i should...

have upped the stakes.

met Cindi for breakfast at the nearby (and new) Egg & I. well, someone is always on my case when i get lazy about posting...which is understandable. i just have NOT felt like saying anything; i've been much more content with reading everyone else's updates.

well, she did mention that we played (seven) games of Boggle. and for a couple years, i've heard her declare what a good boggler she is. that's cool. i like to play it too...been playing for about 25 years, but only sporadically the last 5-10 years. i bet J remembers the bogglefests that chris and i used to have...

A CHALLENGE

while we're sittin' outside on one of the 'patio' tables, the manager came out and said that we could play inside. when we declined, he even offered us free coffee ;)

that's cute.

no...we couldn't be distracted. it was educator vs. bone digger...a competition for the ages.

after seven intense matches, a winner was declared. we may have to make this a monthly (weekly?) thing. what will be at stake? for starters, for every game i win, it'll give me a 'get out of blogging' card for a day. hmmm. i like that. had this rule applied on tuesday, it would have given me another week of slothness.

okay...you have three minutes to find as many words (four letters or more). ready...set...GO!

















okay, pens down. how many did you get? i found 36 words. and i think there's at least 78...

we-eird...

last september, i blogged about a little netflixx fiasco. well, yesterday, we got two front parts of the envelope that is supposed to have your movies. thing is, we weren't expecting any movies - the two at the top of our queue are already in the house.

kinda freaky...

like a banshee...

THAT'S what my niece sounded like when satriani came out. it was like we dropped in on a beatles concert ;)

guess she liked her present. and boy, was she surprised!

picked her up at 6:00...took her downtown to "hang out on the mall"...stopped at the Sonic there...had a fantabulous banana pudding shake (it was 680 calories of sheer bliss)...and strolled back towards the paramount (she had NO idea).

when we reached the corner of 16th & Glenarm, i mentioned that i had to go back to the car to retrieve some eye drops...we hung a left and headed straight to the theatre...en route, i asked her to hold on to the tix (which i magically pulled out of my jacket pocket)...surprisingly, she didn't even look at them, instead pocketing them herself.

even while we were at the house, she mentioned that G3 was in town and some kid kept flaunting his tix in front of her that entire week...luckily, she's 15...and is somewhat oblivious to her surroundings...so when i told her to look at what i just handed her, the stunned and incredulous reaction was enough thanks :)

some of the things she said (in rapid succession):

omgomg...you can't be serious...omgomg...i havetocallmyfriendsarah...omgomg...i don't know if i should scream, cry, or jump on that group of people in front of us!!!!!!!!!

once we got in, we had about fifteen minutes to spare, so i told her to check out the shirts while i went to the bathroom. upon returning, i was introduced to the kid that had taunted her all week, his name was Jeff. he and his dad had just walked in the doors. guess he and my niece are having banner birthdays.

she ends up buying a large black t-shirt w/ the poster emblazoned on it...for $30. sheesh...and to think that i used to complain about $14 shirts when i was her age ;)

anyway, we found our seats (Orchestra Left, Row T, Seats 1 & 2) and took it all in. the paramount seems brighter and in better shape than the last time i was there (2003?). while we were settling in the new red velvet cushions, we saw Jeff, who was in the same section...but behind us and ten seats down! HAHA (but say it like Nelson would). guess you can rub it in HIS face tomorrow at school, eh?

the show started a little before 8:00. each artist played for about 50 minutes, culminating in a four song jam (w/ all three) for an encore. the concert didn't let out until midnight. it was the best $47 concert seat i've had in a long time.

speaking of concert costs, i am fed up w/ ticketmaster charges. i HATE having to pay an extra $10 in charges (for each ticket sometimes) when i can just go to the box office and skip those damn fees. granted, you gotta suck it up for red rocks shows (unless you live in morrison or golden), but if there's something at the paramount or pepsi center, i'm gonna drive down there and save $20...dammit!

now, does someone have an extra $225 for a seat for the Police (june 10th at pepsi)? i just looked at the $90 ones...and they're BEHIND the stage! ugh. mebbe i'll just spring for the $50 seats and bring a telescope.

