Keep it

Just keeping the seat warm. Or, less cold, at least.

Music is my king-sized bed . . .

I can’t think of a better way to get over the pain of watching a national championship bid slip down the drain over the weekend than to hit up an awesome concert in a classic venue on a snowy Monday night. I’m off to Cleveland in a few hours to see Jack’s Mannequin, an amazing piano rock band that I was recently introduced to, performing live at a sold out Grog Shop.



Jack’s Mannequin is fronted by Andrew McMahon, formerly of Something Corporate, and recently released their second album, The Glass Passenger. More info HERE.

I’ll post some pictures from the show later this week. Hope everyone is having a good one.

Where I've Been

With a number of fun trips coming up in the next few months, I thought it'd be fun to try to figure out exactly where I've already gone. Using this fun site, I generated a map showing how many of the 50 states that I've seen, followed by a (sparse) map revealing what countries I've visited. The most fun, of course, will be in updating this for myself over time. Anyway, here's the state map:



And here's the world map:

In Which I Try Not To Jinx My Favorite Team

Reading a friend’s recent blog post about her pumpkin salsa soup, I recalled that I had intended to post a picture of my own wanton pumpkin slaughtering:

These inspiring creations took shape mere hours before the Penn State football team took down the Ohio State Buckeyes on the road, seizing control, perhaps, of the easiest path to the MNC remaining to any undefeated team. It was apparent early on that this team had a chance to be special, and now the potential exists for them to be truly historical. Without venturing too far down the road towards Jinxdom by discussing future plans, I do want to post some pictures from my road trip to Purdue. The first picture is of my dad and I in front of Ross-Ade Stadium, the second is "The Boilermaker," a massive bronze statue standing near the Purdue athletic facilities, and the final shot is from inside the stadium.

My next chance to see the Nittany Lions in person will be November 22, when I’ll be road-tripping to State College to tailgate with some friends and watch PSU take on Michigan State. Go State!

Happy Halloween!

Donning the appropriate costumes, my friends and I were off to see the Wizard last weekend for Halloween:

Although we never found the man behind the curtain, we had a great time, shared some drinks, and saw some very entertaining costumes. I’d love to hear what everyone else did for Halloween, whether you dressed up and went out, hung around the neighborhood to hand out candy, or just ignored the holiday completely!

The Wizard Awaits . . .

Things I Am Not:

1) Dead
2) Missing
3) Giving up on blogging.

I have, however, been ridiculously busy. My past two months have featured a brutal work schedule in September and a bulging social schedule in October, leaving me precious little time to goof around on here. I do, however, have some stuff that I’m hoping to throw up here en route to posting regularly again. If you’re still around, awesome. If not, I’ll probably drag you back kicking and screaming by badgering you to check the site out because I’m so totally gonna update regularly this time, seriously though, I totally am, and, like, I mean it for sure this time, etc etc etc.

Anyway, by way of previewing coming attractions, over the past several weekends I have: traveled to Indiana to catch Penn State on the road against Purdue with my dad; camped and hiked through Hocking Hill State Park, near Columbus, Ohio; carved Halloween pumpkins and watched Penn State potentially seize the fast track to the MNC game; ventured, once again, into the Canadian wilderness for the annual fishing trip; purchased a new vehicle; and, on a less ambitious note, learned to shred on Guitar Hero. My every intention is to post some pictures and stories from each of these things as time allows, so kick back, refresh your browser now and then, and prepare to be amazed . . . eventually.

As for this coming weekend, the novelty of Halloween falling on a Friday inspired me to get a few friends together to dress up and go out. The Wizard of Oz-themed cast of characters will feature my best friends, Joel and Allison, as the brainless scarecrow and a flirty but cowardly lion, myself as the heartless man of tin, and my girlfriend, Sarah, resplendent but slightly scandalous as Dorothy. We are, of course, off to see the Wizard, but we’ll be checking in at a few downtown clubs first!

And now, by request, here’s a long overdue Friday Weekly Top Ten:

1) Stuart and the Ave. - Green Day
2) Ghost of a Texas Ladies Man - Concrete Blonde
3) Dudley - Yeah Yeah Yeahs
4) Teenagers - My Chemical Romance
5) Swim - Jack’s Mannequin
6) Thirty One Today - Aimee Mann
7) Cherub Rock - Smashing Pumpkins
8) If U C Jordan - Something Corporate
9) Paint It Black - The Rolling Stones
10) Phenomena - Yeah Yeah Yeahs

Brad and Jeff Strike Again

In the aftermath of the collapse of Wall Arch in Arches National Park a mere 3 months after our visit, my friend Brad and I widened our swath of destruction to include an even more iconic symbol of the southwest, the Grand Canyon. The breach of an earthen dam over the weekend caused water to flood Supai and Cataract Canyons, forcing rescuers to evacuate several stranded tourists. You can read about the flood here.

The Grand Canyon was somewhat difficult to enjoy on our trip because the snow, fog and rain severely restricted the view to the canyon floor. The wet conditions also transformed the canyon trails into a sloppy, muddy mess, preventing us from doing much hiking. That said, I now have a list of things I’d like to return to do someday: whitewater raft a section of the river, drive the primitive dirt road to Toroweap for a glimpse of the most famous view of the Grand Canyon, and hike to the bottom for a swim beneath stunning Havasu Falls: