Diary of a Wolfeman

The EMC made a point of telling me there would be a kiddie activity area at an Earth Day celebration going on down at Sellwood Park Saturday, so I took the Pookster down there to see it. It was a beautiful day aside from a chilly breeze, and it was good for the both of us to get outside.

Sellwood Park is a good place to get away to on any sunny day, as they have a lot of open grassy areas and a good playground that’s shaded enough I don’t have to worry that the World’s Whitest Girl will burn her hide off. It’s not the most entertaining place on Earth Day, however.

Sure, the Pookster had a good time and they had a really interesting marching band leading a parade (think Hawthorne freaky kids with tri-tops and brass), but for me there were far too many dirt-lovers present. Now, I’m all for recycling and cleaning up after yourself, but for me, that includes taking a shower at least 4 days out of 5. You would think a group of people dedicated to cleaning up their environment would start at home, you know?

I also can’t understand how the idea of ‘casual clothing’ has somehow mutated into an excuse for a slovenly appearance – generally shapeless and baggy clothing that is so wrinkled it looks like it has been slept in for a number of days has somehow become the norm for the non-business set in a number of areas I am forced to be lately. (The parents at my daughter’s school seem to adhere to this recent trend. I always feel out-of-place because none of my clothes are wrinkled and they all match.)

One of the most disturbing things I saw was the number of younger people (under an estimated 25) sporting a noticeable gut. Not just the guys, but the girls too were wearing what I have heard called a “muffin top” where the belly kind of overflows the pants. Okay, I have a gut, but I’m 34 and don’t get enough exercise. These are people who ride bicycles and dance at drum circles for hours on end, and they’re sporting beer bellies? What the hell are they eating? It makes me wonder if being a vegetarian to them means they can eat nothing but french fries cooked in vegetable oil.

And they wonder why no one outside of Portland really takes them seriously.

I was looking around for something to write about, and ran across a meme over at Frizzen Sparks – “6 Weird Things About Me”. Huh. Not a bad idea…so what have I got?

1.) I was once offered a job as a sniper, back when Boznia-Herzogovina was the hot LZ. The job didn’t pay enough for the risks involved.

2.) I have a strange knack for walking up to the most broken-down computer in any room at random, and having it break in a new and unusual way when I touch it. Handy, considering my profession.

3.) I have a really high tolerance for pain and can absorb quite a bit of physical damage without being overly inconvenienced. Growing up in the woods with an older brother teaches you a few things.

4.) I rarely get sick, something that has seriously offended at least one of my old girlfriends, considering that I smoke, don’t get enough exercise and generally should take better care of myself. (She always had the sniffles, even though she led a very healthy lifestyle and I never even so much as sneezed in her presence.)

5.) Even though I have no real reason to be paranoid about being watched, I often will make a point of picking out the security cameras when entering a building, and then plotting ways in my head to get around them.

6.) I once got so into Fantasy books and role-playing games that I created an alternate symbology for the English alphabet and could read / write it fluently all through high school.

Okay, in the grand scheme of things, nothing really too weird in there after all. Shrug.