Jack in the Box drive thru

Me: "Hi could I get a 15 with a medium Dr. Pepper to drink?"
Her: "Yum, I love that."
Me: (pause) "I do, too."
Her: "Then I'm glad you're ordering it."
Me: "Well... thank you, I appreciate it."
Her: "Will there be anything else for you?"
Me: "No thank you"
Her: "Okay, your total comes to $6.66"
Me: "Whoa, freaky."
Her: "Yeah, I'd be careful eating that one."
Me: "Can I make my drink small then?"
Her: "Haha... wait, really?"
Me: "Haha, no. I'll take my chances."
Her: "Oooh, the devil considers that a challenge."
Me: "Uh oh"
Her: "Please pull around."

I pulled up to the window and, I kid you not, she was wearing a paper JITB bag over her head with eye holes and she said, "This meal will cost you your soul muahaha." Her manager yelled at her to stop whatever she was doing and get that bag off her head. I was holding in laughter as she took my money and pretended nothing had happened.

Simply Inhumane

Moon Night

Here's something a little experimental.
I wrote it a couple months ago, it's called "Moon Nights."
https://docs.google.com/document/pub?id=1Wm3gSjwEoQZfktmluqrQlYtGy-zTqq-1nMsQ953hC6k

Concerning the Autumnal Equinox

I've always been the kind of person to mediate a conflict. I avoid confrontation at most costs, and I like to help other people avoid it.



I like constructive conversations. I like when people can make an effort to understand one another. A good conversation should not be dominated by one person.

I am not one to promote the values of astrology, but I do think there are some interesting nuances which arise among people who have began their lives in the same specific area of the universe. Same position of the Earth in relation to the Sun. Same region of space. Similar cosmic conditions surrounding you.



Isn't it conceivable to consider that, as people have physical, verbal, ethnic commonalities according to their birthplaces, people might also have deeper (non-physical) commonalities according to their cosmic birthplaces?







I do think it is interesting that my personality, being largely one of mediation and balance, happened to have been born on the Autumnal Equinox of my birthyear - the first day of Fall, on which the length of daytime and nighttime are perfectly equal. It marks the beginning of the Libra sun sign, whose symbol is a set of scales.

Hello Libra, it's good to be back in your neck of the galaxy. 

A Decidedly Beneficial Boat Adventure

By Trevor Denton

I was pushed out to sea
In a boat by myself -
The boat, the ocean and I

No anchor, no crew,
Only my health
And the beautiful, wide open sky

I touched on a shore
With the brightest of sand,
Woke up and wandered around

On an island was I,
A small bit of land,
Where only nature was making a sound

Surviving the day
Was my only concern,
To the trees I turned for my food

Raw meat was cooked,
O'er the fire it burned
Until the flames subdued

It became dark
As I laid on the beach
And observed the stars so bright

And I became scared
Of the world, out of reach
On my island enveloped in night

The depth of the sky
Sifted body from mind
And the universe, suddenly still

Caused me to wonder
Just what I might find -
The holes I might possibly fill

I wondered out loud,
"Will I ever be found?"
While the waves encroached on my bed

With the water approaching,
I heard not a sound
In response to what I had said.

More than just lonely,
I felt like a prey
With the ocean and sky closing in

The stars and the planets
Seemed all on their way
As if against them I had sinned

I turned face down
As the pressure increased
For fear that my bones might collapse

My body felt pressure
Of infinite measure,
On this island uncharted by maps

But the universe spoke
When I opened my ears
Things I am unable to say

And right in that moment
The whole of my fears
Had suddenly drifted away.

I clung to the earth
With the tightest of grips
Borne of gratitude, truth and awe

Of the waves on my face,
The salt on my lips,
And the stars and the planets I saw

I thought to myself,
"Though I'm stuck in this place,
I'm fulfilled, where e'er I may be.

On an island, a mountain,
Or floating through space -
I am infinite, now, I am free."

