Colt 45

Two posts in one day? (insert huffy elderly English Gentleman hupf-hupf-hupf here) Preposterous.

To paraphrase Lando Calrissian, I'm about to make a deal that will keep the Empire out of here for a long time. In honor of that fact I present you all with this treasure trove of goodness.

Target of opportunity

Yo. Not much to report.

Awaiting confirmation of a possible job that came up, one I've wanted for some time. I could use some good energy/prayers/whatever it is that you do in this direction for that.

Playing Halo 3 a lot this week after the midnight launch parties late Monday/early Tuesday. I have been playing online with some of you, and if anyone else out there is playing, let me know.

Questioning my value as a human being because of finding this video as funny as I do. Actually, I wish it were trimmed down to the specific moment of... well, you'll see. I'm not proud I laugh so hard at this, and it isn't funny on many levels like that Bush video from a few entries ago, and sure, I probably wouldn't laugh if it were MY kid. Okay, yes I would.


Little Girl vs Big Yellow Dodge Ball - Watch more free videos

I find it kinda funny, I find it kinda sad

This one is a fan-made remix of a beautiful tour of the museum diorama and the Gary Jules MAD WORLD cover used last year for the amazing GEARS OF WAR trailer.

If only

I would vote for someone who'd honestly say things like this in today's world. Will we ever again have a president like this? Someone who would, at the very least, challenge the corporate ownership of our government? I found these via digg and on this site. The situations are eerily familiar, in some cases, but he addresses them and deals with them rather than engaging in silent (or overt) collaboration. These hit home, to me. Take a look at a documentary called Evidence of Revision for some other interesting, bet-you-didn't-know pieces of U.S. history.

but this administration has failed to recognize, has failed to recognize that in these changing times, with a revolution of rising expectation sweeping the globe, the United States has lost its image as a new, strong, vital, revolutionary society.

University of Illinois Campus, October 24th, 1960

I believe in an America... where no public official either requests or accepts instructions on public policy from the Pope, the National Council of Churches or any other ecclesiastical source

Address to the Greater Houston Ministerial Association, September 12, 1960

If a free society cannot help the many who are poor, it cannot save the few who are rich

Inaugural Address of John F. Kennedy FRIDAY, JANUARY 20, 1961

In this serious hour in our Nation's history when we are confronted with grave crises in Berlin and Southeast Asia, when we are devoting our energies to economic recovery and stability, when we are asking reservists to leave their homes and their families for months on end and servicemen to risk their lives--and four were killed in the last two days in Viet Nam and asking union members to hold down their wage requests at a time when restraint and sacrifice are being asked of every citizen, the American people will find it hard, as I do, to accept a situation in which a tiny handful of steel executives whose pursuit of private power and profit exceeds their sense of public responsibility can show such utter contempt for the interests of 185 million Americans.

News Conference April 11, 1962

In short, at a time when they could be exploring how more efficiency and better prices could be obtained... a few gigantic corporations have decided to increase prices in ruthless disregard of their public responsibilities.

April 11, 1962

Harry Truman once said there are 14 or 15 million Americans who have the resources to have representatives in Washington to protect their interests, and that the interests of the great mass of other people, the hundred and fifty or sixty million, is the responsibility of the President of the United States. And I propose to fulfill it.

Atlantic City at the Convention of the United Auto Workers. May 8th, 1962

I realize that there are some businessmen who feel only they want to be left alone, that Government and politics are none of their affairs, that the balance sheet and profit rate of their own corporation are of more importance than the worldwide balance of power or the Nationwide rate of unemployment. But I hope it is not rushing the season to recall to you the passage from Dickens' "Christmas Carol" in which Ebenezer Scrooge is terrified by the ghosts of his former partner, Jacob Marley, and Scrooge, appalled by Marley's story of ceaseless wandering, cries out, "But you were always a good man of business, Jacob." And the ghost of Marley, his legs bound by a chain of ledger books and cash boxes, replied, "Business? Mankind was my business. The common welfare was my business. Charity, mercy, forbearance and benevolence were all my business. The dealings of my trade were but a drop of water in the comprehensive ocean of my business!"

