I am not a religous man anymore. Whatever happened on Tuesday was outside the realm of the spiritual or the work of any god. Still, I was raised Catholic and have some familiarity with its words and music. This hymn has always given my comfort in times of tremendous sorrow. I hope it helps you as well.

On Eagle's Wings

You who dwell in the shelter of the Lord,
Who abide in his shadow for life.
Say to the Lord: "My refuge;
My rock, in whom I trust.

And He will raise you up, on eagle's wings;
Bear you on the breath of dawn;
Make you to shine in the sun,
And hold you in the palm of His hand.

You need not fear the terror of the night,
Nor the arrow that flies by day.
Under His wings your refuge;
His faithfulness your shield.

And He will raise you up, on eagle's wings;
Bear you on the breath of dawn;
Make you to shine in the sun,
And hold you in the palm of His hand.

For to His angels He's given a command;
To guard you in all of your ways.
Upon their hands they will bear you up,
Lest you dash your foot against a stone.

And He will raise you up, on eagle's wings;
Bear you on the breath of dawn;
Make you to shine in the sun,
And hold you in the palm of His hand.

And He will raise you up, on eagle's wings;
Bear you on the breath of dawn;
Make you to shine in the sun,
And hold you. . .
And hold you. . .
And hold you. . .
Hold you in the palm of His hand

My heart goes out to all the victims and rescuers who were killed or injured by this attack.

Ooof. So what does this mean? Are we at war? Who is the enemy? Can we overcome the terror and fear they meant to install and find a measured response to this? Or will this escalate?

All questions waiting to be answered.

Okay. The 4th was my birthday and I made off with some good loot. Mostly dough, which is really appreciated at this time. But also the Disney Monopoly game. It's very cute, I like almost everything but the layout confuses me. None of the properties really go together like the original Monopoly game. btw, I didn't win the first game.

In other news, I landed a job today. It's a commission base position selling advertising for a new, but really good magazine. Check out their website at allthatwork.com.

Don't do this

I know I'm about to commit a sin; never release your ideas for an internet website before you've at least registered the domain name. But here I go. I'm thinking about creating a 'Vegas for Families' web site. It would be updated daily with news stories, reviews, and travel tips for families. I'd like it to have a family rated discussion board feature and a chance for guests to contribute their reviews and ratings for various family activites here in Vegas.

What do you think? Email me!

bowling for tourists

Went bowling with the Pretners tonight. Had a good time, but I hate all that smoke. I can't seem to get my game over the hump of 130 points. It might be because I'm a straight bowler, I've never learned the old spin trick that everyone else uses.

I think Vegas is a city in conflict with itself. There are the hick/country types who openly scoff at all us more cosmopolitan folks. We, on the otherhand, can't wait for them to turn their backs so we can rag on their style and backwards attitudes. Usually these two elements don't interact, but bowling alleys seem to be a common ground. Certainly not Starbucks.

So long and thanks for all the fish...

As you might recall Douglas Adams who penned the Hitchikers Guide to the Universe and the Dirk Gently series (my favorite detective) passed on to the other world recently. However, his handwriting has been saved for all posterity in a font on this page.

A couple of interesting links. First ZZZ online appears to have some interesting stories. Notably, this story on Powerskips. Yes, the same fun bouncy things used in the Eureka parade at DCA. Now, I know what I want for Christmas.

Roommates...

Stacey's cousin, his wife, and their baby are staying with us for just over a month. They've bought a new house, and are renting out their old one. There is a month or so of overlap between occupancy and when the renter needed to move in. So we've got house guests.

It never works out perfectly. They're always just a little too messy, too loud, or have too much stuff, than you'd like. And with family, it's tougher. So we're making the best of it, but as i said, "It's never perfect."

Don't have much to say today... except to say congrats to LaughingPlace.com on its two year anniversary yesterday (okay, so I'm a day late and more than a dollar short). It's been a fun two years and I hope to be around 18 years from now when we're celebrating being Almost Legal like MTV was yesterday. Kinda of a weird birthday to share, don't you think?

Come buy a t-shirt

Do you have yours yet? no... Well, the LaughingPlace.com T-shirt is a must have. Five, count'em five, lovely colors embroidered on a perfectly swell Ash Grey T. Help support the best independant Disney web site and yours truly.

Stacey's friend Trina had a brial shower (read bachelorette party) this weekend. While Stacey played I watched Barrage, for whom I used to have a fan website, perform at Disneyland. When Go.com closed up shop, they also stopped supporting the free websites that Barrage(d) was hosted on. So I'm looking for a host site, but not seriously as I don't have the time to update the HTML code. Not until I get a steady job here...

Anyway, it was great to see them and I hope to see them when they come to Vegas... no word on dates yet. But it should be for an extended stay.

Oh well, back to faxing resumes... email me

Another day in Paradise

Last night at sunset a small thunder cell rolled over the hills behind us. The light, rain, and wind combined to generate one of the truly amazing natural effects I've ever seen. The sky looked to be on fire; rolling waves of rain illuminated in deep reds and purples cascaded down until they shrouded the hills in a burning mist. It was over in a few instants. By the time I thought to run and get my camera, the moment had past and a thin, but long, rainbow had appeared. Was that a sign of hope?

