rails, trails and tails

Went on a bike ride, wrote a story about it. Not a bad day at the office.

Libary

Good day

Today was a good day.
I got to work and was told I had to go cover the opening of the athlete's village for the Coeur d'Alene Ironman( a world renowned event).
"ugh." I thought.
I go check it out and it's a huge ordeal with circus tents, video boards, thousands of people, new car and trucks on platforms, and other intimidating stuff.
I walked around it 3 times, sat on a bench and thought about how much I didn't want to walk up to complete strangers and ask them what they thought about the spectacle... about how much I didn't want to track down the person in charge. I contemplated leaving and secretly packing my things to run away.
I thought about how I didn't want to be a journalist. About how I'd waisted my college career studying something that I didn't want to pursue professionally.

Then I grew a pair, said "fuck it" and started talking to people about everything. Not just the "village" but about ironman races and the mentality required to run a marathon, swim 3 miles and bike 112 in one day.
Then I got back to the office with 10 pages of scribble, AKA "notes" and again, became overwhelmed.
But I got in the zone and wrote-- if I may say-- a pretty damn good article full of vivid descriptions and subtle humor.
"Good," I though. " I'm done for the day."
Wrong.
My boss brings me a press release about the local police arresting and jailing the wrong Martha Williams. I had to get on the horn and call the police, county sheriff dept, county courts, local jail, prosecutors, attorneys, store-owners, and family member of the wrongly-arrested and write a story lickety-split. AND argue with a local police Sgt. until she released the mug-shot to me so the paper could run it.
It turned out good. I was done by 4 p.m. People in the office gave me props and I left early to wash my car.
If I meet my future wife tonight my confidence will balloon to epic proportions.
wish me luck.
-rye

Trend alert

A fresh shave is the new stubble.
Goggles are the new Wayfarer.
AirJordans are the new Chuck Taylors.
Parachute pants are the new cut-off jean, bicycle chique shorts.
Short hair is the new long.
Aerosmith is the new Devendra Banhart.

lame is the new hip.
mark my words.

urban outfitters will be all over it by fall.

Belize tease

Hut hotel-Cave-Apocalypto...bugs bites and sunburn not included.

Things younger than John McCain:

Automatic transmission
Bob Dylan
the Margarita
Preparation H
Nachos
Snow White and the 7 Dwarfs
The zip code
YOU
In other news, I'm going to Belize. Thank God.
However, I couldn't work on my base-tan because it's been cold and rainy in Northern Idaho.
Maybe I'll go to a tanning salon tomorrow night. Yeah, that's a good idea.

:)

Barack 'n' roll-- Si se puedo cambiar

Don't know if you saw his victory speech last night, but his level of class and respect towards Clinton was truly inspiring. Finally, change will come to this wounded nation. I'm not sure what people felt like when Kennedy got the democratic nod, but my generation is ecstatic and confident in Obama's ability to lead.
"Let us begin the work together," Obama said. "Let us begin to chart a new course for America."
Sign me up B-O. I'm ready to rock.

wel red

Went to a used book store today and purchased 5 great books for $7. Crazy cheap.
Classics too. The kind you always tell yourself you're gonna read, but never do because you figure they will always be in print, available for purchase..
Look out D.H. Lawrence, you're first on the hit list.
Drove past a store today with excellent poster in the window and stopped in determined to buy something to decorate my barren white bedroom walls.
Payed $5 for a great Dylan poster, only to get home, unroll it, and discover a Star of David Pink Floyd poster.
Odd combination, no?
I will return it on Monday.
Religious symbology, mushrooms and over-rated music don't make for an aesthetically pleasing poster.
(Picture: drove past a beautiful cemetery with ancient pines--couldn't pass it up. Some people think it's macabre, but in a lot of places, cemeteries are the closet things to parks for miles and miles...This, of course is not the case here, where there are parks a'plenty)

Ya, there's no video. Don't adjust your screens. Just listen to the whole thing.

Home sweet bone

"Ronald Reagan was the best president in the history of America."
I need to find a different place to live. Living with Pat O'reily is frustrating.

Chilly like a willy up here

Went out today to interview a dude who makes $15,000 horse saddles out of carbon fiber and about lost it when we were talking about who I needed to speak to in the interview, and he says:
"You wanna do me? Well I want you to do my wife too... Okay then, you do me first then go in the back and do my wife, okay."
Four years of academic training couldn't help me there....
In other news, I got promoted today from an intern to a "full-time, primo reporter."
Interning for 3 days was about long enough I guess.
They better pay up though.
I rather enjoy the structured isolation that a cubicle offers. It's not as bad as people say it is.

Good stuff

"Who ever heard of a bi-cycle?"

I've named it Thor.
Its two wheels of fury will light this town up.
As soon as I figure out how to raise the seat.
In SLC, this bike is worth 3 times what I paid for it here.
A sound investment?
I think so.

The Drive

Ten hour drive:
Sore butt and back
Too much gas
Beautiful scenery, especial between Missoula and Coeur d'Alene...the highlight was when a huge bald eagle flew right next to my car for like, 20 seconds.
Amurica!
But seriously, it was cool.

I have a new best friend. His name is Chompers, and he is a two-week-old golden retriever that lives with me(pictures to come soon).

It was a bug genocide:


I stopped to pee and thought it was a nice mountain worth taking a picture of. :|

Getting Ready

I've begun deciding what I need to take.
...Clothes mostly
I went to the barber and requested a devil's haircut, and now I look like a 12-year-old boy.
It's going to be a 12 hour drive to a town where I don't know a single person.
Living with a woman I don't know for 3 months.
I think I'll play the "Cheers" theme song the entire way up.
My friends are going to places like France and Africa.
Man, will they be jealous!