Did I Just See a Tumbleweed Rolling By?

As my friend, Recka, and I were moving approximately X pounds of weights in the weight room today, X being roughly equivalent to the variable satisfying the equation -7x + 283 = -417, I had a thought, it rolled by like a tumbleweed in my mind.

It's been 3 months now. There once was a time when this blog was such a part of me, or me a part of it, or my blog and I mutually cohabitating a conscious habitation of a whole person's thoughts, that person being me...

People would see me and say, "Bean! Good to see you're okay. You haven't blogged in awhile, and I was beginning to wonder if you were alright." Alas! for that day. If ever such a day did exist, I am exaggerating greatly.

FOUR YEARS! My blog and I have related to each other for longer than I've known the woman I am now married to! Is it possible to make memories in cyberspace? Sadly, the inter-cyborg-ational-ish relationship I have had with people, GIF images, and other binary code on this blog has no grounding in reality but only in the reality defined by my mind, created through spending countless hours peering into the glare of a computer monitor. What if one day Blogger were no longer free? Would I, enraged, swallow the password to my log-in page so that I never blogged again? And if I never blogged again, what would become of all the fond memories of logging in to view the familiar black background and freaky yet ocean's eleven-ish green, blue and red circles dotting the background of the sum total of my spacious thoughts over the last 4 years?

No one cares. But for the moment, no such crisis must be averted, for none exists.

A Degree Cooler

That's about all I felt upon graduating, and that's about all I wanted the weather to be when I graduated with a bachelor of scientology in accountablility this May 2008.

Well, backing up, I pulled an "A" in my individual income tax course, a stunner of a miracle, my final exam breaking the curve in my section and pulling my grade up to a 90.1-ish%. It seemed a poetic justice that I end up working a part-time job auditing tax returns for the Louisiana Department of Revenue this summer, until I start law school this August. I graduated sumo cum laude with College Horrors and was privileged to wear several honorary academic cord-on bleu sandwiches around my neck(tie). Should I say that the tax work this summer is a poetic justice, or a contrapasso? Ssshhhiver. No worries, it's only purgatorio, I'm passing through-o this place-o. That's why I called it a summer job, oh? If you don't know of what I speak, have a chat with Dante Aligheri, and no that's not a famous pizzeria entrepreneur, either.

Excuse my mannerisms, I'm sure you'll understand that I thoroughly enjoyed my graduation and [sincerity] praise God that I enjoyed the fruits of my labour after four years of [/sincerity] hard [sincerity] work [/sincerity]. The point being, my good fellows, that the bestowal of honors by other mere mortals does little to excite my soul. The reward for a job well done comes long before recognition by another being of a fallen race. It comes in the moment of completion of a task, a contented smile and crossed arms while in solitude, and a bowed head before one's God for the strength to have experienced a temporary joy.

Amanda's graudation with a B.A. in Broadcast Production (Communications) from Loyola University in New Orleans makes me a proud hubbie, indeed. She faced a rigorous curriculum and was very active in her community and in the school's activities and sports while a student. Her graduation ceremony was beautiful. Mine was fairly boring, but regardless, getting 2 meals, one at Copeland's and one at Olive Garden, with family dining with us, more than compensated for any suffering/happiness enjoyed/experienced during our commencement exercises.

I suppose the question is, "How does it feel to be a graduate?" Well, maybe this is a bit unfair, but I don't think it nearly matched the question, "How does it feel to be married?" from roughly a year ago. So now any other experience in life, including commencement, is subject to taking the backseat to the thrill of new matrimony. I am grateful for the education I received. I also am confused that my sister-in-law still in college is making more than I am this summer. But I do not fret; for law school orientation I shall soon beget. As in, I shall bring it forth into my life, not so much beget as in "newly formed organism tumbling out of my bowels."

Serious

From henceforth, I shall be considerably more serious in my blogging.

Graduation Part # Try Again

I think what was most emotional about graduation was the people. Thinking of the close friendships forged by conversations, intense experiences, living and learning with many wonderful people while studying at university. There was never any doubt in my mind I would graduate, so graduation wasn't honestly a huge deal to me. High school graduation was much more enjoyable, for me. I enjoyed Amanda's graduation more than mine because I enjoy rooting for loved ones, of which she is chief (after my Jesus, of course). Amanda's parents drove in from Houston two weekends in a row to see their daughter and then son-in-law graduate. They are such giving people. I love them.