Members and guests of the Florida State Chamber of Commerce, whether we work in the White House or the State House or in a house of industry or commerce, mankind is our business. And if we work in harmony, if we understand the problems of each other and the responsibilities that each of us bears, then surely the business of mankind will prosper. And your children and mine will move ahead in a securer world, and one in which there is opportunity for them all.



Florida Chamber of Commerce, November 18th, 1963

You could argue that he just talked a good game, and to that I say, well, at least he did that.

blue purple yellow red

Yesterday I drove all day up from Texas. I was a little bummed.

The sun was out in brilliant fall-meets-summer form here in Kansas today.

Family Guy's STAR WARS homage was on tonight, as was the SIMPSONS premiere. HEROES tomorrow. HALO 3 midnight launches in 10,000 (literally) places around the US tomorrow night.

Have been completely drawn into the first book of Philip Pullman's HIS DARK MATERIALS after having it recommended to me time and again for years.

Enjoying a cold Samuel Adams Octoberfest as I am getting ready to sleep.

Just the facts, ma'am.

The Humbling

Kneel before the power of my ridiculously difficult movie quiz. The quizzes I kept getting sent on Flixster were mostly very easy, i.e. "name two movies with the word 'STAR' in the title," so I made one of my own. If anyone gets a 100 without using outside help, I'll eat my hat. My delicious chocolate hat.

Click here for the Ridiculously Difficult Quiz.

Fool me once

It's time we recognized the real threat to our security.

Nostalgia is a seductive liar

Pointlessly nostalgic.

I find myself regretful that due to a hard drive crash in April of 05 and another in June of 06 I am left with very few photos before those dates. Far too few. Most photos that I do have are of shows and such, little that is real. I stopped carrying hard copies of photos a long time ago, and those I had are disappeared into the depths of things stored with my family. I have misplaced or lost a good many things over the years as a traveling whatchamcalit. Because of that, my nostalgia trips when I'm feeling this way become fairly limited. The song "Where is the Life That Late I Led" becomes for me "Where is the Life I Led Lately."

The photos below may've been posted here before, but maybe not. Just random recent nostalgia. Is that an oxymoron? "Recent nostalgia?"

Just some amazing things and places I have seen, photos I'm glad I took. I did notice at least one thing as I was going through photos going back to April of 05 - I'm a better photographer than I used to be.

Shanghai, the Temple of the Jade Buddha. I'm already to the point where the idea of having been to these places seems a bit far-fetched, as though it didn't happen to me.

Bangkok - Oriental setting. City don't know what the city is getting... other than some probable long-term illness. This picture from my hotel room window at near sunset has nothing on the horrific scent of the local open market I wandered through with Mallorie and Corinne.

Muscat. Feeling a little low, I decided to wander out into the night on my own. What I found there at night was perhaps the most beautiful city, or at least waterfront, I've seen. It's something out of a latter-day 1001 Nights.

My camel. Actually, this was taken from my camel, and I have to admit I photoshopped a German tourist family out of this photo, in the distance, just to the right of the camel's head. Who needs 'em?

There was a photo contest on board, and they told us we could use photoshop. They made no mention of how extensive that use of photoshop could be.

The Great Injury of '06, recovering while staying with Dusty, looking a little like Doctor Who, and going... somewhere. Me in Egypt, which is pretty much the topper for all my travels on the "I've been there" scale.

For a while during my second Voyager contract, the theme parties were amazing. There was one thrown maybe once every two weeks (or more), different departments tried to outdo one another. Then, in my third contract, our HR people changed, the parties became much rarer, and they returned to just being another loud night in the crew bar with some stuff on the walls and free alcohol. That's nice but it doesn't say much when it's all only $1.50 anyway. Here's a shot from the India Party (bleah) with Mal and Corinne from contract three and a shot from The Greatest Party In The History of Everything (that which Jamie and I threw) from contract 2.

Places, people, and things. Yup. Nouns. Nouns are important. Also adverbs, but not as much.