sigh

nearly...

abandoned.

yeah, i know i've pretty much disappeared over the last month or so. i'll try to catch up later tonight...promise ;)

weather is SO beautiful outside. i'm always worried when we're gonna get dumped on again because the longer it's nice, the worse it's gonna be once the high pressure system collapses...

going downtown in about a half hour. must pick up prize i won at the oldies station. this month, i won a couple tix to country dinner playhouse's production of Guys and Dolls. not my favorite musical (although i do own the dvd), but free dinner and a show are things i usually don't turn down.

after i collect the booty, i'm gonna head over to the paramount theatre for tix (that i actually have to pay for) to the upcoming G3 '07 show.

G who?

G3 is a trio of shredders...sometimes called guitar virtuosos...that is usually headlined by Joe Satriani. in the past, he has shared the stage with metal/prog. rock/blues guitarists such as steve vai, eric johnson, michael schenker, kenny wayne shepherd, and yngwie malmsteen. this year G3 will showcase the talents of John Petrucci and Paul Gilbert.

now, i've listened to all these musicians in the past, but have never wanted to catch one of the shows. however, i've got a soon-to-be sixteen year-old niece who plays guitar...and has blatantly declared that she would gladly have Satriani's babies.

to her, it was HE who is the creator of all guitar things ;)

so...guess i'll sneakily offer to pick her up for a night of bowling and eats. i'm not sure if she even knows they're gonna be in town...muwahaha.

just trying to rack up (world's coolest) uncle points...heh

hope you're all out enjoying this wonderful day!

secret...

asian man (w/ apologies to johnnyrivers)

sinuous...

is how the road is from orange walk to san ignacio. a beautiful drive though. you go from the savanna-like landscape in the north...full of sugar cane fields...to the lush foliage (w/ craggy peaks in the distance) along the western highway.

driving in belize is relatively stress-free. the majority of the population is situated in belize city...few belizeans have vehicles (who the hell can afford to spend $4.50 for a gallon of gas?!?). most of the manuevering is around potholes, creaky public buses, schoolkids, or

yep. it seems that sundays in belize are the prime time to hold road cycling events. either there's a pack of guys training or there's a procession of sirens/flashing lights, the cyclists, and their equipment/support entourage trailing them. TWICE we ran into race stages!

so...after taking nearly three hours of dodging multiple cyclists and traversing over speed bumps (before and after every village), we made it to our hotel on cahal pech hill.

since it was still morning, much too early to check in, we decided to head to belize's national archaeological treasure, Caracol. it's the largest Maya site in the country. during the seventh century, perhaps 50,000 people lived there. it is one of four MAJOR ceremonial centers in the maya world: Tikal (Guatemala), Calakmul (Mexico), and Copán (Honduras) are the other three.

back to the outrageously priced rental...to the turnoff for san antonio village...through mountain pine ridge...to douglas d'silva (aka, augustine) and to the site.

a mere 53 miles.

this is where pothole hell is defined. the road from san ignacio to caracol epitomizes dangerous driving. razor sharp rocks, extremely eroded limestone paths, narrow wooden bridges that cross wide rivers, and stunning views line this route. if you take 2.5 to 3 hours to make the trip, that's just about right. anyone who has made it to caracol in less than that allotted time was either extremely lucky or his corpse was later found along the road.

i kid you not. the ten miles between douglas d'silva and the paved road that leads into the site is most disastrous road i've seen since our 2001 trip to bolivia (from rurrenabaque to the pampas).

as you may have guessed...a happy razor-sharp rock welcomed us to western belize...on the abovementioned road. luckily, we had a military escort behind us.

military?!?

yes, there are two (9:00 & 11:30) daily military escorts from douglas d'silva on the way to caracol. apparently, there was a rash of armed robberies along this road a couple years ago. and now you can't go to caracol w/o military intervention. usually, they caravan behind the morning tours arriving from mountain pine ridge and san ignacio.

well, we didn't get there until 11:45. nevertheless, the bored soldiers were more than happy to escort us to the site. after all, when we arrived, they were just playing cards and sitting around.

