a 68 minute post

I'm sitting across from Blake at The Anchor. We're drinking coffee and on our computers, and I can't tear my eyes from his phoenix tattoo. The meaning behind it is that he had a childhood bird that died in a house fire. There's a kid behind us who won't stop saying "Hi!" And then people say Hi back and he gets excited and starts yelling, "Hi! Hi! Hi! HI!", and the people just keep saying Hi back and I'm wondering why they're encouraging this. 

Election Day is Tuesday.

It'll be interesting to see who wins the election.

Each day it seems Obama and Romney are neck & neck.

I think I'm going to watch it unfold Tuesday night.

Maybe order Dusmesh or something.

The skies are dark and murky, scattered rains that fall with little pace. The grass withers and the trees stand naked, the last leaves quivering and fragile, a hare's breath to break them. Cold November Rains. I think that'd be a good book title. Hmm, what American Revolution battles were fought in November? There's the fall of Fort Washington during the battle of New York and Tarleton's victory against the Carolina partisans in the Battle of Blackstock Farm. 

Banastre Tarleton at Cowpens (not Blackstock's Farm)

The kid's still saying Hi.

Some people are laughing.

I don't know why, it's not really that funny.

And his parents seem to think this is socially acceptable?

Andy moved out this week, and Blake and I only have a month or two before we pack up and ship out. We're looking at a couple places in Norwood. The house is definitely quieter now, and I spend most evenings alone (since Blake works). I don't mind it: I enjoy quiet evenings by the space heater, sipping hot tea and reading early American colonial history. It's just that those days of Summer 2011 are so far gone. Those were amazing days with a house full of people: Rob & Mandy, Blake, Amos, me and Ams. And a constant train of people in and out, most notably John and Brandy, Isaac, and Andy (all of whom I still talk to). Rob & Mandy are in Portland, Tony & Jessie are in Illinois, Amos is in Over the Rhine and Ams is with Chris & Sarah and Andy's back home... I miss those House Days, the crazy parties we'd have, the constant antics. I was a different person back then, in so many ways. But we're all in a constant state of flux, myself most of all it seems.

The waitress, Linda, just came by and refilled our coffee.

I know many of the waitresses by name.

I'm friends with one of them on Facebook.

"Everyone who works here looks like they've had such hard lives," Blake quipped.

Hi. Hi. Hi. Hot damn, kid.

I've been lost in history as of late. I've been going over colonial American history, paying special attention to the native American role in the development of North America. It's fascinating, it really is. I may start throwing together some essays on various subjects. It's a facet of writing that really serves to hammer in the information. When you're forced to regurgitate what you've been reading, things make a lot more sense, and you're able to see the interconnections of various events. I've been looking into getting my Master's degree in History, the thing is figuring out how that's any more practical of just walking around with a B.S. in Biblical Studies. I've got a couple universities of interest, I'm going to call a couple next week to get some questions answered. The main question, of course: "How can I get a better job with this degree?"

Sloths are officially one of my favorite animals.

And baby pandas, especially when they're going down slides.

Oh, and monkeys who ride baby pigs.

But the most bad-ass of all is the bald eagle.

Videos to come. 

Blake & I are going to the Damien Jurado show at Taft Theater this week. Thursday evening. I'm pretty stoked about it. I'll probably go downtown early, grab dinner at Rock Bottom, some coffee from T.M. (they'll be closed, but that's never stopped me before), and then make our way to the Theater. Or something like that. Or none of that. Really, I should talk to Blake about it and hammer out the details. I could do that now, he's sitting across from me... Maybe in the car? I'll forget. 

Blake, if I've forgotten to ask, what do you think of that idea?

I have Rock Bottom gift cards. 

And I could pay tip and cover some of your food.

Let me know.

K bye.