In the last three photos above, I'm with the primary people who helped me through my second and third ship contracts. I hope I returned the favor, because they're all good friends.

Today I found something I had forgotten that I wrote. The file is dated a little over a year ago, Sept 06. Late one night a little over one year ago I blathered into MS Word:

"Yawn.

My bed.

Lovely.

I remember first getting to this ship. As soon as I boarded I was excited to see the cabins and was surprised that they were somewhat bigger than I expected. That says nothing, though, because I expected a closet.

Tonight someone asked Jamie and I why we were still dressed - wearing suits. They were telling us to change into crew bar clothes -clothes that you don't care will reek of pungent, concentrated smoke in your cabin. We said we both felt we needed to stay upstairs tonight, we were feeling a bit suffocated by the crew area. Life below deck is the worst part of ship life, and we should've been more aware the people we were speaking to are not so lucky as us. We have the choice to live in both worlds here, they do not. They have to get special permission to go above decks, it is not part of their routine. They don't get to venture into port most every day at their leisure. They don't have the choice to dine where they choose. At lunch we are wondering if it's to be La Veranda, pool grill, ashore, maybe even crew mess; they get crew mess and... crew mess.

For them, everyday: white rice, salad, dressing, some horrid olives, some awful onion and bell pepper concoction that no one touches. There are the strange main courses, which seem to include all the cuts of meat from whatever they're butchering that aren't deemed six-star enough for the chi-chi guests. They dump it in a warming pan on the line, cover it in some random greasy sauce, it's all yours. To be honest, the Filipinos usually go bonkers over it, or at least they never openly complain. I can't get excited about fish heads and pork neck. I don't actually know if they have actually served something called "pork neck" but when we can't identify the meat they're serving, someone will ask "what's in the mess?" and the response will be "pork neck" in what I'll call to be polite a "shipboard accent." They have also served minnows, for breakfast. Yeah, maybe if I wanted to bait a hook and CATCH my breakfast. Mmm, minnows and pancakes, what a meal! To be fair, food is improving thanks to my second favorite hobbit on the ship, Irish. His name is Aiden Toal, a really nice guy who was recently put in charge of the crew messes. It's funny to me that people call him "Irish" because he's not the only Irish guy around, I guess he's just been chosen to represent them. He is my second favorite hobbit; Jamie earned the honor of first because of his tendency to walk around barefoot in inappropriate areas with his hairy hobbit feet.

There are so many things I should document while the ideas are fresh, things normal people don't know about. I should write like this more often. Slop chest! At slop chest, about once a week for two one-hour segments, they open up a little desk deep into the provisions area by the beverage storage. This is your chance to stock up on soda, water, alcohol, chocolate, or cigarettes VERY cheaply. I remember getting off the ship for the first time and being appalled that I had to pay more that $11 for a big bottle of Jack Daniel's. THAT cheap. When drinks in the crew bar are only $1.50 (or free when your friends are bartenders upstairs)... that leads to problems for many. In our position, though, you often get given a lot of alcohol, even if you're not a huge drinker. You can only "legally" have one bottle per person in your cabin, plus a case of beer. I have no beer, but we have probably seven bottles in here. We don't drink it that much, and we've only bought probably three of them. Passengers give them to us, other crew who are leaving give them to us, hell, the staff captain gave me a case of beer a few weeks ago. Jamie drank most of it. We wind up having so much around, hidden in the closets in case of inspection, because we don't drink it all as fast as we get it. We can't!

What else should I remember here? Boat drill. Twice a week on average, once with guests on embark day and once without for crew drill. It's always at the worst time, but we're all trained and "certified" in our specific duties. You kind of have to take it seriously or you'll be stuck in drills and trainings during days you'd rather be in port. The drill begins, pax are guided to their muster stations, and people like me help explain to them what goes on. Some of you who know me think this could be a dangerous (for the passengers) idea, but I actually, perhaps stupidly, take a little pride in doing my job well at drills. It's one of the only ways in which we really work with the rest of the non-entertainment crew and this is our only real opportunity to show them we aren't all lazy sacks of alcohol-soaked flesh. I'll say this vis a vis boat drill: There is a life jacket demonstration during the pax drill. A monkey could pick up a life jacket and put it on correctly on the first attempt. We have a lot of very, very wealthy people on this line, and I'll echo a sentiment I've heard before: I never want to get so rich that I lose the ability to do simple things like put on a life jacket. A few times I have seen guests so befuddled by this elementary piece of foam and fabric it's as though you've just handed a caveman a cellphone.

