Sick Weekend

I am sad to say that I've spent all of this lovely weekend inside, away from the world, because I've been sick. At first I thought it might be the dreaded swine flu, but the symptoms so far have been mild. It's probably just a cold. This marks the 3rd time that I have been ill so far this year. That's more often than usual for me, and I am beginning to wonder if this work hard/play hard/train hard livestyle is wearing on my immune system. Or maybe I'm just getting old ;-)

Because I am under self imposed quarantine, there hasn't been much for me to do this weekend in my 700 sq ft apartment. In an effort to postpone cabin fever, and because I am a bit of a goal-setter, I set out on Saturday to watch all of the Alien movies in order. I can't claim credit for this, as AMC was hosting an Alien marathon, but I did make the extra effort to dig up Alien vs. Predator to make it a five movie quest. AVP 2, I'm sorry, you suck, and I'm not even going to give it a shot.

Watching all these flicks taught me that my favorite part of sci/fi-horror movies is that initial discovery phase. The parts with the enigmatic messages and the ever increasing sense of foreboding. The parts where the lead character can suddenly read hieroglyphs or the payoff just seems to great to pass up and someone is going to have a moral dilemma. Once the villain starts tearing people apart, yeah that's exciting too, but by then most of the secrets are out. It's just a fight for survival.

Other than that, I've been a pretty lazy bum this weekend. Looking forward to getting better.

Alligator Grill

Went to eat with Adam, Sarah, and some other friends tonight at the Alligator Grill, a pleasant stop on S. Lamar. They had 50 cent oysters, which I haven't had in awhile, but you can only order them a dozen at a time. Consuming those, combined with the dozen shrimp I ordered, probably met my recommended mercury intake for the year.

Funny thing: Every time I eat shrimp, I think back to my senior year in college and Tyler's salt water fish tank. Not only did he have an assortment of tropical fish in that tank, but also a single tiny delicate living shrimp running around. It would move it's little legs so fast it looked like the underwater version of a hummingbird. Unlike the clownfish, who looked sleek and strong, and who could shoot through the water, the little runt of a shellfish looked like he would collapse without the support of the water. I've forgotten his name, but every time I have shrimp tacos, scampi, or paella, I think of that little guy. Is that weird?

At one point tonight, we started talking about the ongoing Texas Renaissance Festival being held just outside Houston. It conjured images of knights and wenches, horses and weapons. I remember going to this thing as a child, and actually having a pretty good time. I wonder though, would it be the same now? Could I ever find myself in costume, brandishing a standard and speaking in Ye Olde English? Probably not. In fact, I've never really liked wearing costumes at all. It's not that I feel silly or embarrassed. Rather, I think it has more to do with a really firm sense of identity. I find it hard to play something I'm not, even if it's just for fun. I'd probably be a terrible actor ;-) At any rate, I think the Tex Ren Fest would be a really good time, I just don't think I'm gonna have time to make it out there...

CHAPTER TWO

And thus begins the next chapter in this blog. I haven't written anything in a while because, well, I felt like i was in a bit of a transitionary period. Writing doesn't come as easily to me as it does to other people, and sometimes the thoughts and emotions I am going through are difficult for me to verbalize. All I can say with certainty, is that I have begun a new chapter.

More to follow tomorrow...