it's the little things that mattter (from 6/27)

like directions to your friend's house where you intend to spend the night. oops. not too worried - i have 7-8 hours to figure it out. first i'm going to kill a couple of hours watching Wall*E. opened today, so i have no idea what to expect except for the brief glimpses i've caught in previews and teasers. been a while since i've seen a movie with little to no prior knowledge.

i'm at the marcus theater in pickerington. last time i was here was with jeremy and friends. not sure what we saw - some guy movie i'm sure. he was in my dreams this week, doing what he did best - being uncomfortably naked. i miss him.

spent lunch with laurie and mel at some bbq joint. decent food, much better company. mel just got back from europe, so i'm not talking to her. laurie had wonderful stories about the girls. lovely, lovely time. catching up made me realize i need to not wait so long between visits. life comes in and fills up the moments when your not watching, leaving you with no place to squeeze in what's most important.

movie's starting. more later.
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mcdonald's, outside port columbus, waiting for brian to call, tell me he's arrived. spent the first hour in my car, reading murakami's norwegian wood. enjoying it more than kafka - not that kafka was bad, i'm just tracking with this story and character more.

i enjoyed Wall *E immensely. a remarkable feat of storytelling without words. i predict it won't be as successful as other pixar flicks, not because it's not as good, but because the public has high expectations for them and are no longer impressed by their animation, which is a shame because it continues to be flawless. i also imagine those on the right will object to its environmental message, even thought that's not the main story line and in all honesty, the weakest part of the film. i could see using this film as an example of showing, not telling. the scenes with Wall*E and Eve were far more powerful and meaningful without words than the talky human scenes. quite the relationship built sans words.

there's part of me that feels the need to despise disney. they're supposed to represent everything bad about entertainment. yet i can't stop the giddy feeling i get when the logo comes up, the yearning to return to a simpler time. i was fairly obsessed with all things disney as a kid, right after my second trip to disneyworld. i was 10. there was an old roll top desk in my room i turned into a disney shrine. souvenirs from my trip. paraphernalia mom picked up at garage sales. i even remember ordering a special set of stamps from some distant country just because they had disney characters on them.

see, my tendency toward obsession started early.

though there's much to hate disney for - their squeakifying of stories and history, their over-commercialization, their decision to abandon hand-drawn animation - i will always have a soft spot for the role they played n my own childhood. which i suppose is what makes them so insidious - they insinuate themselves into your memories, co0opting them. it's probably not as malicious as i make it sound. they're no worse than where i'm sitting right now, though that's faint praise indeed.

brian just called. he's still at o'hare, which is unfortunate isnce he was supposed to arrive here 20 minutes ago. i wonder sometimes if short jumps are worth it - as he pointed out, if he'd started driving when he left for the airport, he'd be here by now or at least closer than he is. i think i'm ok here for now - the cashier told the older gentleman in front of me they don't kick people otu fo the dining room if they're here before it closes. i should go grab my book though - not sure i could keep writing for an hour straight - thought it might be good to try, i fear what drivel might come out.

just walked out to my car - almost too nice out to sit in a/c and wait, thunderstorm watches be damned. yet here i sit, the vinyl seats making the back of my knees sweat. i have no one to blame by myself.

after the movie i went to goodwill to find something to wear to the show. i found a cool blue dress shirt and a wide tie to go with it. i kept this simple idea in mind - what would brian wear? not really sure how i'll change before the show, but i'm sure we'll find an accommodating bathroom somewhere before the show.

currently listening to my 80s playlist, the primary reason for spending hours this summer looking up release dates on wikipedia (all together now...GEEK!). already found a couple of errors - i'm sorry, but cracker did not release kerosene hat in 1989 (that's what i get for trusting gracenote or whatever online database pulled the info). the music makes me a bit wistful, even the songs and bands i didn't discover until after the 80s were over. wish i could say i was listening to galaxie 500 and the jesus and mary chain in high school, but i was too busy extolling the musical genius of stryper. silly, silly boy. according to my ipod, i have 2,885 songs from the 80s, which means a little less than 20% of my collection, compared to 36% for both the 90s and the aughts. but i guarantee the stories connected to my 80s songs are deeper and more meaningful. for instance, right now "wasn't that a party" by the irish rovers is playing. i distinctly remember lying in my bed, listening to my clock radio play this song early in the morning. some radio station from my childhood played it regularly for a while, though i only ever heard it in the morning. strange how memories work.

tired of writing. i'm sure you're tired of reading. off to read some more murakami. Æ

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