I need some hope right now. The job search feels like it is going no where and August is our drop dead month. Don't know what we'll do when the money runs out.

Oy... where have I been. Well, I've been busy looking for work. Have had quitea few nibbles, but nothing serious that pays anything near what I need to make. There is a serious gap between LA rates and and Vegas pay. Something closer to 50%... I was expecting 70% or so. So that's a big shock. I continue to look

I've also been working hard on LaughingPlace.com. Selling T-shirts and selling ads. Have a few great starts, but no closes yet. I'll keep you updated.

Well. I didn't win the $141 million lotto. So I'm back. =) I had won two $5 prizes with my usual numbers, so there was hope... oh well. back to the job search. Said search is going slowly despite the 4% unemployment level here. So many of the jobs are $8/hr or less than half what I was earning for a similar job. However, I have had a couple of interviews and liked those companies... so who knows.

Meanwhile, I' ve been working hard on selling ads for LaughingPlace.com. I've had some nibbles, but no bites yet. We're also getting ready to sell some LP Gear... So that should bring in some money soon.

Whew. Looks like Disney is getting its ass kicked at the box office. It's a shame really. Both are very entertaining movies that deserve a second, let alone first, viewing by audiences.

Of course, there are other movies coming down the pike this summer that are sure to be big hits. Steven Speilberg's filming of Stanley Kubriak's last project is one. As a matter of fact, "A.I." has already begun to be felt on the internet. Follow this search on google and see what I mean.

Here's a link to a very nice Douglas Adams tribute. Douglas Adams has heavily influenced my sense of humor and through his writings has inspired me to write some of my own material.

Btw, this weekend Stacey and I will be at Disneyland for a friends birthday and a special event.

Went down to LA for the weekend. Saw Disney's Atlantis... was very good. Only had a few week script moments. But loved the animation and the characters. It really is something the whole family can enjoy.

D-Day

Today is the anniversary of D-Day. Seeing as how I just watched 'Saving Private Ryan' I thought I'd watch 'The Longest Day' -- The other seminal D-Day flick. While the pure horror of war as brought to you through SPR was much more graphic, TLD had is fair share of horrifying moments as well. TLD definately was more of a patriotic rally the troops kind of fare. Made me want to bleed Red White and Blue. In the end, SPR was a story about how important it is to live your life the best you can everyday of your life.

I'd hate to see any warfare on the epic scale that was brought to us in WWI and WWII. But on the otherhand evil on the scale of Hitler and Japanese agresssion has to be stopped. For America to sit idly by for as long as it did probably resulted in millions of extra deaths. But you can't armchair quarter back these sorts of things. The best you can do is just learn your lessons and move on. Then hopefully you will be better at preventing these sorts of outbreaks of oppression and what-not in the future.

Which brings me to a tragedy that is ongoing in the world right now. The Taliban in Afganistan. As of late, they've taken to making anyone who isn't a strict follower of islam wear an identifying tag or color of clothes. Sound familiar? I don't think enough attention has been paid to this corner of the world... I really fear that before I die the conflict will grow to such horrendous proportions that D-Day and Pearl Harbor will be made to look like simple foreshadowing.

I hope I'm wrong.

Shrek!

I seem to have turned into a Movie review site... Hmmm. Stacey and I went to see Shrek a second time. See if there were more in jokes and parodies we might have missed. There were... in fact, there were so many, one really needs to get the DVD (which I hope is packed with kewl features) and pause the frame at the interesting spots.

Another thing we've noticed here in Lost Wages, the audiences are less sophisticated when it comes to movie humor than your typical Los Angeles audience. Many times Stacey and I are laughing at completely different places than the locals out here. I wonder if that will change once a few movie studios open up out here (they're in the works) and the industry moves a little east.

Pearl Harbor

Go see it. At least once. It's a good film despite what the critics say. It is not, however, a classic for the ages. Which is too bad, because the directors work so hard to make it so. What it is is a good love triangle story, albeit a bit predictable, and some incredible special effects. Together they combine to really drive home the horror of what happened at Pearl Harbor.

Not much news on this front. Been working hard on things for LaughingPlace.com. Got another contact for selling ads, been sending out surveys like crazy. But am still less than 10% done on that.

the other major event is doing inventory on all our collectibles. What I need now is a copy of filemaker pro for the PC. I have to make a database to track our inventory and print it out for insurance purposes.

I'm back!!!!

Went to Sam's Town Hotel and Casino last night. The also have some bowling lanes there. Stacey and I gave them a try. But I don't think we'll be going back anytime soon. The approach is way to hard, Both of us had problems sliding even an inch after planting our foot. Not good on the old legs... I think we'll try Texas Station next.

I've also been working on some stuff for LaughingPlace.com. Ordered T-shirts to sell. There has been a demand for LP merchandise, so it's about time we answered it. Now I have to hope the demand is large enough to make this effort worthwhile.

Stacey and I also had the pleasure of entertaining Ammy and Rick this last saturday. We met them at Mon Ami Gabi at the Paris Hotel and Casino. Good food and nice atmosphere, but I didn't enjoy the service at all. After that we traversed the newest hotels on the strip and wore out the soles of our shoes. But it was nice seeing them again.