Bienville Towers

It could be a superhero's lair, but it's actually the name of the new apartment complex Amanda and I live at. We LOVE it. It's so nice to have a place with central air conditioning, carpet, a garbage disposal and dishwasher, and even a balcony. Yes, a balcony. Which means we live on the 2nd floor, which is fine now, but wasn't as rock 'n' roll when my dad-in-law and I were squeezing our gluteals as we panted for breath carrying huge pieces of a room-sized sectional couch up stairs so narrow that even Gumby would have to diet to squeeze through.

Our place is all decorated nice and it's so...nice. It just makes me feel like saying, "niiiiiiice." Isn't that nice?

The Man

Actually, okay, so here's the skinny on Mandy and I's summer employment. She's working for the man, and I'm working for the woman. Literally.

Actually she's working for the man, but he's making her work for the woman, being herself, meaning she technically is paid as an independent contractor. She's working as a production manager person at Green Screen TV, a local production company, and she's really getting to put to use the filming, editing, and other skills she learned while in college. This is full-time employment. My baby's in the real world.

I work for the Louisiana Department of Revenue. It's...swell. There are so many interesting returns to audit. And renegade lizards, lunchtime mouth-stuffing cracker competitions, hot-mess humorous statements, and other things, ask me about it sometime.

Two words: Supporting documentation.

Cave Party

The Cave hath risen again! Me, Cody, Zeke, Amanda, Recka, M.Coates,Christina went to visit Tollie in Panama City Beach, Florida, where he's workin' full time. Lots of beach, beer (aka Pepsi), Risk, Perfect Dark, Monty Python's Holy Grailz, cajun cooking, and other Cave favorites. It was quite a reunion. Pictures below.

#80F Other Refundable

• My friend Jacob married Ali! It was the first wedding I was in! Aside from my own, of course. Me and Kenji bonded a lot. We shared a bed and fought over the covers more than Amanda and I ever could. I spent a good minute wrestling with the hotel customer service trying to get a new TV so we could play vid. games at Jake's bachelor party, but nothing could be done, though Marriott even sent the "engineering department"to our room at midnight.
• I went with my family to a revival in Florida, and God really encouraged us through it. What's a revival? Hands up, and I'll tell you! It's a state of being revived. It's when God breathes his freshness into the souls of His people and miracles happen. Hearts are changed and people hunger for holiness.
• I'm reading Clear and Present Danger, Tom Clancy's political/technological thriller about America's war on drugs. It's so long. It's so good. I'm so only halfway done with it.
• Wall-E and The Dark Knight are must see movies. Warning: though I mentioned both movies in the same sentence, both are known to have vastly different sets of emotions associated with each. Wall-E is the cutest robot ever. The Joker is the most genuinely horrifying and fascinating villain ever.
• I've been playing frolf, or frisbee golf a lot this summer. I like it a lot, I just get tired of losing frisbees to the tree boughs overhead.
• More other refundable credits later.

I think this is enough text to resuscitate the blog.

Agreed?

A Few Photos

My sister, Hannah, came over and had some bonding time with Amanda and I one weekend. Among other things, we went to Blue Bayou waterpark, ate Coldstone ice cream, played Donkey Kong 2 and acted crazy.


Amanda and I went to the Art Melt, an artsy-fartsy event in downtown Baton Rouge. We saw tap-dancing, music, fine art displays, and alchies (only in Louisiana is there free-flowing booze next to fine art displays). Here was my favorite piece out of all of them.
Cave Party @ Panama City Beach, baby! Shenanigans. Catiwhompis. Discombobulated. (That's for you, Kenji.) From left to right, Recka, Matt Coates, Bean, Limebeast, Zeeb, and gloating cave master, Therefore.


This really happened. A kung-fu showdown happened.

Zeke shows us both a good time and his mouth innards in one singular gesture of truly great stature.

Left: Jacob and Ali do that married life thing.
Below: My sister Jessica and I bond. Amanda and I had her over and we had blast.




Married life. By that I mean, I just came from the water closet, and, feeling relieved, if yanowha'im'shayin, and my lovely bride decides to capture this feeling of relief on candid camera. I have decided, in turn, to share this profound emotional experience with you, cyberland.
After my graduation, my loving family acts loving and congratulatory and nice and familial and nice.


Just to prove to everyone that in married life, you can continue to eat great, here is proof that we always make sure to have nice hot rolls as a dinner side at our evening meals.


Old State Capitol. I got interviewed by the news people there. My wife volunteered me.
You know you dig it.


Amanda's family at graduation. Aren't they cuuuute?

So at the Shaw Center downtown, they have these fountains that periodically erupt out of the ground like Old Faithful, and my sister wanted to put on her bathing suit and, well, bathe.

My brother Matt graduated high school, too. Now he looks forward to college. And studying, even.