'bout 30 minutes later, we hear a thumpthump. awww...shiiiiiit!

when i got out of the car, i was expecting a flattened tire. not this... as i said, we were extremely lucky because a HUGE, burly soldier by the name of Darren, helped us change the tire. now i know why the soldiers trail your vehicle. had they been ahead of us, we may still be on that road.

and Darren...THANKYOUTHANKYOUTHANKYOUTHANKYOU

when we arrived at the site, we bought the three guys a round of soft drinks and thanked them profusely. and just before we headed into the ruins, i dug out the new deck of cards that i brought for the trip and handed it to the big guy. sorry that there were no hardcore pics like their deck at the base, but at least they were new ;)

aggravating...

we're in belize...got in yesterday at about 3:30. great weather. high 85 degrees. low around 70. of course, that's what it is year round.

it's a good time to be here. dry season starts in february and lasts until the end of may. temps are at their highest in april and the rain pours in october.

the title of the post is because of this damn computer. i'm blogging from the hotel's lobby and although the connection is super fast, there was some major spyware that i had to clean up and a super long disk cleanup wait; i wasted more than ten minutes of my time...

oh well. they only charge a couple bucks an hour. more than enough time to talk about something ;)

right now, we're in orange town...just thirty minutes south of the mexican border town of chetumal. it's a ramshackle town of about 16,000 people. typical caribbean feel about the place. tin roofs...dirt streets...wooden shacks.

people are very hospitable here though. this morning, when we set out in our outrageously overpriced rental car ($108/day), we stopped by a tiny fruit/vegetable stand called "Neggy's." as we bought drinks/snacks, we complained about missing our morning coffee; in most of belize, the coffee is instant (nescafe). i've always found it ironic that some of the world's best coffee (from mexico/guatemala/costa rica) is exported and they resort to instant.

anyway, upon hearing this, the señora offered to make us a couple cups before we headed out...very cool. so we drank our coffee and talked for a good half hour before we decided to get on the road...which is pothole hell.

whoops. looks like they're closing the lobby. arrgh...more aggravation. guess i'll try to find a place tomorrow, when we leave for western belize...san ignacio!

see ya!

an unexpected...

valentine's day gift.

and it wasn't from lois. i just checked my email and nearly jumped out of my seat. one of the messages was from someone whom i haven't heard from in seventeen years. this person, who lives 5000 miles away, played volleyball with me in a couple leagues in 1988-89. she was one of three scandinavian gals who spent that year nannying for some wealthy families. apparently, she came across a meme that i posted in 2003 when she googled her name. i CANNOT believe she had the gumption to look for my email address and send me a note!

it was kind of awkward writing the reply though. i mean, where do you start after seventeen years? i'm still a bit freaked out about the whole thing because it was totally out of the blue. excuse the grin...but it really made my day.

surprised...

to say the least.

lois and i went out for our valentine's dinner last night. we figured we'd beat the crowds and impending cold and snow by celebrating two days early.

what did we get each other? well, lois gave me a bag of belvedere chocolate truffles and a gift card. and i...redeemed some miles for two tix to belize. last month, i mentioned wanting to go there in late may. well, those plans have changed. two weeks after that blog posting, american airlines and citicards announced their quarterly reduced mileage destinations (i.e., go somewhere for 5000 miles less). and wouldn't you know it, there were latin american destinations. so...instead of having to redeem 60,000 miles for two award tix, it only took 50,000...and $30 extra for having to book them via phone. still, 10,000 miles or $30...definitely a no-brainer.

keeping the trip secret for the last ten days was nearly impossible. lois has been aching to go somewhere tropical since december. and the belize research i had been conducting online was so surreptitious, i was erasing the history on a daily basis. you'd think i was sneaking porn or sumpin'...

anyway, we're leaving next friday (23rd). i cannot wait to escape the cold and snow. i know we're finally having a typical winter (after many unseasonably warm and dry ones)...but i am just fed up. did you know that the average february high in belize is 80° and the low...71°?