Adam and I

Adam and I
Trevor Denton

    I knew Kristin had just asked me a question, but I was momentarily ignoring her to allow myself to be fascinated by my five-year-old's calf muscles.  He was standing on his toes trying to peer over the white picket fence that surrounded the back porch.  He was just tall enough to get one eye over if he cocked his head and stretched his neck.  And his calf muscles were taut and bulging - more than a normal five-year-old kid, because Adam made a habit out of walking on his toes.
    "El.  Ellis."
    I blinked myself away from Adam's calves and back to Kristin.  She looked at me for a couple seconds with raised eyebrows.
    "Did I interrupt something in there?" she said with a grin.
    "Ha.  I'm sorry.  What was that?"
    "Are you still planning on taking the LSAT this fall?  The last time I saw you, you were talking law school like it was your destiny."
    "Yeah."  I was answering in autopilot as I often did when law school was brought up.  "September.  Then I can start applying to schools."
    That's how it had been for over a year now.  Yeah.  September.  Then I start applying.  I could have told you what she would say next before she said it.
    "What school do you want to go to?"
    I gave my answer straight from the script.  Texas, if I can get in.  Or Chicago.  I explained how they were both top twenty schools that I had a realistic chance of getting accepted to.  It was like it was a story I had written; I was familiar with the answers to all the questions about it, but they weren't about my life.  It was some fictional path I had dreamed up back when I was so concerned about money and having things.  I was still constantly concerned about money, but only because I had none.  But I continued telling people this tale about how hard I was studying for the LSAT and how it's not the same as studying for a facts-based test like the MCAT or DAT.  I could probably have given a seminar on taking the LSAT, yet I was actually very far from ever taking it.  I only continued the charade because telling people you were abandoning the idea of a secure life as a six-figure attorney to try your hand at making it as an actor was like a nine-year-old stating proudly that he wants to be a rock star when he grows up.  I'd have gotten a pat on the head and a smile and maybe a "that's nice, Ellis."  So I maintained the facade of looking forward to a lifetime of suits and ties and paperwork and lots of money.  Because that's the kind of thing that demands respect from people.  Yeah.  September.  I felt like a hero every time I said it.  Then I start applying.  A hero in training.
    I had one problem.  It was August 31st.
    "Adam, what's over there?" I finally asked my son.
    "I don't know, I'm trying to see," he said.
    I had gotten divorced recently and, due to my ex-wife's drug problem, retained custody of our only child.  I had been friends with Kristin and her husband Gale since high school, so I often brought Adam over to play with their six-year-old daughter Molly while the three of us adults spent some time talking and laughing together.  It was supposed to be Adam and Molly playtime, but Adam always ended up on the back porch and Molly always stayed inside.  It was frustrating, but we couldn't force them to play together.  So it made it easier for us to admit that these weren't really Adam and Molly play dates.  They were Ellis, Gale, and Kristin play dates.  Much-needed ones.
    Gale came out through the sliding glass door with a plate of watermelon slices and a huge smile.  My mouth was soon overcome with smile as well.  Kristin always picked the best watermelon.
    "Adam, come get it!" Gale said.  Adam turned from the fence and raced to Gale's plate, immediately devouring as much as he could of the largest slice he could find in as little time as possible.
    "He's been looking over that fence all day.  I wonder if he sees something." I said.
    "Probably just the greener grass on the other side," said Gale.  I chuckled.
    "There's nothing over there but a yard full of grass," said Kristin.
    "What's over there, buddy?  See a caterpillar or something?" I asked.
    With his mouth packed to capacity, juice dripping from the corners of his mouth, he shrugged.  Once he had the chewing under control he raced back to the gate, stood on his toes, and peered over again.
    "I hope it's not a tick.  Could he have OCD this young?"
    "Jesus, quit worrying so much," said Gale.  "He's five years old and looking over a fence.  What you need to be worrying about is what the hell you're going to do after this school year is over.  Do you know what area of town you'll move to?  Any first job ideas?"
