3/31/13: Sunday-night Open Skate

[bapo!]

Baseball and basketball are covered in other threads. (I don't think I've been excited about an Astros game since 1986, but it's 2013's first regular-season game, so I'll pay attention to it.) Sabres/Bruins game on NBC Sports for all of the sad Buffalo fans. Tragically, MSNBC will not be airing reruns of 'To Catch a Nashville Predator,' which had been becoming a Sunday-night tradition, at least at l'auberge bapo. 'Girls' is over, one more week until 'Mad Men.' So, let's talk.

How was your week, Swamp? What's on your mind?

I'll start.

Went to the Grizzly Bear concert last night. I knew that they would be good, but man, they were ASTONISHINGLY good. Carnegie Music Hall. Everybody was seated thru-out the show, which I thought was weird, but it's not like Grizzly Bear is a fist-in-the-air rock band. There's a lot of intricate stuff going on, so maybe playing to a seated crowd worked. Didn't hurt the vibe at all. First night of the tour, and they seemed happy and energetic. (I wasn't expecting to see Ed Droste smile that much. It was kind of alarming. Wasn't the image I had of him in my head.) I'm in love with these guys. And the Swedes, who were only casual fans going into last night, are hooked for life now.

I think I'm the only Grizzly Bear fan in the Swamp, and I can't understand why. They're really good, you guys! They're getting big, but they should be so much bigger. How could you not like this? Or this?

Owen Pallett opened for them, did some gorgeous stuff looping his violin. So pretty. I bought one of his albums as soon as I got home, and that's what touring is all about, right?

Went to dinner before the show, and the restaurant unexpectedly served Chimay. Perfect night.

[cerrano]

Baseball and basketball are covered in other threads. (I don't think I've been excited about an Astros game since 1986, but it's 2013's first regular-season game, so I'll pay attention to it.) Sabres/Bruins game on NBC Sports for all of the sad Buffalo fans. Tragically, MSNBC will not be airing reruns of 'To Catch a Nashville Predator,' which had been becoming a Sunday-night tradition, at least at l'auberge bapo. 'Girls' is over, one more week until 'Mad Men.' So, let's talk.

How was your week, Swamp? What's on your mind?

I'll start.

Went to the Grizzly Bear concert last night. I knew that they would be good, but man, they were ASTONISHINGLY good. Carnegie Music Hall. Everybody was seated thru-out the show, which I thought was weird, but it's not like Grizzly Bear is a fist-in-the-air rock band. There's a lot of intricate stuff going on, so maybe playing to a seated crowd worked. Didn't hurt the vibe at all. First night of the tour, and they seemed happy and energetic. (I wasn't expecting to see Ed Droste smile that much. It was kind of alarming. Wasn't the image I had of him in my head.) I'm in love with these guys. And the Swedes, who were only casual fans going into last night, are hooked for life now.

I think I'm the only Grizzly Bear fan in the Swamp, and I can't understand why. They're really good, you guys! They're getting big, but they should be so much bigger. How could you not like this? Or this?

Owen Pallett opened for them, did some gorgeous stuff looping his violin. So pretty. I bought one of his albums as soon as I got home, and that's what touring is all about, right?

Went to dinner before the show, and the restaurant unexpectedly served Chimay. Perfect night.

while i don't own any of their albums, i can say i've liked every song of theirs i've heard on siriusxmu. grizz is the shizz.

[degenerasian]

My week was good. I took a Hong Kong girl out on a first date on Wednesday night. Dinner and a movie turned out well.
Olympus Has Fallen was pretty good, even for a non-american like me.

She a nurse so she works strange hours.

I texted her today to discuss about another date but she said she's working nights the next 4 days.
So I have to wait and see. Bit anxious but I know I have to take this slow.


This was a nice break from work which was so busy. I wish I could fire people but i don't have that authority yet. All I can do is whine to my manager when evaluations/reviews come up in a few weeks.

And last but not least, I booked a trip to Maui April 23 with a couple of my cousins and another cousin from LA will meet us there. 4 single guys running around the islands for a couple of weeks should be a blast. I've never been there so I have no idea what to expect.

[bapo!]

while i don't own any of their albums, i can say i've liked every song of theirs i've heard on siriusxmu. grizz is the shizz.

Didn't I include Grizzly Bear in those CDs I gave you a year or two ago? If not, MAJOR OVERSIGHT. Check again. And then go buy their newest album.

Chin up, cheer up, chin up, cheer up.

