He walked through city streets.

I've always felt like "He walked through city streets" is a great way to start a story. Something about it implies purpose. Perhaps he's walking to get somewhere specific, perhaps he's meandering. Perhaps he's in deep though, or perhaps he's so focused on his goal that he sees nothing else. I always picture the phrase with a bit of blurred motion around my protagonist. The city implies busyness, but he's not aware of it. Or maybe the city itself is what is intriguing.

He walked through city streets on a crisp autumn day. The breeze gently blows his hair with the whispering sounds of red leafed trees watching his every move. His thoughts wander on events earlier in the day. What was it that he was seeking? What did he hope to accomplish?

He walked through city streets, fists clenched in fury. A car screeches to a halt a stride away and honks loudly. He ignores it. A passerby dodges out of his way, stops to say something, but thinks better of it. The crowds seem to split before him, as if his burning aura were enough to spread their bodies. Nothing could stop him now.

He walked through city streets, the rain gently masking the tears building in his eyes. Umbrellaed figures glided past him, barely noticing his presence. He could still remember the moment clearly. It replayed in slow motion whenever he blinked. Every detail, every sound, he could smell the smells. It hard been hard to deal with everything this past year.

He walked through city streets, listening to music on his music player. Who knew the PATH train would be so crowded during the summer. All the Jersey scumbags seem to have crawled out of the woodwork now that the cold season passed. More people to block the sidewalks. More people who stopped for no reason. The walk sign lit up and the masses began moving forward. Here comes another day at work.

It's a small world, afterall.

My friend Jim came to visit me over Memorial Day weekend. He brought his girlfriend. She's great, but this post isn't about her (plus, I'd need another shirt to go with my "I blogged your mom" shirt).

His girlfriend's friend lives six blocks away from me. This was amusing. She asked me where I worked, and it turns out, we work across the street from each other.

Later on in the night, after binge drinking at this great bar called The Gin Mill, a drunken navy officer comes stumbling out asking for a cigarette. We engage him in conversation and Jim mentions that his uncle is also in the Navy. It turns out, the drunken sailor's commanding officer was Jim's uncle.

On the train ride home, Jim's girlfriend's friend runs into someone she knew from eleven years ago. They talked. Jim's cousin told us stories of his drunken adventures in New York.

And two days later, he still had the hiccups.

My Birthday Wishlist 2007

It's my quarter-life crisis time. So what does that mean? Well, if you look at a retirement fund chart, the money I could have put away from eighteen to this point would compound to be more money than if I saved the same amount a year from this point until I retire.

So if you're younger than me, start looking at IRA's and other funds. Putting away a thousand bucks a year will pretty much make you a millionaire by the time you're sixty.

On to the list:

Cheapos

Shoes - I need basketball shoes that actually fit well, and I'm always on the lookout for walking shoes that are really comfortable. I seem to wear out shoes really fast walking everywhere in the city. Size 11.

Shirts - Clever shirts are kind of trendy, but I can't bring myself to spend 20 bucks for what amounts to shirts with some words ironed onto a plain shirt. No logos please. XL because i'm fat.

Belts - My awesome metal plate Guess belt is starting to get beat up, and it's a little stretched out. It'd be nice to have a couple belt styles to choose from too.

Wallet - I have too many cards. Credit cards, ID cards, business cards. I hate carrying all that shit around, but I also need to. A nice bi-fold wallet would be nice. Photo book insert unnecessary, driver's license flap unnecessary too.

Books - I love books.

Steepos

Wii - I'm too lazy to fight all the non-gamers who are willing to grab one when they're actually in stock. But if someone wants to try for me, fantastic.

Cellphone - My razor is pretty minimalistic and I like it, but it'd be nice to not have a phone that every other person in the world has.

7.1 surround sound computer speakers - My new computer has the capability for them, but alas, I don't have them.

Insaneos

2 Nvidia 8800 GTS video cards - I need an awesome video card setup for my awesome computer, and going SLI would work very well for my needs.

A motorcycle - I dunno what the latest bikes are anymore or what's good, but I am definitely thinkin about selling the car and just having a bike to get around when I need to get around.

Dodge Viper - What? It's always on my list.