Let Your Freak Flag Fly

This blog has moved!

2007-02-08T17:18:00.001-08:00

You can find it here: blog.elutes.com.

Go, now. Run along, go visit it at its new home. Shoo.

Is this thing still on?

2007-01-17T11:52:00.000-08:00

The answer is YES. I've just been neglecting the hell out of this blog. Mind you, it's not because there isn't any drama or shit to blog about (there is lots of that to go around!), but lack of patience and willpower to do anything.

I promise I'll get back on the "blog everything" bandwagon soon. I just need to get some motivation first. Perhaps once this snow and ice shit is done and over with I'll actually care about something other than staying warm and making it from point A to point B without some crazed-ass psycho trying to drive a Toyota Corolla through the snow and ice like it's a 4X4 (I could already see a potential blog entry! HA!) It's nice to know I still crack myself up.

I'll write more later, peeps. I promise.

Back home!

2006-12-03T18:12:00.000-08:00

We strolled back into town today around 4 PM from our Walla Walla tour. I had a fantastic time with the group and I hope that everybody else had a great time, too.

Here's a brief recap of our weekend:

Friday:
Dinner at Grapefields, post-funct at The Marcus Whitman.

Saturday:
Cellar tour included visits to Tamarack, Dunham, Syzygy, BradenView, K Vintners, Nicholas Cole, Yellow Hawk, Rulo, and Beresan. Dinner at Whitehouse-Crawford was delicious as always.

Sunday:
Some of us experienced a four-year vertical of Seven Hills Cabernet Sauvignon before hitting L'Ecole Nº 41 on the way back home.

We booked our rooms for next year's Holiday Barrel Tasting Weekend. I was amazed when we check into our hotel on Friday that they were already booked for 2007's event! Fortunately we were able to make a reservation today for another hotel in the area.

To everyone that was in attendance: THANK YOU so much for a great time and for coming. Walla Walla is a great place to share with other people and the more in the group, the bigger the dynamic and more fun had by all!

Cheers!

Walla Walla weekend -- we're here!

2006-12-01T23:24:00.000-08:00

I'm really inebriated at the moment so I'll refrain from blogging too much. You know me: with a little liquid encouragement I'll pretty much say anything. We're over in Walla Walla for the Holiday Barrel Tasting Weekend. There is a big group of us and we just came back from dinner at Grapefields Wine Bar. With us (Anna, Marni, and myself) is Amanda, Annemarie, Cindy, Debra, and Kyle. We're going to take this town by storm this weekend. What would Samuel Jackson say about us this weekend? "There are motherfucking lushes in this motherfucking town." We're going to have such a blast. Watch out, people. You won't know what hit you.

Peace out, bitches.

Happy Halloween, Bitches!

2006-10-31T17:07:00.000-08:00

Sorry I haven't posted for a few weeks. I've been busy with a bunch of shit. I'll be updating this thing shortly. Stay tuned!

Studio 60

2006-10-09T13:21:00.000-07:00

I'm totally falling in love with Studio 60 on the Sunset Strip! I scheduled a season pass on my TiVo before this show premiered and forgot about it. With all of the events taken place within the last three weeks (birthday, vacation, etc.) I had completely forgotten about it. Well, I had some downtime last night and watched the first three epsiodes (commercial-free and back-to-back, just the way watching TV should be!) and I'm in love! It has a great cast and the writing has been great. Aaron Sorkin is a genius. I cannot wait to see tonight's episode. If you've fallen behind or haven't yet watched, check out NBC.com to watch the latest episode and/or to get caught up on what's happened so far.

Shake, rattle, and roll

2006-10-07T19:59:00.000-07:00

Did you feel it? At first I thought it was the careless idiots upstairs stomping their way around their apartment, but eventually realized it was an earthquake when I could hear the building.

It looks like I wasn't the only one that felt it: intensity by zip code and news story.