Oh, hey, I had some free time this week, finally, so I was able to go skating a couple of times. Monday was kind of disappointing. I hadn't gone in three or four weeks, so it felt like I had regressed a bit. But I went again on Thursday and felt great. This was only a couple of hours after I learned of the Iginla trade, so it might have just been the expected Iginla Bump paying dividends in Pittsburgh. There are so many things I can't do on the ice, but I'm getting better at the two or three things that I can do. It's a great feeling.

[bapo!]

I took a Hong Kong girl out on a first date on Wednesday night. Dinner and a movie turned out well.

A first date! That's exciting, degen! I'm jealous. But also stuck in my ways and single and not really all that jealous. But, you know, I'm rooting for you. You're one of the good guys.

[howard]

The Walking Dead season finale, in an hour. They are replaying last week's episode now. Oh, wait; baseball!

[degenerasian]

I took a Hong Kong girl out on a first date on Wednesday night. Dinner and a movie turned out well.

A first date! That's exciting, degen! I'm jealous. But also stuck in my ways and single and not really all that jealous. But, you know, I'm rooting for you. You're one of the good guys.

I hope so! She was nice. I did all the right things, I picked her up, payed for the dinner (had free movie tickets so that paid for itself). Didn't talked too much, listened as much as possible. She talked a lot.

If that doesn't work, nothing will(?). Girls are weird.

[bapo!]

My memory is hazy, but I recall first dates being awkward and nerve-wracking. Thankfully, by the second date, you'll be comfortable enough around each other to say things like, 'You know, this dick ain't going to suck itself.' Good luck.

[Johnnie]

As of this posting I have 60 days left in Korea. I'm very excited. It seemed like such a short time ago I hit 100 days and an even shorter time ago when I was on mid-tour. Tempus figit, AMMIRIGHT?

My weekends for the last month have consisted of going up to Seoul and doing the workouts for the CrossFit Open at CrossFit Sentinel. I'm not registered ($10 bucks to realize how not fit I am in the Asia region doesn't seem like a wise investment), but it's fun to travel away from the base and get around seeing things and meeting people. Last weekend was a crazy fun time in the Hongdae district. Went out partying with a great crew after the workout and a fantastic dinner. My buddy and I jumped into a "Silent Disco"* and got pictures taken and put up on a Korean website. And this past weekend was no different. We went to this all you can eat burger and chicken joint called Burgermine. Deliciousness. This weekend the Open will conclude and it'll be an even larger party. My new civilian friends are like "put your weekend passes in NOW." Heh. One of these days I won't have to ask permission to stay out somewhere overnight after the streetlights come on.

I'm also halfway through my antepenultimate class, microeconomics. I'll pass because online classes are easy, but still. I'm more annoyed that the terminology of everything I'm learning is more confusing than the actual concepts. After this I'll have literature (which I hope to CLEP) and my final then I'm dunzo with school and I can be called a "college graduate." Or something. I'll take advantage of free school. Sure.

On the wiminz front, I'm just looking forward to Tucson. There are the 2 girls I was sleeping with prior to coming here that are eagerly awaiting my arrival along with a beautiful girl that had a crush on me while I lived in Arizona but never knew until I had said something to her a couple months ago. We'll see where that goes, but I'm not getting my hopes up. While I am back in the States I'll do Ragnar Chicago and try to reconnect with that one girl I actually flew out to Tucson. We still keep in touch regularly. But she does have the crazy vibe, so I am grateful for the distance on some level. And then there's this multi-lingual girl I've been chatting with in Germany. She's pretty awesome so far from our messaging back and forth, but again. Not getting my hopes up.

As for my Monday (I'm in the future ifyadidn'talreadyknow) I'm gunna download The Walking Dead, Shameless, Californication, Game of Thrones, & House of Lies when I get back to my dorm. I gave up on Girls. Yup. 8th episode of Season 2 and I'm like "This is getting dumb. Everyone's turning psycho and I'm rooting for nobody in particular. The Zombie Apocalypse needs to begin in Hipster Brooklyn."

I'm sure there are some other things, but that's all I got right now.

*A "Silent Disco" is where a DJ plays a set, but it's only audible to people who are wearing wireless headphones. People walking by only see everyone dancing around to silence. It's a goofy concept, but it totally works.

[cerrano]

As of this posting I have 60 days left in Korea. I'm very excited. It seemed like such a short time ago I hit 100 days and an even shorter time ago when I was on mid-tour. Tempus figit, AMMIRIGHT?