wish we could stay 'til april ;)

no respect...

is the catchphrase for monday's movie.

yes, people, we're talkin' Rodney Dangerfield...all bug eyed and sweaty browed. he filmed this flick between Caddyshackk and Backk to School. have you guessed it? if you answered, "What is Easy Money?" then alex trebek won't whack you across the forehead.

for some odd reason, i always liked this movie. i'm not sure if it was because of rodney's blue collar character (who stands to inherit $10 million if he can quit his vices for a year) or his excellent supporting cast (Joe Pesci, Candice Azzara, Geraldine Fitzgerald, Jeffrey Jones, and a teenage Jennifer Jason Leigh).

nah

i probably liked this movie because rodney's biting sarcastic humor (but not always in good taste) always appealed to the 13 year-old in me...not vulgar...not cruel...but said under your breath and effective enough to keep your sanity in check. sometimes dumb humor is good humor ;)

out with the old...

(you know the rest)

for many years, i built a printed paper kingdom through multiple magazine subscriptions. volleyball...photography...archaeology...entertainment weekly...nat'l geo...tennis...caribbean islands...stereo review...consumer reports...budget travel...men's journal...all piled high.

i'm sure i had enough tinder to burn down the whole block. one little spark and we're all human bbq.

well, i've been good the last couple years and only kept up the last two in the above list. in fact, i'm even dropping frommer's budget travel in a couple months (although it would be nice to win february's prize for best travel story...a trip to malaysia and singapore!).

in my magazine downsizing glory...i tripped. i've just replaced budget travel w/ travel & leisure AND i've redeemed $30 of e-rewards for a two year subscription to this magazine.

so come on in and pick up a copy...just don't bend the cover back...that drives me crazy!

password...

hell.

in this age of security, we're asked for usernames and passwords on a daily basis if we're online. right now, i have three or four different ones circulating. why? i have no idea...i guess i started with one and added some letters to the 'all-purpose' one when the seven letters weren't adequate. of course, when new passwords required a combination of numbers and letters, i resorted to combining my all-purpose PIN and password. recently, i encountered a situation where my glowing PIN/password was TOO LONG!!!


argh...imagonnahafta simplify...but it's so hard to change a password that has been used for ten years! so...i guess i'm gonna resort to using my all purpose and a shorter combo number+password (when necessary).

life doesn't have to be this complicated...sheesh

the girl...

can scream.

this week's monday movie is up for four academy awards, including best movie and best supporting actress and actor.

yes...i'm talking about Little Miss Sunshine...starring Greg Kinnear, Toni Collette, Steve Carrell, Alan Arkin, Abigail Breslin, and Paul Dano. it's the story of the Hoover family. the father, Richard (Kinnear), is an out of touch motivational speaker who is one step away from hitting the big time (in his own mind). Sheryl, played by the great Toni Collette, is the embattled mother who is desperately trying to keep some order within the family. Frank (Carrell), Sheryl's brother, is a Proustian scholar. He has come to stay w/ the Hoovers after being released from the hospital where he was being treated for an attempted suicide over a failed affair with one of his male grad students. Dwayne Hoover (Paul Dano), is the 15 year-old son who has sworn to a vow of silence until he is accepted into the Air Force. Grandpa Edwin (Alan Arkin) is Richard's foul mouthed, heroin snorting, and ever belligerent father who helps Olive (Abigail Breslin) with her dance routines for the local adolescent beauty pageants.

the movie chronicles this "unique" family and their haphazard (yet soul searching) journey across the southwest, from Albuquerque to Redondo Beach, CA...where the Little Miss Sunshine pageant is being held that weekend. it's a study on how the family unit and its jumbled pieces remain intact (and even strengthen) during the most tumultuous times. initially, you wonder (out loud) how such a crazy family doesn't simply implode, until you realize that most of our families are just as dysfunctional and that the "blood is thicker than water" cliché rings true because every family has to suppress its homicidal tendencies for things to work out during crises.



