Lowered Ears

I got a haircut today. I went to a girl that I only go to because I think she's cute. I mean, my hair isn't that hard to cut. In all honesty, I could probably get my mother to cut it for free, rather than pay some hot girl $14.95. But really, I think the money is worth it.

This girl, who we'll call "Hair Cut Girl," has cut my hair on two other occasions. And she never remembers who I am. I guess I just make that much of an impression. Despite my forgettability, I've toyed with the idea of asking Hair Cut Girl out. You know, socially.

So today, during the witty banter that comes with getting one's hair cut, I thought of how I should go about asking for a date. We joked about Tae-Bo. And how there's too much emphasis on girls to be super-skinny. I really don't know, I was too busy trying to think three steps ahead so I could stay on top of the conversation to really stay on top of the conversation.

She finished my hair in record time. I should've asked for a shampoo just to prolong the inevitable, but I opted out. At the cash register I clumsily asked her name (even though I already knew her name was Hair Cut Girl), that way I'd know who to ask for next time.

In my mind, asking for her name was supposed to come out sounding a lot cooler than it did. In reality it sounded a little stalkerish. So now I have to find someone new to cut my hair. And also, I go another weekend without a date... I believe that's 276 consecutive single Friday nights. What's the record?

Strange Phone Call

Today I was sitting in my bedroom, minding my own business, when out of nowhere my cellular phone began to ring. The caller ID listed a number that I didn't recognize from an area code that I wasn't sure of.

It was some guy. He was an operator for something called Relay. He informed me that I was receiving a call from someone using this "Relay" system, which apparently is a way for people to call long-distance over the internet. How does it work? Well I'm glad you asked.

The internet user would type what he or she wants to say and the operator would then read it to the person receiving the phone call. Then the person called will respond and the operator would then transcribe that side of the conversation. It seems to me that actually calling or using Instant Messenger would save a lot of time here.

So who called/IMed me using Relay? I still don't know. The first message the operator relayed... hey, I just got why it's named Relay... anyway, the first message was "Is this Alicia's phone?" And then the operator says "go ahead."

Also, I have to say "go ahead" when I'm done talking. It's like saying "over" on a walkie-talkie. I responded "No... go ahead."

So then the guy asked me if it was someone else's phone. "No, I think you have the wrong number... go ahead."

After this I waited. And waited. Meanwhile, my cell minutes are ticking away. Finally I said, "Look, not to be rude or anything, but if this is a wrong number I'm just gonna hang up 'cause this is using up my time." No response. No relay of any kind. So I hung up.

So if someone out there tried to relay me today, I'm sorry I hung up on you. But next time, could you just send me an instant message? I know I usually have an away message up, but I'll get what you're trying to say. Besides, I'm too impatient to wait for an operator to type it for me.

Father's Day

The last few days have been tough.

The grief that I deal with on a daily basis was double-teamed this weekend. My father's birthday was yesterday. And today was the first Father's Day without him.

When I was still in college, Dad had started using AOL Instant Messenger as a cheap way to keep in touch with me from time to time. He wasn't much of a typist, so the conversations were generally short. AIM, not knowing that he passed away last October, felt the need to notify me that his birthday was June 16th. Thanks for that reminder AOL. Not once. Not twice. But three times was I sent an e-mail. "Grayson Peck's birthday is June 16!"

So how did I celebrate these monumental days? I ran away. That's what I do. The 'rents got divorced back in '01, I ran to Bluefield. Ironically, that's where I am this weekend too. A quick thank you to Mark for letting me crash for a few days.

I'm not saying that I would've spent his birthday or Father's Day any differently had I stayed in Roanoke. I was alone most of the day today, which gave me plenty of time to think. Sure, I cried a little, but hey, I miss him. That's not going away.

By escaping Roanoke, I was forced to be around people. Back in the hometown I would've probably just stayed in my bedroom and shut myself off. Here, I was able to hang out with one of my best friends--my brother from another mother--and get my mind away from things.

