Friday, August 16, 2002
Today is my brother's 25th birthday. He was born on the day Elvis died in 1977. He is a Lieutenant in the Marine Corp, based in Hawaii. He is full of piss and vinegar and one of my favorite people on the the planet. He has balls like boulders. Sometimes has a head like a boulder too, but that's a different story. Happy Birthday Kenny!
Jim Parisi
I got an email from my buddy Shawn yesterday. Shawn is one of those rare finds, a guy so smart it's intimidating, and yet he still manages to have a full complement of social skills and a great sense of humor. I haven't seen him in a while, but he's a kick to hang with. When he isn't driving you nuts. It's impossible to win an argument with him. He is always two steps ahead of you. He also taught me the world's greatest insult. We were in the middle of an insult contest when he hit me with: "You're nothing but a sperm burping gutter whore." I couldn't top that.
Jim Parisi
Thursday, August 15, 2002
She arrives in just about 24 hours. She will be staying with me for nine days. I haven't seen her in more than two weeks. Good Lord do I miss her. Do me a favor and do not disturb for at least a day or two.
Jim Parisi
I got sick to my stomach on Monday night. I suppose technically it was Tuesday morning at about 2 AM, but regardless, that is something that rarely happens in my life. Other than two bouts with an intestinal virus over the last ten years, I haven't been sick to my stomach since college. And only once while I was in college as a result of some bad chicken. I don't drink, so I missed that whole binge and puke year of adventure that every college freshman seems to embark upon. I'm not sure what caused me to barf. I didn't eat anything out of the ordinary. Pretty hard to when you are a heath food junkie and a full blown vegetarian. How much e-coli is actually in tofu? But laying in bed after talking to Karli I suddenly had to split for the bathroom. And no, that's not the usual effect she has on me. Five minutes later I was prostrate at the porcelain alter. Ugh. I hate to barf. Then again, who enjoys it? The only part about the experience that's worthwhile is the profound feeling of calm that washes over you after removing all the offending contents of your stomach. You go from feeling like complete shit to perfectly calm and almost well in seconds. Of course then you have to spend the next 20 minutes spitting into the sink to remove that taste from your mouth, but I suppose that's the least of your worries after a bout with food poisoning.
Funny side note about this subject (like you needed more). When I was a kid my mother would spray the house with Lysol only after one of us would get sick to our stomachs. Subsequently, the smell of Lysol Spray is directly linked in my brain with a feeling of nausea. The result: I smell Lysol today, and I want to barf.
Jim Parisi
Wednesday, August 14, 2002
Of course the perks for the roadwarrior do include the $400 dinner I had at Hawthorn Alley last night and the corner room at the Westin St. Francis I'll be sleeping in tonight. Sometimes (just sometimes) the frustration all pays off.
Jim Parisi
For those of you who envy the frequent flier miles, let me put your mind at ease. Yesterday I left for the airport at 8:15. SFO was socked in with fog, so I sat through delay after delay only to finally board a plane at eleven or so. Which sat on the tarmac for a half hour. I was then deplaned and asked to board a second plane. Which also sat on the tarmac for a half hour. By the time the fog lifted, subsequently lifting both the lock down at SFO and the plane on which I was sitting, it was almost one. I didn't arrive in SFO till two. I waited for Todd to join me from San Jose, and then left for the short drive to downtown. And promptly hit Bay Area 101 traffic. And sat there for an hour. It was 5PM by the time I pulled into the hotel. Had I drove it would have taken just about half the time. This is the life of a road warrior. Don't envy it.
Jim Parisi
Monday, August 12, 2002
Speaking of the Sopranos, you know why I like that show? The writing, the dialog, the locations, it's just like my family. Well, except for the Mafia. And the killings. And the sex, the disfunction, the fights, the talking fishes, the strip clubs, the extortion, the money, and the Big Pussy. But other than that, it's just like my own big Italian family.
Jim Parisi
Sunday, August 11, 2002
I bought a TV yesterday. I have not actually owned a TV in almost two years. I gave my last TV, a 20 inch I bought while in college, to an ex-girlfriend. For more than five years I had been using roommate's bigger and better TVs. When they moved out, they took the TV's with them. For six months I actually had no TV at all. Yes, it is possible to live without a TV. Well, at least until a Soprano's season starts. So since the 2001 Soprano's season I have been using Dan's positively ancient 15 inch. It sucks. I can't even hook my DVD player up to it. Well, at least it's color and cable ready. For the record, I had bought two new digital wide screen TV's last fall, but didn't like either one and had them returned. My friends are predicting I'll do the same with this one since what I really want is a flat panel plasma screen. I just can't justify spending six thousand dollars on a device made to keep me sitting on my ass. Seems like a poor investment. Six grand to sit. Seems like a sin. Still, a new digital TV is on the way. And it'll fit in my living room, I can watch my DVDs, and when Soprano's is back on TV in a month, I'll be a happy couch potato - if only for one hour on Sunday Night.
Jim Parisi