Delirium update

2006-10-06T22:12:00.000-07:00

I took my friend Liz to the show and we had a great time. Unfortunately the show wasn't as good as I was hoping. I really wouldn't consider it a TRUE Cirque show. On a technical difficulty scale, they ranked OFF THE CHARTS. Some of the projection stuff, lasers, lights, music, props was truly remarkable. On the creative side, I would give it a "C minus." It didn't really have a congruent story other than, "this is this guy's dream." And the venue was weird, too. I'm just too spoiled by travelling Cirque shows, let alone the resident ones with their plush seats, etc. I think if the tickets wouldn't have been so expensive that I would have different feelings. Let me put it this way: if someone went last night and saw Delirium and they have NEVER before seen a Cirque du Soleil show, I don't know that they would make an effort to go and see another.

Here's an article from the Seattle Times about Delirium. I think they really sum it up best. Check it out here.

Thank you!

2006-10-03T11:36:00.000-07:00

To whoever sent the Brenthaven, thank you. There wasn't a from name and/or message in the box. I realize this came from my Amazon wish list, but I think it was shipped from one of their vendors and not directly from them, hence the lack of buyer information.

Also, I want to say THANK YOU to one of my best friends from high school. Lakey, thanks for sending the awesome wine/cheese/snack basket that was waiting for me when I came back from Mexico. I was amazed at all the goodies that were packed into the huge basket and I'm still enjoying them! Thanks, again! I know it's my turn to visit you next. Hopefully I'll make it down to Utah before the year is over.

Thanks, again, both of you!

UPDATE: Kelly and Johan sent the Brenthaven. Thanks!

What is it with people?

2006-10-01T18:01:00.001-07:00

I especially knew I was home when plans that I had previously made with three different people fell through. Oh, well. I guess it was my gain in the end: I had more time to myself. Any takers for the Cirque du Soleil Delirium performance this Wednesday at the Key Arena? I'm offering up both tickets. I'd rather not reschedule with anybody else to just have to scramble again at the last minute.

Back to the grind

2006-09-30T20:36:00.000-07:00

I'm back from vacation and find myself having to adjust to getting back into the swing of things. Having just had the last ten days off from work has been nice. Spending seven of them in 95+ degree weather was just the icing on the cake.

Cabo was amazing. Since it was considered "off-season" while we were down there, we practically had our resort to ourselves (seriously, I think the resort was only ten to fifteen percent occupied!) All the trepidation that I had before our trip was definitely unwarranted: I had a great time with my mom. Even though we didn't get to talk about all the stuff that I wanted to, it was nice to just spend some nice, quality time with her while we were both enjoying ourselves.

We met a couple on the plane that was spending their 30th anniversary in the sun. It was really coincidental. They were sitting in front of us on the plane ride down, and during some friendly conversation with them, I discovered that this was their first time down in Cabo. Upon further investigation, we realized that they booked through the same company and were staying at our same resort, had the same airport transfer company, etc. Mark and Susan were Cabo "virgins" so I made sure that they knew about the necessities (red light/green light with customs, time-share presentation representatives trying to fool those people waiting for their transportation at the airport, tipping, bargaining, etc.) They made for some great vacation buddies. We had dinner with them a few times and went on a land/sea tour expedition with them. They were such a great couple; I could definitely see spending more time with them in the future.

It was nice to come home to some 80 degree weather, which slowly dropped over the next three days, transitioning me back into the daily grind. While there is still plenty for me to do at home, I'm saving the un-packing, cleaning, and organization until later in the week. It sounds like shit hit the fan at the office while I'm gone, so I may as well enjoy the time to myself now, while I can. I'm going to try and stay in vacation mode as long as possible.

Twenty-eight isn't going to be so bad

2006-09-19T20:45:00.000-07:00

Tonight marked the start of my twenty-eighth birthday celebrations. Generally I celebrate my birthday with smaller groups of friends over the course of a week or so. This year it is going to be a little different as I leave for my Mexico vacation the day after my birthday; the festivities will likely work their way into the beginning of October when I get back from Cabo.

I was originally a little trepid about how I would feel about turning twenty-eight. I've come to realize that twenty-eight isn't going to be as bad as I thought. Most of my clients tell me that the thirties will be the best time of my life--I hope they're right.

The girls decided on The Chapel Bar on Capitol Hill. They have a very good happy hour and their food is really delicious. While they were out of quite a bit of stuff from their menu, we managed to find some tasty tidbits to help balance out our alcohol consumption. Word to the wise: the Black Haus cocktail is practically all alcohol; with the exception of the kiwi in your glass, the blackberry infused vodka is pretty much all you're going to enjoy.