The rest of the crew. Yes, some people hate us. For no reason. It's a prejudice based on the fact that many entertainers before us have been some combination of lazy, stupid, drunk, promiscuous, and generally treated other crew with condescending snottery. Many don't, but... well, stereotypes exist because people behave stereotypically. This cast is much more liked than most,generally. In fact, I hear many people say it's the best they've worked with on a colleague level. We do have some good people. Everyone who works on board, bar none, has an emergency duty, and it's the best time to get to know some of the rest of the crew other than the cancer room... er, smokeshack... er, crew bar. The crew bar is proof that a half-assed corporate attempt at offering a "non-smoking incentive" means nothing when they also subsidize the cigarettes so they're almost cheaper than eating Snickers. Actually, if you weigh the cost of a carton of cigarettes at slop chest vs. a Snickers at slopchest, Snickers loses. It's cheaper to smoke than to enjoy a satisfying Snickers. I don't smoke, disgusting habit, no worries, aside from a very occasional celebratory Cuban cigar.

Recently I was asked by someone at home what the crew was like, and if we did anything for the fourth of July. This was my second 4th in a row in Russia. There aren't that many Americans on the crew. 16 to 20 right now, and that's a lot. More Canadians than Americans. . Mostly Filipino... then Indian... After that, in no particular order: French, Hungarian, Swedish, Romanian, Portuguese, whatever you want we've probably got it. I heard there was an Egyptian guy once but he made a lot of our more edgy guests uncomfortable so he hasn't returned. It's a real melting pot, but not nearly so much as you'd probably think. That's another whole train of thought unto itself. Alas, tiredness is finally beating restless in the battle in my brain. I am contemplating the world cruise, it's just been presented a possibility. I see advantages an disadvantages. I shouldn't have done this contract again. Russia was better a year ago, they're trying too hard to Westernize now. One year, so much difference."

...then one more year later, and so much more. I wish I'd kept that up. Tiredness is finally beating restless here, too.

You were on the Indianapolis?

Napoleon Bonaparte said "There are two levers for moving men - interest and fear."

This entry is about fear.

There are abstract fears that I have faced in my life, like making a living as an actor or travelling the ABC's wide world of sports. These are fears which you don't face all at once and are, after all, abstract, and so I never REALLY feared them or had a moment of confrontation that caused me to doubt my resolve. Also, they weren't my fears, I never feared such things, they're societal fears.

The fears I wish to discuss are real, they are the kind that make you want to scream like a Girl(TM), or hide behind a tree, or wet yourself in a most undignified fashion. That sentence seems to imply that there is a dignified way to wet yourself. I am not sure that is true, but I digress...

Yoda said "Fear leads to anger, anger leads to hate, hate leads to suffering."

In my recent experience, fear leads to panic, panic leads to helplessness, helplessness leads to... I don't know because it all sort of becomes blurry at that point.

I was very excited, with maybe a little increasing trepidation, about my first ocean dive. My training had been a few weeks in pools and "scuba park" lakes; the ocean is where the real action is. The life. The colors. The... sharks...

See, I knew I had a fear of sharks. Of course! Who doesn't have a healthy respect for this predator, this beautiful machine? Thing is, I had forgotten how deep this fear goes. More on that later. Suffice to say I went into this knowing and ready to confront and defeat my fear of this genus carcharhinus, and maybe even to appreciate the beauty of swimming near one. Not too near. And not a great white. Or a hammerhead. But... Well... anyway... I had forgotten an early childhood fear, here. Something deep and old within me. I'm going to lay out an ugly truth about myself here, a sad, silly, and irrational vulnerability, because... well, I'm going to conquer it. I am not afraid to admit that I was a great white pansy about a week ago right now.

