end with the opening lines.

Once upon a midnight dreary, while I pondered, weak and weary,

Over many a quaint and curious volume of forgotten lore,

While I nodded, nearly napping, suddenly there came a tapping,

As of someone gently rapping, rapping at my chamber door.

"'Tis some visitor," I muttered, "tapping at my chamber door;

Only this, and nothing more."

Don't pat certain animals, e.g., crocodiles and scorpions or dogs you have just kicked.

On Friday night I went to the 13 Ugly Men costume party at 'The Underground' in downtown Tampa. This group does a decent sized party every few months and usually has a good turn out of all ages with proceeds going to charity. For Halloween, I was going to dress up at the creepy Burger King guy since I had found a source for the masks used in the commercial, but last weekend I decided to change my costume. Instead, I went at the late Steve Irwin, complete with the khaki pants and short, boots, and stingray. I didn't think it would be completely original, but I did think of it and plan it out before the South Park episode aired on Wednesday. I went to the Fl Aquarium gift shop and picked up the plush stingray toy and sewed it into the shirt and added some theatrical blood. I got a lot of different comments at the parties, but pretty much everyone saw the humor. With his personality, I don't doubt that Irwin would be chuckling about the good natured rub.

The party itself was pretty enjoyable and even though there was a little rain, it really wasn't too cold. I went with a couple of hash friends and had a good time chatting with various people and taking in all of the good costume ideas. We were out until about 3AM or so and were pretty tired, but overall it was good. I had to get up relatively early to go to Lettuce Lake Park for a friend's going away party. Monica got a great job in Atlanta, so will be leaving the Busch Gardens marketing department. She was the one that was nice enough to get me invited on the photo shoot for the Sheikra ride before it opened last year, with one of the pictures even showing up in a brochure. It'll be sad to see her leave, but now at least I might have an extra place to crash next time I head to the mountains for a hiking or whitewater trip. :)

Alarm clock: A device that scares the daylight into you.

Just FYI, but remember that early Sunday morning it will be time to change all the clocks back one hour for Daylight Saving Time. If you're going to be out late partying, then you get one extra party hour, or one extra hour of sleep / recovery. I have always wondered, rhetorically, if the clock goes back one hour, do all the TV shows (or probably infomercials) get replayed?

As a pet peeve, please note that there is no 's' at the end of 'Saving', so please tell people to stop doing it. You wouldn't call the Thanksgiving period 'turkey cookings time' nor Christmas 'presents givings day'. That is almost as frustrating as the people that honestly seem to have no clue (as opposed to just being lazy) as to the difference between 'your' and 'you're'.

I got a sweater for Christmas. I wanted a screamer or a moaner.

Last night was a fun little get together for a few friends for the Busch Gardens Howl-O-Scream event. My friend Michelle had some family coming up from Sarasota as well as one of her buddies Chelsea. A couple of my hash friends, Kiddie and VC, decided to come after I made an announcement a couple weeks ago about going. I figured Thursday would be the best night to go since the crowds would be low. Most of us met at my house after work since I had the kegerator tapped, hot tub filled, and grill cooking up some ribs and such.

The weather was gorgeous and the crowd was indeed quite light. We had to wait in line for only one of the haunted houses. The shows were pretty nice. I would have some photos to post, but when I took my camera out for the first shot I saw the dreaded 'no memory card' message. Doh! So instead, I'll just throw up a photo I took 3 years ago when I worked at Busch Gardens for the Halloween event one season in early college. We were there until closing around 1 o'clock and everyone had to turn in soon because of work the next day. If you do HOS, definitely try to hit it on a weekday. Though you may be dragging Friday, it works out better in that you can actually get a chance to experience everything. I cannot imagine having to wait in line 1-2 hours for a house and really missing out on everything else.