The Art of Magic

The art of creating something out of nothing is an act of magic. It’s not only something born out of joy and love, but also out of our hurts and sorrows. And while it may not be a cure for the emotions that can assail us, it does allow us to step past the barrage of helpless sensation into other, less numbing, perspectives where it’s possible to find a breathing space, and perhaps even some emotional balance.

~Charles de Lint
from Granny Weather

We all deserve to be Absolutely Fabulous!

I'm tired of leading a less than satisfactory life. I feel relatively good about my accomplishments but I'm so tired of living in the midwest and I can't seem to find a way out. I can't seem to save enough money to move, nor can I find a job in any other city myself. Nor have I won the lottery, though lots of loosers win it every day. Well, I'm not a looser but I could still use the dough. Recently, I've tired sending my resume out to a search firm that may be able to help. Although, after I uploaded it to their site, it no longer seemed as impressive to me as it is on paper. Of course, I've often flirted with the idea of just chucking everything, or trying to sell some stuff (furniture), and then just go but I'm concerned that I won't be able to pull it off. However, I did do it once before when I came to Chicago. Why couldn't I do it again? Perhaps I'll have a martini, smoke a bowl, and stew on it.

Is it 2006 Already?

Man, the holidays seem to fly by! I can't believe we're already into the new year and more of the same old shit. It seems like I have less to say this year than last or keeping this page up is beginning to wear on me. It's only because my friend Charlotte keeps hers up that I even put in a nominal effort. Although, I was very good about writing something every week last year. I guess that's what has changed for me in '06. I'm busier.

Work is what it is but I'm fairly pleased with the extra money I'm making as a F/T employee. It's so nice not to have to stress as much at the end of the month when bills are due and to watch in total dismay as my bank account hovers near bankruptcy. Thinking about bills reminds me that I totally hate Sallie Mae and would not recommend them to anyone as a student loan provider. They have dicked me around so much that I'm considering suing, if I can come up with an actual case. It's too depressing to go into all the details of their debauchery but let's just say their customer service department has been outsourced to India and those nice Indians haven't a clue how to be helpful. All I know is, I have to get this thing paid off as soon as I can, if not before.

Okay, here's something good that happened recently. I had a fantastic new year's eve and day. I spent it with my friend Tamara and we decided to see a double feature. It wasn't a real double feature, we just decided to go see two films with dinner in between. We saw The Squid and the Whale and The White Countess. I thought both were very good but I had some sleepy issues in the latter. I think it was from the martini I had at dinner. If you haven't seen these flicks, basically the former is about a family going through a divorce. It's pretty dark and disturbing but all the performances are quite good, especially the two boys. The latter is the last Merchant/Ivory production and is set in 1930s Shanghai. Natasha Richardson and Ralph Fiennes find love in war-torn China. If the story doesn't grab ya, the cinematography will.

After the flicks, Tamara and I returned to her place and proceeded to consume a bottle of wine each. We talked endlessly and watched Before Sunset. The following day, we drank endless amounts of water (go figure), went out for brunch with friends, and kept up our lively conversation way into the evening. I've never talked so much continuously. In fact, I don't think I spoke to anyone the following day.

It's truely sad, but I can't wait for Invasion to start back up and finish out their first season. What's gonna happen when people start to realize they're no longer human? How will the conflict change between the hold-out humans and the growing contingent of aliens? Does this sound like Invasion ... of the Body Snatchers? Hm.

Hope everyone out there is A OK.

Thanks for reading this aimless jabber!

Tune in for more in a few weeks.