definitely one of the funniest movies of the past year. what a great cast! the chemistry between them was flawless; simply a well oiled acting machine. ya gotta love 'em...especially Alan Arkin's portrayal of an oversexed and very glib grandfather. he is truly one of the industry's most underrated actors. and Abigail Breslin has come a long way since her first role as a minister's daughter who fears idle glasses of water, constantly referring to them as being 'contaminated.'

if you haven't seen the movie...run to netflixx and add it to your queue! make sure it's not on an incline though ;)

super...

bowling is what i did tonight. every year the 'big' game is on, we usually go out to eat...catch a movie...go shopping...anything but watch tv. i think in the last thirty years, i've watched two or three super bowls...ugh

so...we made the drive to Mimi's Cafe first. although it's a little out of the way, we go out to the one near I-225 & Alameda. parking is abundant and the service is usually pretty good. ever go there? kinda like a Black Eyed Pea w/ a French Quarter twist. it's a franchise that started in Anaheim in 1978...i think there are over 100 locations now (seven in CO).

anyway, lois likes their quiche, which is served with a salad, fruit, and muffin. tonight, i opted for the turkey (sl-ow roasted) ;) my meal looked EXACTLY like that depicted in the picture but had six(!) slices of turkey...two of which ended up going to the dogs.

after stuffing ourselves, lois accompanied me to the Brunswick Lanes at Heather Ridge. i say 'accompanied' because lois doesn't bowl anymore...but she doesn't mind watching...guess she's an ex-bowler w/ voyeuristic tendencies.

i HAD to go bowling today because bowlbrunswick.com sent me a coupon for $0.41 bowling in commemoration of SuperBowl XLI and i just couldn't pass it up. now, shoe rental was $3.69 but three games and tax only brought the total to $5.01 and you CAN'T pass that up...especially since four shoe rentals and three games each can run $60! and even though there are some specials for $25-$30 (two hours of bowling and shoe rentals for up to six people), they ain't $0.41 games!!!

don't even think we were there for an hour. got three games rolled (138/146/176) in 42 minutes, burned about 300 calories, and were out the door. man, i had some seriously slick shoes. you know, the kind that make you flail because you weren't expecting to slide so far...wheee...doin' that funny dance because you don't want to foul or (even worse) end up halfway down the lane.

kinda miffed though. my ball was just not breaking right tonight. i must've had eight or nine (9 spare frames). oh well, what kind of fun do you want for five bucks? can't be too picky. after all, some people dropped thousands of dollars for $600 face value football tix in Miami...something i cannot relate! AND they got rained on! about as fun as a chipped tooth i tell ya!

bow down...

despite rampant laziness, the monday movie has NOT died. it just took a long and slothful hiatus...

bleah

this week took us to the Chez Artiste to catch this movie...which is worth all the hype. Helen Mirren has already snapped up six best actress awards this year for her portrayal of QEII during the months following the death of Princess Di in 1997. the movie is actually kinda short - clocking in at 97 minutes - and not overly dramatic. it basically shows the struggle between the stiff upper lip monarchy and the more hip and youthful movement of PM tony blair's labour party. while the monarchy chooses to maintain perfect composure, the newly elected Blair has to figure out a way to tell her highness that aloofness would not be advisable during this period of sorrow. his suggestions finally are taken to heart, effectively saving face for the royal family in front of millions of mourners. the actions that her majesty took on behalf of her family ultimately transformed the monarchy's usual stoic façade into a compassionate one.

it was a very well made movie. i'm a little biased though. the director, Stephen Frears has always been one of my favorites. he has directed many notable movies over the past 20 years, such as 'Dangerous Liaisons'...'The Grifters'...'The Van'...'High Fidelity'...'Dirty Pretty Things'...and 'Mrs. Henderson Presents.' he's not the most prolific director but when he makes a movie, it's usually pretty good :)

bizzeee...

avoiding my blog, as the blog police will surely tell you.