We watched the entire first season of How I Met Your Mother, a show which, BTW, Dad liked almost as much as I do. Not really a fitting tribute, but just a statemtent of fact.

So this was Father's Day. This day will probably be hard every year. And so will his birthday. Maybe it's good that it all hits in one weekend. And hey, in 2013 it'll all hit on the same day. Not really something I'm looking forward to, but it's out there. Happy Father's Day Dad.

Trip to Charlotte, Book Two

Saturday morning I woke up bright and early. The crack of 8am. Why would I wake up that early on the weekend, one may ask? Because I was going to the movies.

Wait, a movie on a Saturday morning? Yes, that's right. Apparently the theater near Andy and Chrissy's homes shows movies beginning in the morning rather than the afternoon. Ocean's Thirteen, here we come. Good movie, BTW.

After that, I spent the day in Andy's office while he spent the day doing some work in his office. Not as much fun as that sounds, trust me. No offense Andy, but your office was a little dull. At first it was cool, you know, 'cause I was hanging out in my friend's office. He has his own office, which is pretty cool by itself. But five hours? Seriously?

The day picked up though. Andy's church has a service on Saturday night. This is a great idea. I thoroughly enjoyed this. And the senior pastor? Excellent speaker. The praise band? Outstanding. I really think that if this church or one like it had been around Bluefield when I was in college, that's where I would've attended. Actually, if I knew of a church around Roanoke now I may be tempted to make the switch. Really though, it was a great worship experience.

After church the three of us (Andy, Chrissy, and myself) met another old college friend, Brandi, at Wolfman Pizza. Also joining us were Ryan (Andy's roommate), Chad (an intern at the church), Bethany (Ryan's fiancee and the senior pastor's daughter), and Brandon (the next Ty Pennington). No, really, Brandon is the next Ty Pennington. He's the new carpenter on Trading Spaces. He'll be famous in three months, just wait. Man! I should've gotten a picture! Now you'll never believe we met him.

After some phenomenal pizza, the Bluefield alum spent time outside a closed coffee shop and reminisced. All in all it was a fun night. Unfortunately, the end of the evening signaled the fact that I had only one more day in Charlotte.

Trip to Charlotte, Book One

This past weekend I hopped in the old Escort and took a drive through scenic North Carolina to visit some friends in Charlotte. Andy and his fiancee Chrissy recently moved from Richmond when Andy was hired as the 6th grade minister for Forest Hills Church.

First things first... Let's talk about the traffic in and around the Charlotte area. On Friday afternoon around 3pm, I was sitting in my car. I wasn't making use of the gas pedal whatsoever. Any movement between mile markers 12 and 4 involved merely taking my foot, ever so gently, off the brake. This went on for an hour. AN HOUR!!! Seriously, what's going on in Charlotte that everyone is trying to get there at the same time? Shouldn't people be leaving town at the end of the work week? Was everyone visiting friends who recently moved there this weekend? I assumed it would just be me on the highway. My mistake. Moving on...

I arrived at Chrissy's apartment long after I should have (due to extreme traffic). And apparently, the round about is the next hot thing. 'Cause they're all over the place. Very European. Look kids, Big Ben... Parliament...

Andy also arrived at Chrissy's after he got done with work and we shared an impressive meal that can only be described as a taco skillet thing. Good stuff. Also, Chrissy had made cupcakes. Mmmmm... you're getting hungry too, aren't you?

The three of us spent the evening watching Night at the Museum. It was a decent movie. Not my top ten mind you, but I'll go with the thumbs up. Plus, it made us all want to go to a museum, but that'll be a story for another day.

After the movie ended, Andy and I drove to his apartment where we proceeded to watch Mission: Impossible III. Also a pretty good flick. Though Andy didn't make it all the way through. See, we were both pretty exhausted. Add that to the fact that we didn't even start the movie 'til midnight, well, it's a wonder I saw the whole thing. I guess the reason I finished it was because I was sleeping on the floor in the living room anyway, so I kept the TV on for a bit and then the story took a twist, so I had to finish. 2:30am I finally closed my eyes to sleep.

