But she's still beautiful

As I sit here on my "day off," so to speak, I'm sitting here just relaxing with no specific schedule, something I really haven't done recently. I'm listening to Armin van Buuren's most recent mix album "A State Of Trance 2005', and to be honest with you, I'm really surprised and pleased. Only one word comes to mind while listening to this superb album: SMOOTH. Very very smooth. Like a nice tall draught-drawn pitcher of Sierra Nevada Pale smooth. Every element of taste is where it should be, there's a lot to discover, and nothing's too flashy or overpowering. I love that. Especially these days, where a lot of people think trance/progressive is on its way out, people like Armin, Sasha and a handful of others (Infusion immediately comes to mind) are evolving and coming up with stuff that people may not "get" immediately, but is ultimately more satisfying when you just give it time. Good lesson.


A few things:

- My work is paying for my CCNA, so I must be doing something right. :-D
- After much ado, I finally have health insurance. Granted, it's not the greatest insurance in the world, but it's affordable and it helps cover doctor visits, prescriptions, and most importantly, major dental work (after 3 months).
- They've hired a few more people at work, so as soon as the new girl for Days gets fully acquainted, I'm moving to a Monday thru Friday shift, 7:00a - 3:30. Oh haaaayl yeah. Realistically, I'll be there much earlier some days, and much later others, but it'll be DAMN nice having a semi-weekend again, let me tell you.
- Our old apartment complex is trying to jew us out of 190 dollars for cleaning/repairs, 120 of which is for the two blinds in the living room. Yes, one hundred and twenty dollars for two sets of blinds, which I confirmed only cost $3.88 a piece in many major retail outlets. Hindsight is always 20/20, and I should've gone with the hard-on I had for replacing them before we left, along with cleaning very well, and most importantly, DOING THE WALKTHROUGH WITH THE REPRESENTATIVE! I'm still fighting with them, but as assertive as I'm slowly becoming, I think we'll end up having to pay the cash.
- I'm not drinking coffee anymore, and have not drank nearly as many caffeinated drinks recently. Though I did try the re-release of Due Pitch Black (Pitch Black II - lame), and to put it mildly: you shoud be able so see through all Mountain Due products for them to be consumable (in contrast to good coffee).
- I am taking an anger management class. It's not going to solve everything, but I go with an open mind, and I think it'll help.
- I am purchasing a bike very soon, next paycheck most likely. Gas is getting way too high for me to justify driving my truck for distances under 5 miles or so. Plus, the health thing. Lawrence is supposed to be a "bike-friendly" town, but I can see that people aren't too kind to bikers just cruising around in the middle of the street. Ah well, that's what the sidewalks are for.


"Man, why don't they bring back or remake good shows, like BJ and the Bear? Now that's a concept I can't get enough of: a man and his monkey."