It was nice to stop and actually enjoy myself for a few hours without having to think about what I needed to get done before Friday morning and/or what else I need to do at the office, what I still need to get at the store, etc.

T minus 60 hours and counting...

Feeling infinite

2006-09-18T21:22:00.000-07:00

When you were growing up did you ever feel infinite? I'm talking about those moments that you realized that there was so much more to life than you could ever imagine. Times when you wish you could make time stand still and savor the moment forever; times when you tell yourself you'll never forget for the rest of your life. I can easily recall several moments. I was thinking today about the last time I'd had one of those moments and realized that I haven't felt like that in such a long time.

I remember the very first time I was honored to experience this feeling. I was out with a friend on Happy Hollow Road in Stanwood (the farthest point away from the city you can go to get away from light pollution) to look at constellations, comets, and shooting stars. It was an August night--during a week when there were hundreds of shooting stars filling the night's sky. At first I wasn't sure about what we were doing: we were in the back of a friend's car looking out the back window, parked in some farmer's land, just feet from a herd of cows and other farm animals. In between shooting stars and star-gazing, we were striking up plenty of conversation. We talked about everything: life's greatest mysteries, past experiences, future goals, and anything else you can possibly imagine. As we sat there staring at the stars shimmering in the sky, I had a moment of clarity: it seemed as though notions of place and space had converged and everything had been perfectly aligned in the world to put the two of us right where we were. Was it a coincidence? It seemed more like fate. Regardless of what it was, that was the first time in my life that I had ever felt infinite. Here I was sitting next to one of my friends that was always just that: just friends; I had never had any feelings for her, well, that is until I had shared such a memorable experience with her. I remember laying there hoping that that moment would never end. We stayed there chatting until the sun came up.

That was my very first moment of feeling infinite.

ARRGH! _NOT_ Boogie!

2006-09-12T21:34:00.000-07:00

You all know how much I *LOVE* Janelle from Big Brother and that I was rooting for her to win it from day one. Much to my shagrin she placed third--AGAIN for the second year in a row. I thought that the game turned good when Janelle decided to vote out Will and keep Erika. If only Erika would have kept her word and tried harder in the final competition and take Janelle to the final two. The last person that I wanted to win is Mike Boogie. You can only imagine my disappointment when Mike Boogie won the $500k. I was elated, though, when Janelle won the $25k America's Choice, which means she ended up taking home more money than Erika (who won second place--$50k).

Mike Boogie didn't really deserve to win--he pretty much rode the coattails of Will until he was kicked out of the house. What really pissed me off was that he kept saying, "I just want it for the street cred, etc." He's a fourteen year-old wannabe black kid trapped in a thirty-six year-old white man's body. He says that he is going to use the money as seed money in opening up some restaurants in Atlanta. Other rumors are that he's going to use the money to buy a convertible Bentley. What a friggin' loser!

What I *DO LOVE* however is the interview given the morning following the announcement of the winner given on The View. As Mike Boogie would say, "I have to give props where props are due..." to Rosie. She pretty much kicked his ass. Take a look:

Here's to hoping that we'll see my Janey Doll on some future reality tv show(s). GO JANELLE!

September 11th

2006-09-11T22:35:00.000-07:00

I just finished watching the second part of The Path to 9/11 and now have some conflicting feelings. I'm really disappointed that they took an event such as 9/11 and fictionalized parts of it. I'm not sure how much of the movie was fiction versus fact, however, I am completely shocked that there wasn't more fallout from the various intelligence agencies that dropped the ball and let people slip through the cracks. The only thing that I can wish for is that people become informed with the facts of what really happened and made their own, informed decisions on what happened, and use that knowledge at the polls.

The events of September 11, 2001 were so devastating to everyone. While I didn't personally know anybody who perished in any of the events of that horrible day, I can try to sympathize with those people who lost a love one; I can only imagine how each anniversary brings home their loss, especially when all the news channels repeatedly show the clips of the planes crashing into the towers. What really broke my heart today was an article I read on MSNBC.com that said that the pregnant widows from 9/11 are now having to answer to their children (who are would be between 4 and 5 years old) about what happened to their dad and why he isn't around. That is too sad for words.

