5-23-02 - Thursday Random Thoughts
5-20-02 - NBA Lottery
5-19-02 - Reader's mail
5-18-02 - New Cow Theory
5-17-02 - Graduation
5-16-02 - More Ramblings
5-10-02 - Marriage, Ugh
5-9-02 - Thursday Ramblings
5-8-02 - Inflatable Goats
5-7-02 - Temporary Fan Status
5-6-02 - Dinner Party
5-5-02 - Reader Mail
5-4-02 - Cast of Characters
5-3-02- Man HQ Memo
5-2-02 - THURSDAY RAMBLINGS
5-1-01- To Britney or not to Britney
ARCHIVES
So going into the weekend, I was planning on writing one of two columns: 1) A minute-by-minute account of the weekend similar to the graduation column or 2) The Top 10 Things That Happened That Kiley Doesn't Need to Know About. Somewhere along the way, though, my focus changed. I know this will come as a big disappointment to my loyal readers, but I decided to leave the details out. Don't get me wrong, either of the above colums could have won me a Pulitzer (or at least a tab on Bob Guccione's rolodex) and a certain link to some digital footage may well have won Greg an Adult Entertainment Award . I am not sure when it happened, but at some point the weekend actually developed some meaning for me. I want to be my normal sarcastic, cynical self but right now I am finding it a little harder than I could have ever imagined.
The weekend get together took place between the Texas towns of Llano and Mason, just west of the end of the world. The remote locale provided some amazing scenery with the cabin and tents set up on a hill over looking a rock-lined riverside. Over the course of the trip, we saw roadrunners, numerous deer, and on one occassion hundreds of thousands of bats. Initially, this remoteness troubled me, I couldn't stand the fact that I had no idea how the Cubs-Astros series was turning out. Some country could have shot off nuclear weapons, and none of us would have known any different. Eventually, I truly grew to appreciate this...it was completely liberating. Nothing makes you feel more free than a cell phone that can't get any service Sure, I missed an UNBELIEVABLE weekend of NBA basketball, but not having a computer handy was ultimatelly sooooo relaxing.
The people were all interesting in there own right, and it is amazing how much information can be learned in such a short period of time. Everyone had their own stories, their own past. Long lost friends slipped into their old, comfortable roles. Unspoken tension between others was apparent to those of us who didn't even know the history behind it. Personally, the speed that relationships develop simply amazes me. It is an often repeated theory that alcohol is the ultimate truth serum, a theory that was repeatedly proven correct this weekend. Strangers could end up sharing there most intimate secrets with you People whom you never were quite sure what to make of quickly became friends that will remain in memory long after the kegs floated. And sometimes friends that you already shared a lot with can become more...you end up seeing a side of them that you would never have previously imagined possible.
Right before sunrise on the morning we were to leave, I looked to my left and out around at all of the beauty I could see and momentarily felt like Lou Gehrig the day his number was retired. Unfortunately, the moment soon passed. I was overtaken by the bittersweet realiztion that none of this belonged to me, no matter how much I wished it so. I was a renter, an interloper in nature with a life that would continue 300 miles away. I wanted to go and capture all of it, for I knew it would be gone with the morning sunlight My body betrayed me though, and I drifted off to sleep. The sun came up, but the magic seemed to leave with the moon. In a way, it was still oddly exhilarating. I knew I was taking the memories with me, and somehow that was enough.
1) "Can't Complain" - Todd Snider
2) "Novocaine for the Soul" - The Eels
3) "I'm finding it harder to be a gentleman" - The White Stripes
4) "Negotiation Limerick File"- Beastie Boys
5) "Lapdance" - N.E.R.D.
6) "Let's Get it On""- Marvin Gaye
7) "White Palms" - Black Rebel Motorcycle Club
8) "X" - Xzhibit
9) "Cocktales" - Too Short
10) "The Next Movement" - The Roots
