Thursday, July 29, 2010

Mickey Mouse Clubhouse: I'm a Member


I am not a morning person. Morning is the cursed abomination of the day, a wretched, festering, stinking time when everything is bright, sunny and cheery in direct mockery of the pure pain and darkness that is my usual sinus headache. Unfortunately, my body is under the mistaken impression that I love mornings. Thus every day I wake up at 7:00, or earlier even, wishing that I could stay in bed for another hour. It’s even worse on the weekend, when I’m allowed to sleep all day, but find myself incapable.

Tuesday, July 27, 2010

Jack Frost Can Go to Hell!


This photo has nothing to do with the blog post, it's just one of my favorites that we took on our last Disney trip. Thought it was more interesting than yet another photo of bleak Indiana weather.


Random note: The title of this blog post comes from an article I wrote for my college during my senior year, back when I still lived under the delusion I could be a music journalist. I wrote a very long article making fun of emo music, with an entire song list worked out. “Jack Frost Can Go to Hell!” was one of the song titles. I then wrote an article, appearing in the same issue, defending emo music. This is what happens when you’re a student editor with not a single dependable writer.

This weekend, Nicole and I finally got to spend some time together about 3:00 pm on Sunday. This is our “weekend” at the moment. During this time, we could have gone to a nearby fair and made ourselves sick, went to Fort Wayne and bought things we don’t need, or just not move. We chose a variation of the latter, went to dinner, got ice cream, and walked along and relaxed by one of the nearby lakes.

Monday, July 26, 2010

Dreams be dreams...

This is a Florida Winter.

I've had apocalypticalish dreams for as long as I can remember. It always ends the same, me hiding somewhere watching the world as I know it fall apart around me. My favorite was that one time when the world flooded, and I was on a train that was more like a rollercoaster, and it dropped me off on top of a super tall building. I sat there...waiting, watching, fearing. I don't remember it being a panic though. I remember just thinking, "what am I going to do now?" Then, a boat came and I got on and a bunch of random people from my past were there. End dream.

Friday, July 23, 2010

The Islands of Adventure Conundrum


Picture courtesy of http://www.universalorlando.com/Amusement_Parks/Islands_of_Adventure/islands_of_adventure.aspx. For those reading the braille version, it's a coaster at IOA. Which they still call Dueling Dragons. Even though it's now Harry Potter themed with a completely different name. They really need to update their website.


Planning continues for the great escape, and my latest evil schemes are particularly conniving. Malicious schemes are dastardly? Okay, my decent ideas are not exactly moronic. I’m not an evil genius. Yet.

Anyway, since Nicole and I will be making a rather drastic move in a southward direction, it’s difficult to scope out new places to live. We can utilize the internet, but since you can’t trust half of what’s posted there, it’d be just as effective to throw darts and see where it lands. Personally, I’m hoping it hits “Squatting in the tequila store in Epcot’s Mexican pavilion.”

Wednesday, July 21, 2010

The Fear!

Lately, I've started to think seriously about Nicole and I's move to Florida. Up until now, it's been a dream-becoming-reality thing, constantly thinking up the next amazing thing about living in Florida. No more arctic winter! Disney World all the time! Actual things to do that don't involve craft festivals and corn!

Realization is now dawning that this is no longer a dream, but something that is seriously going to happen, possibly sooner than I think. For a kid who has lived his entire life (relatively) in one place, that is freaking scary. My mind is now hitting overdrive with the five million and one things and complications and potential problems and embarrassments and awkward social situations and ahhhHHHHHHHH!

Monday, July 19, 2010

Things I Will Miss: The Fort Wayne Children’s Zoo

From the general level of vitriol I direct towards my hometown, county, state, immediate region of the country, it might seem that there’s nothing I like about Indiana. This is definitely untrue, there are many things I’ll miss. For example, the way recently planted fields suddenly explode into a million shades of green that roll along the gentle hills off into the horizon.

This being in stark contrast to a month later, where seemingly identical six foot stalks block the view of anything of interest, including oncoming traffic. It’s even better in fall, when all those stalks turn a wonderfully disgusting shade of brown.

So, there’s good and bad, often closely connected. Something that’s purely good, except that it’s only open during the spring and summer, is the Fort Wayne Children’s Zoo. I grew up with the animals there, still have a full membership, and may request my ashes be scattered over some of the exhibits. Preferably over the annoying kids who keep calling every other animal a monkey. It’s a freaking lemur! It was in Madagascar! How do you not know this!?!

Ahem, anyway. I try to make as many journeys to the Zoo as I can each year, and so far I’ve managed three 2010 trips. These are some of the pictures from Nicole and I’s first trip of the year.

Thursday, July 15, 2010

Reason for Escape #13.3(repeating): Clutter and Space

Every morning of my life is a series of trips. First, I awake and stumble out of bed, immediately tripping over a capsized pile of clothes from some clothes basket. On the way to the bathroom, I trip and stub my toe on a series of cd racks that don't even contain cds. Down the stairs to the living room, which is also the kitchen, I trip down the stairs, trip over the box of random brick-a-brack on the landing, then trip the rest of the way down. That's a lot of traveling before I even commute.

When I finally moved out of my parent's basement upon graduating from college, a small apartment near the lake with not a lot of storage was perfect. I had too much junk, but as long as I could shove it in the side room I could pretend it didn't exist. Then I met Nicole, my life changed, she moved in, and that side room suddenly had an avalanche. I'm pretty sure some poor sherpa is buried under there somewhere.

I guess I could solve the problem by giving things to charity and organizing my life. We could turn ourselves in to Hoarders, though I might commit homicide if they touch the stuffies. Seriously, you're not getting rid of my factory reject, cross-eyed crane game kitty, aptly named "Special Kitty." He's like a lost extra from the Island of Misfit Toys.

However, I'd much prefer to simply find a far bigger side room to hide the mess. That way I can make a bigger avalanche. Yes, and one day maybe get a little more organized. I still maintain it's an overrated concept. My mind is cluttered, why shouldn't everything else in my life be as well?

------Gabe

Wednesday, July 14, 2010

And I am the other half.

So, I guess I should introduce myself as well. The sweet, amazing, wonderful, lovely boy (don't puke) who introduced me was my other half. Seriously, we are glued to each other. Okay, not all the time...but most.

I'm Nicole. A former english major, who...(does this sound familiar?) is stuck in the land of corn and dollar stores. I can't escape them. Ahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh! Make it go away!

Ahem, sorry. Anyway, as you read we are slowly (but surely!) making our way to the land of warmth and hurricanes..I mean Disney World that is Florida. He wants Disney..I want warmth. I am not a fan of winter. At all. Neither is my car. Just ask me about my fun towing trip last winter!

So yeah, stay tuned for our chronicles of escape from the land of Corn to the land of YAY.
It should be interesting...

---------Nicole

Alternate Blog Titles

Burn Indiana Burn
Corn is Madness
Unhealthy Disney Fixation
Kittens! The Musical!
ICan'tStandAnotherIndianaWinterAndHaveToFLEE
Florida, I Hear You Calling
Love in the Time of Cornstalks

Oh, and I guess I should introduce myself. I am Gabe, a former English major, jack of all trades employee of an ever changing small company. Due to some of these changes, I can finally escape Northern Indiana, where I've lived all my life, and live elsewhere. Elsewhere being Florida. Especially since my dream since childhood has been to live near Disney World, that unreal little inner child paradise.

Making this journey with me is my beautiful, amazing, lovely, generous (have you overdosed on sweetness yet?) girlfriend Nicole. We're trading corn for palm trees, one way or another.

--------Gabe