Let's set up the story. As we begin, my Cumulative Fear Level (CFL) out of a possible 100: 10, thinking about sharks.

We got to the dive shop with our gear early on Thursday morning. Soon the American couple, both in their 50s (I think) who owned and ran the dive shop arrived. They unlocked the place and we all sat around talking as we grabbed what additional equipment we needed for the dive. They were great, their manner put us at ease, and I was sure we'd be in good hands. Fear -6, CFL now 4.

We didn't know it, but we were also waiting for the crew to arrive. The owners were neither one going out with us. We'd reserved this and had only spoken with him. Fear +4.

The crew arrived. Three young(ish) local Cancun guys, nice enough, and we boarded the small boat. It was not as big as I'd expected. It was bigger than your basic speedboat you'd use for say water skiing on a lake, but smaller than any dive boats I could find online to provide examples here. Anyway, we got our gear on the boat with our divemaster, the videographer (we didn't buy the video) and the "captain" to head out. We began our trip out of the inlet, and we sat down to make our dive plan. All was according to plan. We would head to Punta Negra for a 60ft dive for 47 minutes or more, then would plan from there. CFL hanging steady at 8.

I have made my living at sea for over two years now, and have ridden on tender boats and ferries, all kinds of craft... however, nothing prepared me for the kind of rough seas in this small open boat. I had not considered that THIS would freak me out. . We had been playing in the storm surge on the beach the day before, it was amazingly rough - fun for a bit but exhausting to be in for long. People we talked to said it's always a bit rough during hurricane season. Since Hurricane Felix had just been nearby, it was much more than usual. I had prepared myself for being underwater, I did not anticipate being airborne in the boat. I white-knuckled the bench, even after we'd stopped, and had trouble putting on my gear. We moved to a shallower area, deciding to begin with a 35ft dive, and while we began to feel a little seasick... all I wanted to do was get the hell out of the boat and under these horrible swells. If I'd had my gear on before we got out there, I may've bailed out early!

Fear (gradually) +60, CFL 68.

I feel a little rushed getting into the water. My heartrate is still up, I do my backroll entry once I'm geared up. I'm out of the boat. Fear -10. Being a newbie and already shaken up, I have failed to properly orient myself before entering the water as I was taught. I come up and suddenly feel very alone in the sea for a moment. Fear +15.

CFL 83. I look around an see Vanessa and our divemaster at the nearby buoy where the boat is tied. Things seem a lot farther away when you are in the middle of the ocean. I swim to them, all the while trying to slow my heartrate and ease my breathing. I am a little panicked at this point, but not bad. Fear level -10. Having been trained in lakes, I was not prepared for the severity of the waves and the current. The sickness I felt on the boat is now rearing its ugly head with everyone - even the divemaster says so. He insists we get under very quickly. Trying to hold it together for everyone's sake, it all seems very frantic and I can't get my BCD deflate in my hand right and I'm trying... not... to...

quiet. water surrounds me. the tumult is gone, replaced by quiet. Fear -15. We reach a certain depth, equalizing all the way and doing thingsas they should be done.

In my head, I snap to my senses as my CFL goes below 60. My mind is racing faster than my heart now. I am thankful I have such a patient dive buddy and I feel so helpless but I really want to do this....

The divemaster is near the bottom now, and we are adjusting our buoyancy to meet him. We begin to realize the current is VERY strong. Hurricane season, again. He's trying to get us to come to him, and pretty well can't. For a good two minutes we kick our fins and do what we can and cannot do anything but stay in place. Comical, if it weren't real. Fear +8. finally we manage to get to him, and as we are doing so I see my first stingray magically appear, shaking the sand from himself and fluttering away like the unearthly creature he is. Amazing. Fear -10. CFL 56.

I was told after the fact that in many ways this was a worst case scenario for a first ocean dive. It wasn't too bright. It's as dark at 30 as I'm told it usually is at 60 due to weather and current stirring things up.