lately, i've spent much of the past few days moving the stuff out of the old Hip Sing building on Broadway. this building, which was built in 1901, was purchased by the local chapter in 1974...for $40,000 and probably $25,000 in renovation/upgrades. it was quite active until the early 90's, when its membership tapered off and a general apathy ensued.

kinda sad. i have vivid memories of massive chinese new year parties w/ up to three hundred people...every table of ten w/ a lazy susan, armed w/ a big bowl of ice, two liter bottles of coke and 7-up, and a bottle of whiskey...running around w/ the other kids my age...the sound of the dice and dominoes being slammed on the pai gow tables...the all encompassing clouds of cigarette/cigar smoke...the chatter of gossiping women...and the bloody kung fu movies that were shown on the old 16mm Filmosound projector.

you're seven years old and nothing matters in the world except trying to eat as quickly as possible, play games, watch the adults gamble, and stay as long as possible...hoping in vain that your parents will stay until the wee hours of the morning and let you stay home from school because they left too late.

as i've mentioned before, chinese benevolent associations were havens for newly arrived immigrants (usually male) who needed some familiarity in their lonely lives, thousands of miles from their loved ones. at the local tong, they could gamble, get a meal, keep up w/ the chinese newspapers, and feel like they belonged.

well, no longer. unfortunately, the once 450 member strong denver chapter of Hip Sing Tong has probably dwindled to less than 100 active members. the 'changing of the guard' never came. i guess it's generational. the majority of the membership comprised of blue collar workers who implored their children to strive and overachieve in school; seek white collar jobs so they wouldn't have to work as hard as those before them - 'succeed.' and the children did what their parents asked (perhaps too well) and forgot about that fraternal order and the once majestic building, which had fallen into tired disrepair.

that old, smoky structure was just sold for $750K...a steal for the buyers since the assessed property value of ol' 238 Broadway was in the neighborhood of $1.2-$1.3 million. the new owners are going to transform that building into lofts, in hopes of competing w/ the lavish, but overpriced ones downtown.

i know you can't stop 'progress,' but the rattle of the red dice in those funky aluminum holders will always resonate in that space. i wonder if any Hip Sing ghosts will surface when the new loft owners move in...

movie monday...

yes, it's time for that five minutes of life that you'll never get back because you read this blog! this week, i bring you an obscure 1973 French sci-fi animated feature called...

The Fantastic Planet

it was on KBDI this past sunday morning at 1:20. i thought i would watch it because i had heard many good things about it from my brother.

well, after watching it, i no longer consider him my brother ;) actually, i had confused this movie with another sci-fi movie made in 1966, Fantastic Voyage, which he claims to be a classic...either for its mid-sixties sci-fi creativity/innovation or because Raquel Welch is a space vixen. hmmm, it's probably the latter because my brother would have been that perfect puberty age of 13 when that movie came out.

anyway, Fantastic Planet is a strange tale about how humans are used as pets/trinkets in another galaxy...far, far away (sorry, i couldn't resist). initially, we humans are regarded as playthings, extravagantly small (enough to fit in the palms of our masters) and simple beings that must be controlled/kept domestic. however, humans should never be underestimated, right? and with that 'brilliant' deduction, the viewer witnesses the eventual human uprising over its masters. supposedly, this storyline was unceremoniously plagiarized by L.Ron Hubbard for his book, Battlefield Earth, which was consequently made into a movie in 2000 and became a cinematic pariah with a $73 million price tag of only which $21 million was recouped at the box office. still, it DID reap many awards. in fact, of the eight razzie awards it was nominated, it won seven...what a feat! even today, it is considered to be the worst movie made of our young millennium...


