Athenaverse

Thursday, March 31st

Magic Beans A' Flowerin'

Music: Mary Timony


For the past eleven days my parents and my brother were in town. I somehow managed to juggle going to work and showing them around for ten of those days. I have to work three doubles in a row to make up my hours, then go to Wrestlemania 21 (!!!) and close up afterwards on Sunday night.

Meanwhile, the plants on the porch have continued to grow. Last night I went onto the porch after saying good- bye to my family and I noticed that Thickie, one of the largest of the little marvel pea plants, had flowered. Check out the photo I took of it this morning: mbflower1

Pretty neat. smile

santo26 on 03.31.05 @ 02:19 PM PST [link] [1 Comment]


Friday, March 18th

santo26's Believe It Or Not Dept.


If you needed any further proof that the Red Sox are the Bringers of the Apocalypse:

1918- Boston Red Sox win the World Series
1919- Chicago White Sox throw the World Series; "Black Sox" Scandal undermines integrity of baseball

2004- Boston Red Sox win the World Series
2005-Jose Canseco writes tell- all book claiming rampant steroid use by ballplayers; Steroids Scandal undermines integrity of baseball

santo26 on 03.18.05 @ 02:07 PM PST [link] [No Comments]


Thursday, March 17th

Touching My Toes For The First Time All Over Again

Music: none
Mood: meditative
In December 2004, I had the flu. Since then, I have tried to cut down on the amount of food I eat and the rate at which I ingest it. I have also tried to eat a better variety of foods, including cutting down on red meat and eating more fruits and vegetables. I have also cut down my drinking to the point where I might go a week or more without having one. I had always wanted to change my eating habits, but it never really happened for me until now.

Four months later, I am less that 200 pounds for the first time in perhaps 10 years. As a result, I have shrunk 4 pants and shirt sizes. I now use a medium belt and wear large t- shirts. I would estimate that at least 80% of the clothing I own is now too big for me. I had to go shopping yesterday and buy jeans and casual shirts that actually fit. I have not worn a pair of jeans of this size since I was 13.

Despite all of this, I still have the tendency to look in the mirror and think to myself that I am still fat. It is an automatic shaming reflex developed by years of poor mental conditioning. If I do see a difference, I automatically refocus on another area that I can find disapproval with such as my hairline instead of seeing the positive gains I have made.

Laura suggested to me the other day that I have lost so much weight that if I start exercising again right now, I will get toned by the time the weight loss is complete. This morning, I was wearing my new jeans and polo shirt while watching my new Doctor Who DVD when I noticed the pair of 10- pound weights that I bought but have hardly used. I started doing some simple curls, then some situps when it occured to me that I should touch my toes. I leaned forward and- well, I just touched them! This one simple act conveyed more information about how far I have come than anything ever has. I have always been able to touch them, but not without great effort, exertion, and stretching of my arms to their fullest. This morning, all I did was lean over. The spare tire that I had been carrying for so long, that I had always wanted to get rid of but seemingly never could was no longer impeding my movement as it had for so many years.

Talk about a happy Saint Patrick's Day! smile

PS- I have also noticed that I have a blog, but nobody ever reads it. Do I not want anyone to read it? How can anyone read it if so few people know it even exists? Perhaps I should try and put it on some feeds or something like that. But then I would have to update it regularly...why don't I now? I think on some level I automatically censor what I write about. The Athenaverse is my so- called ampthitheatre but I hardly ever get on the stage.

santo26 on 03.17.05 @ 05:39 PM PST [link] [2 Comments]


Tuesday, March 1st

Outside Is Hollywood


trailerbeans (428k image)

Magic Beans in foreground, TV Production Crew in Background

This is the third day that the area outside my building has become a parking lot for the cast and crew for some WB television show called Summerland that is filming up the street. All they have to do is put a piece of paper on your door announcing their intention to shoot and bam, they take over. There isn't much you can do because they have filed all their permits with the city, they have a police detail and No Parking signs to put up. Valuable neighborhood parking spaces are filled with equipment trucks and trailers for sullen teen actors.

It is quite surreal to go out onto the balcony with my morning cup of coffee to water the plants and see these trailers right across the street. These star trailers have really loud generators to power all the electronic gadgets required by these "industry" folks, as if the constant city noise and helicopters weren't enough. But hey, what did I expect? I chose to live in (East) Hollywood, and instead of coal mining or education, the local economy is powered by hundreds of similar productions going on all over the neighborhood.

I'm not really annoyed or bothered as much as I'm trying to take it all in and appreciate it. I live a few blocks away from the Hollywood Freeway, which is how everyone else tries to get to where I am right now. In fact, I live in an area that is surrounded on all sides by freeways. Most of the rest of the people who work in this area of Los Angeles do not live here but instead spend hours commuting to and from remote suburbs. When they want to do something interesting, they all drive here to do it. I cannot even fathom the possibility of spending hours in the endless gridlock that I see when I walk on the overpasses just to get here.

When these TV stars and the crew that serves them wrap for the day, my Magic Beans will still be here, soaking up the sun.

santo26 on 03.01.05 @ 05:12 PM PST [link] [No Comments]




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