We swim across/against the current for a bit. I get a slight handle on my buoyancy but begin to realize I need more weight. Still, I'm gliding along between Vanessa and the divemaster as we approach a reef... and whammy, first shark. I see it before the DM... the videographer (whom I see for the first time underwater at this point - where did he come from?) and and DM snap their straps against their tanks to get Vanessa's attention. She is clearing her mask and drifting toward the shark. She doesn't see it, it doesn't seem to see her. We don't want either one of them to surprise each other. No fear change - this is actually awesome. It's not huge, 4 maybe 5 feet long. I remember thinking it's the perfect first shark to see. Vanessa sees it. It's fine. It's docile and swims along on its way. I kinda even follow it, at a distance, for a bit. My buoyancy is still an issue, I keep having to correct with my BCD. Salt water buoyancy is very different that fresh water, and this is my first experience in salt water.

"Awesome," I'm thinking. I just saw a shark, and I'm okay. Fear -10, but still a healthy 46. This is Vanessa's picture of our first sharky friend. Cue music.
So we get to the end of the reef and the DM motions for us to swim ahead down the side of the rock ledge on the other side of the reef. The current is rushing down this side of the rocks much faster, and as we come around the end I am having much more trouble with my buoyancy in addition to having to fight to stay with the group - or even in place. Over the next 8 minutes or so, CFL +20.

We get to what I'll call a little clearing where the rocks fall back and the sea floor is a little lower. There's a big ledge under the rocks extending for a long way. I'm having some trouble with buoyancy and it's concerning me, Vanessa is working to help. The DM comes over and gives me more weight. We're okay for a bit, looking at coral and such. Then I notice to DM and the video guy are suddenly fascinated by something. (music louder)

What on earth could it be, says me...

We get near them and the DM turns back and makes the underwater hand signals for "look over there" and then for "shark"(which he'd used earlier)... and then the universal hand signal for "gigantic."

Vanessa swims a little closer, I hang back. I have already seen a nice sized shark, he was a friend and I'm sure we'll correspond later. I did not see the need to make another such friend on this trip. Somehow, though, I push myself forward. I swim up further and...

Bloody hell! That thing is huge! All kinds of alarms go off in my head... Fear +14 (CFL 80)

I backpedal a bit. I keep my eyes on the shark. It is gigantic. 10-12 feet long. It appears to have found a nice spot under the rock ledge to take a nice sharknap. More power to her, says I. Let her sleep, I try to communicate to Vanessa by tugging on her fin. Vanessa is not entirely unphased by the shark, she is trying to hold herself away by using a couple of fingers on a bare area of rockledge. The current is trying to push her closer. I am ruining this strategy with my tugging. She soon turns back and moves back toward me. The DM and videographer are flanking the shark at a slight distance, staying just to the right and left of the rock ledge opening.

Then, one of them goads the other into POKING THE SLEEPING SHARK. This is not what you are supposed to do.

Yes, let's poke the sleeping predator so that when it wake up it's surprised, frightened, and feels cornered. Good idea.

The shark wakes up and shoots out toward the videographer, slipping just past him as it turns outward, in fact slapping him in the face with its tail. He got that on video.

Between the shark and its path to safety? Me and Vanessa. It darts directly at us. It is coming straight for us like every bad dream I have ever had. Then, suddenly, it veers slightly left and heads out and away.

Fear to 100.

Check, please!

At this point, the dive is over for me. I'm done. In retrospect, it's one of the most awesome things that has ever happened to me, but at the time I admit I was as afraid as I have ever been. If it hadn't been for the boat ride, the rough seas, the hurricane season current... the shark alone wouldn't have done it. Maybe. I probably would've been okay to continue, but my blood was already up and this docile shark was just the straw that broke the camel's back.

We consult for a minute with the DM, and I can't decide what to do... finally I call the dive. We ascend and get out of the water. I get on the boat and feel more than a little sheepish about having been so cowardly. I still do, but having been through this extraordinary first dive, I've already dealt with a number of issues some people never do. Dealt with them BADLY, but... shut up.