Fantastic Planet was not the best of movies...but for 1973 sci-fi animation, it wasn't that bad either. the animation was truly weird and the soundtrack even eerie. the music was reminiscent of the space scenes in this movie, which i've always liked.

i guess the movie even won a special award at the Cannes Film Festival. i don't know exactly for which category, but my best guess is 'Best Animated Sci-Fi to watch while you're dropping acid' which is still better than garnering a razzie...

a slow...

thaw.

it's actually 16° right now! wow, talk about balminess ;) shouldn't complain though. Craig, Colorado (located in the NW corner of the state) had a morning low of -35°...

no friggin' way could i live there.

i'm sure that the people that live there don't let the cold stop their daily routine since frigid temps, too, are routine in Craig. however, in aurora, there are some residents of the cottonwood trail apartments, who are feeling the residual effects of the cold weather. apparently, an 8" water main broke overnight, jetting a massive geyser of water onto the parking lot and its cars.

shi-iit.

yes, those poor cars are encased in a block of solid ice, nearly a foot thick. could you imagine trying to hack through all that? as if they hadn't dug enough snow from the proximity of their cars...now this cruel slap in the face.

i'm just glad that it'll get into the 30s this week. they say that once the temperature reaches zero, most car batteries crank at 40% strength. that sure was evident this morning when i started my car and it emitted an anemic, whirrirrirrirr...before a puny vroomrattlerattle

it's an energizer that i bought last year.

that damn bunny is a fraud...he needs to go into a pot of fricasse.

how come this company doesn't make car batteries? i've always liked the coppertop better anyway.

feh

strange...

my right ear is on fire...like it's got a touch of frostbite. it is SO red. i was out today for a couple minutes, but not long enough for something to happen. and even if i were out long enough, why only one ear?

weird.

when i was 19, i stood outside for a good twenty minutes...with the wind howling...and below zero temps...and got frostbitten ears. later that night, they blistered up and oozed a bit. the warm towel helped but it was still kinda gross.

yeah, no hat in cold and windy weather is not a good idea. so now i wear a hat much of the time when the temps drop below 30. who cares if the hats drop my IQ by a good 100 points...it's still better than blistered ears (shiver).

three more...

hours to give ya three more posts, to fulfill my five a week obligation ;)

a few days ago, i took my mother's car to get the emissions tested. as usual, i went to this testing station...been going there for ten years. and you would think that after all that time, i would have learned which line to use. there are six bays that test vehicles. bays one through five are for any car, while #6 is for full time 4WD trucks, etc. well, i've been lucky most of the time and have had to wait less than fifteen minutes on most occasions

...until wednesday.

when i first drove by the station, the cars were eight deep with the line snaking onto the street.

i don't think so. mebbe it would be a good time to grab a bite to eat. an hour later, i returned and the lines had diminished by a lot (like down to three cars each).

so i get in the middle lane (#3). even though there are six bays, there's only five lines. so i'm thinking it won't be long at all.

after a couple minutes, more cars pile in behind me and they're eight deep again.

at least i'm in the middle of the pack...but my line sure ain't moving while line two has gone up a couple and line #4 has moved like an assembly line!

arrrggggh

apparently, no one can sit in line #5 because it feeds #6 as well. and since #6 is only for full time 4WD, it has to stay unobstructed. of course, if there are no viable candidates to go into line #6, line #4 feeds it.

so really, line #4 feeds three lines...making for some lightning fast service. oh, and line #2 was feeding line #1 since the snow plow didn't totally clear off a space for cars to queue in front of #1.

so there i am, in line #3, which ONLY feeds line #3, rolling my eyes up to the ceiling (or were they rolling back into my head?).

after about twenty minutes of waiting, i finally get up to the entrance of the testing facility and join all the others in the cement block of a waiting space...w/ a malfunctioning TV (was it my day or what!)...and spend another half hour waiting and watching the two other cars in front of me get tested.

well, after that lesson, you'd think that i would've brainwashed myself to only seek out #4s everywhere i go.

not so fast...

it appears that a new way of testing has arrived...and i can't wait! it's called rapid screen. instead of going to a testing facility and 'eagerly' looking forward to queueing up, all you have to do w/ this new system is drive past a van equipped w/ sensors. the vans are placed near on-ramps of highways with varying locations. if you drive past them twice within a ten month period prior to your registration renewal...and record clean readings, you’ll receive a notification in the mail that reads, “Passed roadside emissions” on your registration renewal card.

i like it!!!