And if you think that was a long day, just wait 'til I tell you about Saturday. Stay tuned for "Trip to Charlotte, Book Two" coming soon to Blogger.

Thrill Riding

You know what's fun? Riding roller coasters at Kings Dominion. You know what's not so much fun? Dragging around nine 6th graders while riding roller coasters at Kings Dominion.

I kid. It was fun. Mostly.

Last Wednesday I chaperoned a trip to Kings Dominion and was responsible for the well being of nine kids as they walked around the park. Here's my theory on amusement parks: ride as many rides as you can as often as possible.

When walking around with nine kids, you're constantly stopping. You're stopping for rip-off carnival games. You're stopping for ice cream and soda. You're stopping for bathroom breaks. You're stopping because no one can agree on what they want to ride next. "Can we ride Volcano now???" "Can we go on Drop Zone???"

Yeah.

So the day began at 5 something in the morning. The buses left at 6 something. We got to the park at 10 something. And then the real fun began. "We should go get on Volcano before there's a line!"

First of all, it's a Wednesday. In May. Logic dictates that the park will not be crowded. All the kids are still in school. Most of their parents are at work. We didn't wait in line for anything. It was awesome.

So ask me if I would chaperone this trip again. Go on, ask me. You know what my answer would be? Yes. Yes I would chaperone this trip again. Because I love riding roller coasters. And what makes them better is the fact that we rode them immediately. None of that 2 hour waiting in line crap.

Trip to Nashville, Book 5: Central Time

As you drive through the great state of Tennessee, an amazing phenomenon occurs. Somewhere between Knoxville and Nashville on I-40, you slip an hour back in time. One second it's 4:34pm, the next, it's 3:34pm. Isn't that cool? No flux capacitor required. Just a simple trip over an imaginary line drawn on a map of the United States.

The drawback is that if you drive back east, you go back to the future. Or the present. One hour that was gained is lost once more.

But I'm really beginning to grasp the concept of Central Time. When I was a kid, I hated it. I thought it was strange. The news doesn't come on at 6 o'clock here. It comes on at 5. That's weird. The 11 o'clock news doesn't come on at 11. It comes on at 10. What's up with that? And your primetime programs? An hour earlier on the schedule.

From a television standpoint there's no difference. They're shown at the same time here as they are there. It's just that when Lost comes on at 10 on the east coast, it comes on at 9 (simultaneously) in the Central Zone. Not that I really need to explain this, it's fairly simple to grasp.

But as an adult, I'm seeing the pros to this time zone. See, I love watching things like Lost, which comes on at 10 back home. But here it would come on at 9. I tell ya, at this age, it's getting harder to stay up 'til 11 just to watch a TV show. Staying up 'til 10 would be so much easier.

Look out Central Time Zone. When I get out of seminary, I may be looking to come back to the past on a more permanant basis.

Trip to Nashville, Book 4: A Reunion of Epic Proportions

It's that time of year again! That's right, time for the family reunion. Time for a 7 hour drive from Roanoke to Nashville. Time for a cookout at the F.O.P. lodge. Time to see people whose names I may or may not know.

Okay, I enjoy seeing family. Mostly. I enjoy seeing family members I know. Anyone else get the impression at family reunions that for every person you know, there's someone else you don't know? And amazingly, you don't know them, but they know you. Or at least they did twenty years ago when you were 7 years old and 3 foot 6 inches tall. "Oh, you've gotten so big!"

And then there are the people that you just know you're not related to at all. Not even a little bit. People who somehow find out there will be free burgers and dogs.

In the past these reunions were fun. I was a kid. The cousins were kids. We played some kind of outdoor sports and ran around doing the things that little kids do. Now we're adults. We know what the grown-ups were talking about when they sat around under the big maple tree. How do we know? 'Cause they're still talking about the same things, and we're involved in the conversation now.

This year was a little more difficult than years past. This was the first reunion without dad. So, of course, there were a lot of comments about how much he was missed. I love my dad, I miss him every day. But I just didn't want to be reminded of all that grief all over again. So I had a hard time today. And I'll have a hard time tomorrow when my grandparents are there.