Later that day, I call ed my parents to check in. I am reminded how early this fear of sharks goes, and how deep it was. After I saw JAWS on the ABC movie of the week at age 6 or so, living on a farm in Kansas, I had to be coerced into any body of water which I could not see entirely into. I'm sure there's a term for this, but that point when looking down you cannot see into the water, the surface becomes reflective - that bothered me, because I didn't know what was in it. Sharks could be anywhere in my 6 year old mind, even in the 4 foot deep, chlorinated, above ground swimming pool in our backyard in Kansas. This fear lessened with age, but mainly because living in Kansas a fear of sharks can be like a fear of ghosts - the concept can be frightening, but the idea of ever being actually confronted with one is highly unlikely. I took up body-boarding in California and loved it, and thought I had this fear nailed shut. Mom had been surprised I was scuba diving to begin with, she says but... hey, I've spent a good deal of time on a ship with Jean Michel Costeau and his cohorts. Learned to love the ocean, learned a lot about sharks, and known many who've swum near much more aggressive species than those I encountered. My dive instructor had commended me for being a great student. My dive buddy is a certified rescue diver. I was ready.

Or so I thought.

The day was not ruined. One of the tenets of diving is that any diver can call off any dive at any time for any reason, no questions asked. I talked through my fears honestly and thoroughly to try to get a handle on exactly what happened. This will not be the end of Aquaman.

Again, thank goodness for the patience of my dive buddy.

Who is playing Hamlet?

Excitement for me, headed for probable future disappointment and mild regret.

I would most certainly book a trip to England to see the upcoming, just announced RSC production of HAMLET which will star David Tennant in the title role and Patrick Stewart as Claudius. There has not been a casting so interesting to me since... um... well, as far as I can remember.

Sad thing is, I will probably not get to see it. If there is any possibility to see it, if I could get there, I would plan a trip around it. If I don't, disappointment and mild regret.

Today is September 11, which is such an odd date to us now. It has been hammered into our heads so deeply that just seeing the date on incoming email sends a bit of a distant chill up your spine. It's hard to believe it happened so long ago.

Sand Tigers, Drag Queens, and Corn Lobbys

Tuesday morning at 8:55am we took off from DFW airport toward our Cancun getaway.

I'll begin by saying that I did not have high expectations for this little excursion, except some relaxation and some diving. I didn't expect much from our hotel. It was one of those all inclusive deals with airfare, an off-season special to fill rooms and keep the tourist economy going. I was expecting something on par with a bulk vacation house like Sandals Jamaica or such from what we paid, and we got much better. It was am amazing little vacation.

The Grand Oasis Cancun, where treehugging is apparently taken too literally.
The main lobby. Every room is located off of this massive, vine-covered space. Flanking the Grand Oasis on either side are the two buildings of the slightly more basic Oasis Cancun (not "Grand"), but as soon as you walk into the Grand you see the difference without ever entering the other phases. Every room of the Grand is off of this huge and humid greenhouse atrium space, every room also has a great balcony with an amazing view of the ocean.
This was the view from our balcony at sunset Tuesday. That's a distant arm of a remnant of Hurricane Felix in the distance, probably Tropical Depression Felix by the time this was taken. Perhaps even Tropical Mild Annoyance Felix.
When we arrived early Tuesday afternoon, we relaxed for a short while in the room. We ordered some of the included room service which was comically incorrect but managable. After a quick change, we grabbed our books and towels and headed down to the beach. Vanessa has finally given in to the Harry Potter magic, and I'm beginning the His Dark Materials books by Phillip Pullman that have come so highly recommended for so long. We didn't make much progress on these books during our trip. The pools were huge, winding around everywhere between the many buildings, but why swim in a pool when the ocean is calling? The waters were ROUGH from the hurricane storm surge, which is my favorite time to play in the ocean. By the time I flopped back onto my beach chair every time we went to the water this trip, I felt I had actually been physically beaten by the sea. Tuesday night we ate at the Brazilian churrascaria. After several experiences with these in different countries around the world (including, of course, Brazil) I can now officially state that this is my favorite type of restaurant. Since it's usually a fairly pricey event we decided to do this the first night... that way, if we liked it, we could do it again... and again... It was GREAT. We already had reservations for another restaurant the following night, though. After dinner, we found one of the "VIP" lounges that only allowed those with our exclusive black wristbands to enter. Keeps out the riff-raff, don't you know. Can't have the simple Oasis clients polluting the atmosphere for our Grand guests. We shared some drinks and a good cigar... okay, I know, but they're CUBANS. Seriously, it's not smoking, it's like drinking a fine scotch. Which I also did. Wednesday involved traveling downtown to indulge in another favorite sport: haggling. In the local flea markets for gifts for folks at home, we found some nice stuff and added only a few pounds to our luggage. It's amazing how easy it is to haggle there, as well, compared to some places. Then some time at the beach, followed by drinks at one of the swim up bars and more reading in the sun. 6:30pm, reservations at the Mexican gourmet restaurant. It was not actually very Mexican at all. Strangely, of the thirteen restaurants at our disposal, there was little to no "Mexican food" to be found. Still, a good fillet and a nice bottle of wine (too nice to be included, but worth it) and another Cuban procured in town that day (shush, I'm not hurting my voice, I promise) before the weirdest show ever....