What are we doing about preventing such attacks from happening in the future? I have some doubts about what our administration is doing to tackle this topic. This is a real hot topic these days and everyone seems to have passionate views about it. I'm hopeful that people will remain steadfast in their views, filter through the campaign advertisements as the elections near, and vote with that same passion.

Great poem

2006-09-03T23:27:00.000-07:00

I was watching TV this afternoon and while flipping through the channels, I came across In Her Shoes just as Cameron Diaz's character was reciting an EE Cummings poem, and it just reminded me how much I really love this poem.

i carry your heart with me (i carry it in
my heart) i am never without it (anywhere
i go you go, my dear; and whatever is done
by only me is your doing, my darling)
                                    i fear
no fate (for you are my fate, my sweet) i want
no world (for beautiful you are my world, my true)
and it's you are whatever a moon has always meant
and whatever a sun will always sing is you

here is the deepest secret nobody knows
(here is the root of the root and the bud of the bud
and the sky of the sky of a tree called life; which grows
higher than soul can hope or mind can hide)
and this is the wonder that's keeping the stars apart

i carry your heart (i carry it in my heart)

Pondering life

2006-08-26T21:00:00.000-07:00

I find that there are some times in life when I feel like I'm in auto-pilot just strolling along and enjoying whatever is thrown my way. Then there are times when I find myself psycho-analyzing my life and wondering if I'm really happy where I am and what I'm doing. Should I chalk this up to turning twenty-eight in a few weeks? Or could it be that there is something that is fundamentally lacking and/or wrong? I keep telling myself that I'm happy where I am in life and that I have a lot going for me. I'm starting to doubt myself.

I am a very independent person and always have been. I think that it comes down to power and control and how I always feel the need to have it. This is something that I've been working on for a long time and continue to do so today. It can be challenging at times with my friends who can be indecisive and can't make up their minds (I always find myself stepping up and taking charge in these situations), though if I'm given the opportunity to allow someone else to make the decisions and have the control, I'm all for handing over my keys and riding shotgun.

Is it time that I finally try to settle down? I've always told myself that I'm too motivated and selfish to share my life with a special someone. I've predicted that I'll be thirty-nine, single, and enjoying life, and then I'll be forty, single, and miserable. While I'm not yet thirty-nine or forty, I'm slowly starting to get up there, and don't want to be the jaded, bitter single person that I see in others. I need to learn how I can slowly let down the barrier that I've built around myself (both physically, mentally, and emotionally). I have a feeling that once the barrier is down (or at least begins to fall), then everything else will fall into place. I need to quit hiding behind my weight and start taking care of myself.

There are a few other things that I need to discover about myself that, when combined with me letting down my guard, will (hopefully) allow me to live the life that I've been yearning. While I don't know what exactly it is I want, I'm hoping that I'll know it when I see it (or perhaps feel it?)

Open mouth, insert finger

2006-08-24T23:01:00.000-07:00

I just wanted to send a _SHOUT OUT_ to The Lizard for seductively sucking the chocolate off of my finger tonight during dinner at The Melting Pot. It was pretty hot and sexy.

Hopefully it was as good for you as it was for me. If anything, we sure did put on a show for those people around us. LOL!

Closeted BB freak!

2006-08-24T11:04:00.000-07:00

Hi! My name is James and I am a BB7 addict.

OK, now that I got that off my chest, I feel SO much better. Should I feel ashamed for being such a closeted fan? I don't think so, but a few of my friends who do know this about me think that I'm crazy and out of my mind.

I don't know what has overcome me these last six weeks. I cannot stop reading about what is going on in the Big Brother house. I have become addicted. Don't get me wrong: I'm not as addicted as I was last year (I was watching the live Internet feeds during every waking moment) when it consumed my entire summer. This year, with the help of MortysTV, Joker's Updates, and YouTube I'm able to read about about all the goings on and watch the juicy clips.