I'm not saying I'll have an emotional breakdown. Though it's been awhile. Stay tuned.

Liberty Meadows

I've generally been disappointed by the funny pages since the end of "Calvin & Hobbes" and "The Far Side." These days, comic strips just aren't all that clever or even, in my humble opinion, that well drawn. "For Better or For Worse" is probably the best one that sees major syndication, but even that is hit or miss with the funny.

A few months ago I ran across a little strip on the internet called "Liberty Meadows." This strip no longer sees syndication, and hasn't for some time. "Liberty Meadows" is written and drawn by Frank Cho and is seriously the best thing since "Calvin & Hobbes."

It takes place at an animal sanctuary called, get this, Liberty Meadows. We follow the adventures of a motley crew consisting of people and anthropomorphic animals.

The main characters are Brandy Carter and Frank Mellish. Brandy is the resident animal psychiatrist. One of those girls that's smart, beautiful, and is the most rational and sensible one of the lot. Frank is the veterinarian who is head over heels in love with Brandy. But like myself, he's too shy or scared to do anything about it. Mostly, it is a love story between these two.

Also at the sanctuary, providing a great deal of the comic relief, are the animals that are being protected. Dean is a sexist pig and former fraternity mascot. No, really, he's a pig. And he's in detox. Ralph is a retired midget circus bear who likes to invent things. Leslie is a frog with some pretty serious hypochondria. And then there's Truman, a baby duck that was saved from an oil spill, and his best friend, Oscar the dachshund.

The comic has been labeled "adult themed," which to me means, kids won't get it. It's no more vulgar than most of what's on TV. Actually, it's pretty tame by TV standards. So if you get a chance, check it out. There are four collected volumes of the strips, and Cho is trying to put out more in comic book form in the future. Here's hoping there's more. 'Cause it'd be nice to see Frank and Brandy finally get together. Might give a shy, scared guy like me a little hope.

Awake in the Darkness

Tonight is one of those nights. It's midnight and I just can't sleep. I've been trying to fall asleep for the last couple hours, but I just can't. And really, isn't that a contradiction? Trying to fall asleep? I guess that's impossible. If you're gonna fall asleep, you just do it. There is no try (thank you Yoda).

I am obviously not sleeping at this moment. So I'm left to fill the time with the meaningless ramblings of an insomniac.

For awhile I was watching National Treasure on DVD. Good movie. I liked it so much that I saw it twice when it was in the theater. However, I did fall asleep the second time I watched it. Not because I was bored with it. I was just that tired. Maybe I chose to watch that movie hoping I would get those old feelings, but alas, I'm still awake. The movie ended, so I restarted it. Still awake.

Now the TV is off. I set the "sleep" timer on it, hoping against hope that I would be asleep by now. But it's off and I'm not yet asleep.

For awhile I just laid here in bed listening to the sound of the fan on my desk. A nice, soothing, white noise kind of sound. And the thoughts began to flow. And for some reason I began thinking about Dad.

I've done that a lot lately. Last Thursday morning I got to work and was waiting around for the day's assigned duties. I started thinking about him then. Somehow it became so overwhelming that I nearly broke into tears. I didn't though. Manhood intact.

So tonight, as I lay awake in the dark, my mind wandered back to Dad yet again. Really there isn't a day that goes by that I don't think about him at some point. But sometimes, like now, the thoughts go deeper than just a passing remembrance. The thoughts turn into another realization of just how much I miss him. Another realization of just how much my heart aches.

I want so badly to talk to him about movies I've seen lately. About how frustrating my favorite TV shows are when I'm left with cliffhangers at season's end. About how scared and excited I am to start fresh with seminary in the fall. About how much I appreciated him always being there for me. About how sorry I am for not always showing it.

So now what do I do? Do I try, again, to go to sleep? My brain, flooded with thoughts and feelings and memories? I'm not really expecting an answer to this. I know I'll get sleep eventually. It's inevitable. My body will become so tired that I won't have a choice in the matter. But what do I do 'til then?