My weekends for the last month have consisted of going up to Seoul and doing the workouts for the CrossFit Open at CrossFit Sentinel. I'm not registered ($10 bucks to realize how not fit I am in the Asia region doesn't seem like a wise investment), but it's fun to travel away from the base and get around seeing things and meeting people. Last weekend was a crazy fun time in the Hongdae district. Went out partying with a great crew after the workout and a fantastic dinner. My buddy and I jumped into a "Silent Disco"* and got pictures taken and put up on a Korean website. And this past weekend was no different. We went to this all you can eat burger and chicken joint called Burgermine. Deliciousness. This weekend the Open will conclude and it'll be an even larger party. My new civilian friends are like "put your weekend passes in NOW." Heh. One of these days I won't have to ask permission to stay out somewhere overnight after the streetlights come on.

I'm also halfway through my antepenultimate class, microeconomics. I'll pass because online classes are easy, but still. I'm more annoyed that the terminology of everything I'm learning is more confusing than the actual concepts. After this I'll have literature (which I hope to CLEP) and my final then I'm dunzo with school and I can be called a "college graduate." Or something. I'll take advantage of free school. Sure.

On the wiminz front, I'm just looking forward to Tucson. There are the 2 girls I was sleeping with prior to coming here that are eagerly awaiting my arrival along with a beautiful girl that had a crush on me while I lived in Arizona but never knew until I had said something to her a couple months ago. We'll see where that goes, but I'm not getting my hopes up. While I am back in the States I'll do Ragnar Chicago and try to reconnect with that one girl I actually flew out to Tucson. We still keep in touch regularly. But she does have the crazy vibe, so I am grateful for the distance on some level. And then there's this multi-lingual girl I've been chatting with in Germany. She's pretty awesome so far from our messaging back and forth, but again. Not getting my hopes up.

As for my Monday (I'm in the future ifyadidn'talreadyknow) I'm gunna download The Walking Dead, Shameless, Californication, Game of Thrones, & House of Lies when I get back to my dorm. I gave up on Girls. Yup. 8th episode of Season 2 and I'm like "This is getting dumb. Everyone's turning psycho and I'm rooting for nobody in particular. The Zombie Apocalypse needs to begin in Hipster Brooklyn."

I'm sure there are some other things, but that's all I got right now.

*A "Silent Disco" is where a DJ plays a set, but it's only audible to people who are wearing wireless headphones. People walking by only see everyone dancing around to silence. It's a goofy concept, but it totally works.

60 days left and you've given up on wiminz in seoul? who else sees the makings of a wacky rom-com where "he's into cross-fit and racial passing, and she's all about obeying her parents and honoring her elders. what could go wrong?"

[Johnnie]

Hey I was trying the OKCupid thing over here for a good amount of time and got a hit. A teacher from Cheonan. We went on a date and spent the day together only to be told days later she went out on another date the following day with some other dude and she chose him over me. It actually made me laugh and pissed off my female friends at work.

When I was in Hongdae, we hit up a nightclub and this one Korean girl was just popping it on the dance floor and acting completely atypical of a Korean girl. She was grinding on everyone and dancing pretty sexually. I later start chatting with her and found out was raised in Texas and is more Americanized than I figured. So I think "OK. This looks like it has potential." I got her number and started texting her the next day. When I told her what the deal was, she got pissed at me. I get it. A girl can do everything to indicate she's DTF and then when you ask "Are you DTF?" the indignation comes out and suddenly I'm the asshole. She was grinding on me like a stripper. Woe is me for making a wrong connection.

And then there's a friend of a friend I just met last night who is conveniently here until the end of May. She was a military brat raised mostly in NorCal but is here to visit friends and family. I'll see what's up with her, but she's a bit more typical. Our mutual friend, a former Korean Hooters girl that's married (damn the fucking luck) and works out with me, says that she should be down, so we'll see.

Some of the girls I have met at CrossFit are pretty cool. This one in particular from this past weekend and has been here a few years was a knockout. And the crazy thing was, she doesn't believe how gorgeous she is! If I had met her when I first got here, I'd pursue something. Otherwise, I'll just stay her friend. She's the relationship type from the intel I was gathering.

So, other than these "opportunities," yea. I'm moving on from girls I meet in Korea.

[Sabo]

I spent about 4.5 hours at the hospital because my mother-in-law began breathing poorly this evening and had a very bad shaking spell (she has tremors to begin with, but this was a really bad episode for her). They diagnosed her with pneumonia, and she'll probably be in the hospital for the next couple of days.

But wow, this was not a fun night. It's pretty brutal watching someone come to the end of their life. I saw a very scared woman who's starting to finally face her mortality, even though she's publicly stated ever since we moved in with her almost three years ago that she's ready to die. I guess you can tell yourself repeatedly that you're good to go whenever, but when that time looks like it's coming, there's a whole different level of emotions that you need to address. It makes me think perhaps the best way to really go is to drop dead of a heart attack or stroke. There's much less suffering that way, both physically and mentally (at least for the decedent).