I don't even know how to begin to try to describe the spectacle we witnessed in the "Grand Oasis Salon" show lounge / theatre. It was a "Circus" show - Cirque rip-off - called DREAMS; it opened and closed with a seven-foot high African-American... er, Mexican... African-Mexican...most likely African-American-Mexican, I think... anyway, he was a big tall drag queen who lip-synched to Madonna (in the opener) and Cher (in the closer) whilst flanked by some of the worst female dancers I have ever seen. Then we had most thrill-free displays of random acrobatics you've ever seen, a cute but 15 minutes too long silent movie audience participation bit, a random hiphop number done by some fairly talented guys, and a Michael Jackson number done by three guys to a mix of DANGEROUS and SMOOTH CRIMINAL, it was good, but it was set between two horribly pointless aerial / acro numbers. Two of them were in blacklight and the idiots in the reasonably full audience kept ruining what little effect or illusion there was by taking flash photos during the blacklight numbers. I felt for the performers, but the audience ignorance was not the worst problem in the room. I called it CIRQUE DE BORE'. You can sort of see the drag queen in the back of this group of dancers from the closer. Then Thursday, and diving, which ended with me being more frightened than I have ever been in my whole life. Giant shark, hurricane season currents, etc... there will be a separate entry for this humbling story. Still, awesome.
The rest of that day was... the beach, the pool, body surfing, hammocks, etc. All in all , it was an unexpectedly great time which I would highly recomend. I was not as excited as I might've been going into this, as I mentioned before. What with all the travelling and exotic spots we've both been to, this seemed like it might be a simple, typically touristy little trip. We were not interested in the Senor Frogs / Carlos n Charlies scene, and I wondered if there was more to this place. I was afraid this would be a little too... well... Vanessa assured me the area had a lot more to offer than guided 7 hour bar crawl tours during which someone in your group would vomit in your cap (a story I overheard while down there). She was right. Honestly, even had we never left the resort property, we still would've had an amazing time. When I was a little kid, my older sister had a sombrero. I always wanted one like it, and I would often take it from her room, run off and play with it. Now I have my own, and while you might say it reinforces stereotypes and there are far more sophisticated mementos I could have purchased, I would counter by saying you are jealous because I have a THREE AMIGOS hat. We had to finish our nice bottle of wine before we left, so we sat in a lounge waiting for our airport pickup finishing it off,...
There is much more to tell. I will come back and edit this, add some stuff, and maybe talk about the surprising job prospect that might be on the horizon. I just wanted to get these pictures up. There will be some underwater photos on that entry, but not many. In the meantime, while thinking of Mexico, discuss the merits of authentic sugar in your soda versus high-fructose corn syrup. Damn you, corn lobby!