What do I think about all the goings on currently? Well, I'm glad you asked! I've been rooting for my girl Janey from day one (I absolutely LOVED her last year and love her even more this year, though she has definitely toned her comments down). I am absolutely pissed at James for being so back-stabbing and conniving as he has been (and so damn two-faced!) towards everybody in the SOV alliance. I'm really hoping that he is going home today.

As for Janey's showmance with Will, I hope that she isn't really falling for him and is instead playing him to get ahead in the game. Will is absolutely brilliant with his game play. I think he has every move calculated (well, perhaps thought that he had every move calculated until Janelle came along). I hope that Janey's feelings for him are strictly to help her along in the game. She is too good of a player to go down in Big Brother history as trusting Will and her love for him only to get stabbed in the back. Nobody puts baby in the corner! HA! No, seriously, Janelle was *SO* lucky to win the POV, otherwise I think she would have going home this week.

I'm excited for September 12th to come around so we can learn who takes home the $500k and the title of Big Brother All-Stars winner, and not to mention that I'll also get my life back!

Technical difficulties

2006-08-23T11:46:00.000-07:00

WTF is up with blogger today? And WTF did my shit go!?

T minus 32 days and counting

2006-08-21T15:06:00.000-07:00

Mexico, here I come! Well, almost. I am counting down the days until I am greeted with warm temperatures and drinks by the pool. Who knows? This year I may actually _read_ a few books instead of just listening to them on my iPod. Oh, who am I kidding? I'm too lazy to turn the pages. Besides, I need to make sure my eye-lids get some sun, too, right? LOL!

With the exception of going into town one day for some shopping and ATV riding, I'm hoping the rest of the trip will be one of rest, relaxation, and a constant margarita buzz. I'll have a bartender's margarita; hold the salt, please! I can already taste them now.

Should my mom get to be too much to handle, I'll probably come back and need another vacation to recoup from the one from which I just returned. Oy!

New colors and layout

2006-08-20T16:31:00.000-07:00

Hey, bitches! I've been playing with the new Blogger and some of their new page layouts and came upon this one. I know it's not as bold of a statement as my old black background, but I think this livens things up. Don't you think?

Comments welcome.

Okay, okay, it wasn't _THAT_ bad

2006-08-19T23:46:00.000-07:00

I have to admit that the wine party tonight wasn't as bad as I was expecting. It was miraculous how well Rachel and Brandon behaved. I was *SO* bitter leading up to the party that I was in a really sour mood when I arrived. It took a little while for me to open up, and after an hour or so I started to feel bad for being such a dick. I was sitting across the table from Rachel and kept looking at her and thinking to myself:

"Why can't you just let her know that you have a problem with her? Why are you plotting things behind her back? You're such a fucking pussy. You need to either be straight up honest with her or drop your baggage."

There were only a few instances which her and Brandon had their little tiffs, so I was happy. I actually found myself contemplating on whether or not I should have the Col Solare vertical down there anyway and perhaps include both of them (even though Brandon doesn't drink wine, Kelly and Johan had set him up with three different Alaskan Ambers for him to drink while the rest of us enjoyed our pinot noirs--which I thought was a GREAT idea).

I'll let you know what I decide; I'm still on the fence.

Porcella Urban Market

2006-08-17T16:35:00.000-07:00

Last night I joined several friends for a wine dinner at a new place in Bellevue. Porcella Urban Market is a restaurant/market that focuses on European cuisines and wines. There were only ten people in attendance for the dinner. Some unfortunate couple got stuck at the big table with us. I think they had a good time, though, as we did everything we could to involve them in our group. The food was fresh and delicious. We had an amuse buche that included duck confit on a baguette; melon wrapped prosciutto (YUM!); roasted pork tenderloin with some fresh figs; olive oil infused salmon with a reduced parsley sauce and fig; and for dessert we had a bread and butter pudding with fresh raspberries. Very delicious.

Afterwards we had a post-funct in Clyde Hill. It was really nice to share great food, wine, and conversation with some great people. Hopefully this is something that we may do again in the near future.

If you're in Bellevue (near old Main Street) and are hungry or are looking for something different to make at home, stop by Porcella Urban Market. Don't be surprised if Kelly (the very friendly and skilled owner) is the one that is helping you out!

Cheers!

Pity party of one

2006-08-15T23:29:00.001-07:00

Your fucking table is ready.