    Kristin gave me a quizzical look.  Gale noticed.
    "You didn't tell Kristin?"  His eyes got wide.  "Was that a secret?  Shit.  I'm sorry."
    "Well there is obviously an explanation needing to be made.  Ellis?" she said.
    "Yeah," I started.  "Sorry, it's so much easier to just let people think I'm continuing my previous plans.  Truth is, I'm not taking the LSAT next month."  I paused before going on.  "I don't want to be a lawyer.  I'm not going to go to law school.  At least not yet.  I'm going to finish out this year, graduate, and then move to Los Angeles and start acting.  I'm going to try that for a year or two, then see where I am at that point.  I'm not ruling out law school forever.  Just not right now."
    "And why did you not feel like telling me?"
    "Because it's such a 'struggling artist' thing to do, and that doesn't really seem like me.  I've never done something so in line with my dreams before.  And people tend not to take people as seriously who do things like that as people who are preparing for law school."
    "Ellis.  I've known you since high school, I know you love acting.  To think I'd look down on you wanting to act, that's - that's just silly.  I think it's a wonderful idea for you.  And I think it's brave.  And I think you'll make it."
    "Ah well thank you.  I appreciate that.  I've always thought moving to Hollywood and going for it would be the ultimate way of being myself.  I never had the courage to seriously consider actually doing it.  Moving out there.  I have close relatives out in LA that want to take Adam during the days while I work.  Taking this path is so easy, logistically speaking.  I almost have no excuse for not trying."
    "Yeah, I agree," she said.  "Quit longing and just step out there.  Jump off the cliff and..."
    "Build wings on the way down," I said, finishing her sentence.
    Adam was running from point to point on the patio, getting more frantic about looking over the gate.  It's like he wanted to see it all at once.  He'd scale his way around to one corner and jump a little bit to see all the way over.
    "Have you told anybody else?" Gale asked.
    "I'm dreading telling my parents.  Not that they'll be mad, or even disappointed.  They'll probably be supportive.  But my dad always told me I was too smart not to have at least a graduate degree."
    "So get one later."
    "I know.  I just.  I think he might feel like I was wasting my intelligence by focusing on acting."
    "Ellis, your dad is a genius and he teaches music.  It would be ridiculous for him to think that.  Degrees aren't everything."
    I sat there on their clean patio furniture, enclosed by the perfectly parallel lines of the white picket gate.  Adam had just discovered that a section of the fence was actually a gate that opens.  He was looking at the latch.  A slow hand rose up to it and pushed the lever up.  The gate moved slightly, and the latch fell open.  He glanced around, like he might get in trouble.  He pushed gently and the gate swung halfway open.  He stuck his head out and around the corner, enjoying a much more comprehensive view of the yard.
    "Adam," said Gale.  Adam looked back with wonder in his adventurous eyes.  Gale grinned.  "Go run out there," he dared, playfully.  Adam turned back to look into the yard from where he stood.  He leaned forward a little and then hesitated.  Gale went and knelt behind him, whispering something in his ear. 
    A huge smile took over Adam's face and this time, when he looked into the yard, his feet followed his eyes.  He walked resolutely to the center of the yard with a youthful bounce in his step, stopped, and began to turn in circles with his arms outstretched.  I could see his eyes taking in the whole of the yard.  He was in the yard - the yard he previously had viewed only on his tippy toes, peering from behind the fence.

great scott!

So, Meghan kindly pointed out that my apartment was bland and that it didn't seem like I had really "moved in" to it yet. So I was posed with a challenge. What could I do or get to make my apartment seem more MY apartment? I could have probably scanned thrift stores, garage sales, etc to find some awesome vintage-looking decorations to hang here and there.. but that would just mean more crap to move out when the time comes. I had to do something though. The soulless white walls were giving a solitary-confinement-in-a-mental-hospital vibe. So, I did this.



Now I feel like I'm crazy and free, rather than sane and captive in the funny farm.