The Starry Skies Over Monticello, Indiana

So I took off Thursday night with the dog in the back, a six-pack of Bass Pale Ale, and a suitcase that would've given a weaker man a hernia. That's because I took a bunch of books I didn't end up reading, in addition to my dumbbells, because I'm on a quest for more attractive biceps. I was originally going to take my laptop, but decided not to when I couldn't lift the suitcase off the bed.

Because I left so late, I got into Monticello after midnight, and I immediately stopped at Wal-Mart. I don't usually like to go there, since I think it's a vile, evil company, but I needed a couple of gallons of water, as well as more substantial provisions. On a lark I also bought Ultimate Kylie, because since Madonna has found the Kabbalah, adopted a British accent, and lost her ability to record a good, danceable single, I have shifted my DIVAllegiance to Ms. Minogue. Some of the Stock, Aiken, and Waterman stuff (stuff I've never heard before, aside from "The Loco-motion") is actually pretty good, and the two new songs that are included are awesome. Although I do wish that "Your Disco Needs You" had been included.

Because I got there so late, I wasn't able to turn on the water heater, or the water softener: they're both at the far end of the basement, a basement which is about 5'5" high, whereas I am 6'3". Plus the only light in the basement is on the opposite side of the basement, by the stairs. So I didn't turn them on until the next morning. When I did take a shower on Friday night, it was like bathing in sand; evidently the water in the water heater wasn't the softened water. I had fully poseable hair all weekend. It was rather unpleasant.

I ended up not doing as much reading as I expected, spending most of my time watching the Black History Month specials on VH1, and watching more TechTV than I ever would have thought possible. It turns out that I have a crush on Victor Lucas; he has that "cute geek" thing going on that I evidently really repond to. It's enough to get a guy to start playing "first-person shooters".

I also didn't get any writing done. Not really a surprise there, although mildly disappointing.

I didn't do a lot while I was down there, but on Saturday I went antiquing in neighboring Delphi. I ended up buying a whole stack of 7" singles (Lou Rawls, Heatwave, Lulu, Eruption, Chic, Janet Jackson, The Walker Brothers, Information Society, Grace Jones, Gene Pitney, and Madonna's "Dress You Up" -- ahhh, the Madonna of old!), which means that someday soon I really need to buy a decent record player. Recommendations are welcome. I also bought a wooden, one-foot tall statue of Buddha, a glass flower frog to use in my Fiesta vases, and a Bobbsey Twins book -- The Big River Mystery. I never read Nancy Drew or the Hardy Boys, but I inherited a love of the Bobbsey Twins from my mother. I actually read it in a couple hours Saturday night, and realized that the reason I liked those books are because of the educational aspects ham-handedly rammed into the mystery story. Bits of local color and whatnot. Although the idea of two 11 year olds and two 6 year olds being allowed to single-handedly take on smugglers with their parents' blessing is a bit hard to believe.

The movie theater (which only costs $3.00 for first run movies) was showing Hide and Seek and Boogey Man, both of which I vowed never, ever to see, because they both looked so crappy in the advertisements. The former just goes to show how indiscriminate Robert De Niro has become when accepting roles in movies. Unfortunately, the drive-in doesn't show movies in the winter, although I don't know if they still do the drive-in church thing on Sunday. I always threaten to go to it; maybe someday I will.

The weather all weekend was absolutely beautiful; I was running around sans jacket all weekend. And at night the sky was filled with stars, which is always a treat.

All in all, a good, useless weekend.

This morning, though, I had to wake up early to drive my dad to U of M's Kellogg Eye Center for an appointment. It seems like he is doing pretty well, although I'm not sure that it isn't too early to even speculate on that. My mom is doing very well, and is actually eating tuna, i.e., solid food, which has been approved by her doctor. But then she has plastic surgery on Wednesday, because her eyelids are actually obstructing her vision. It's evidently the medical season in the S. Household.

Is it wrong that I like a Kelly Clarkson song? Let me rephrase that: How wrong is it that I like a Kelly Clarkson song?