The Metaverse

Where do blogs come from?

2011-05-05T20:46:00.000-07:00

Since moving to the Bay Area, void of car, I've taken to biking nearly everywhere. It doesn't hurt that inclement weather is minimal and the generally cool conditions keep you comfortable when you're riding. But coming from Chicago, and already being an avid biker, there is one thing I was unprepared for: Hills.

Mind you, when I say Hills (see that capital?), I really mean small mountains. San Francisco has 47 hills over its 46.7 square miles. 7 of these are said to be the "Seven Hills of San Francisco," a claim in reference to Rome, the "City of Seven Hills." This claim is not exclusive of San Francisco and Rome, 49 other cities have claimed to be built upon seven hills, including San Diego and Seattle.

Outside my window, just a mile away, sits Bernal Heights. At 443 ft, it stands at a median point of all of 47, but is a challenge nonetheless. After accomplishing a bike ride to its summit earlier this week, I decided I was ready for something a little harder.

Twin Peaks is the second highest "hill" in San Francisco, behind Mt. Davidson. At 910 ft, it may sound like a casual jaunt, but to make matters more interesting; I was working with a second hand 29er mountain bike, 4 miles of road between me and it, and 1 hour in which to complete the ride (before returning to work).

Suffice it to say, I completed the ride, but have been useless ever since I got home. And that's how blogs are made.

View from Twin Peaks

Back Again - This Time From Oakland

2011-04-10T19:52:00.000-07:00

So, it's been another year without posting. And since then, Sonia and I have set out on yet another adventure and have moved just outside San Francisco to start the next chapter in our lives.

In moving, this blog gains new importance as I can keep all my new experiences current with all those wondering how things are out West.

Hopefully we don't disappoint.

DM

Whatever happened to Colorado?

2010-06-30T00:41:00.000-07:00

So you may have noticed that the Colorado trip summary never did quite end.

Distractions, Distractions.

We ended up spending a few days in Aspen, hitting the slopes and having them hit us, before heading home. All in all a good time.

I just got back from a few weeks in Australia and will not attempt a day by day posting, but will put together a few posts summarizing the experience.

As a teaser, these little guys taste like SoCo and Lime. Delicious. Also utilized by the Aborigines in medicine, it successfully prevented one onset of migraine with the application of one ant in my presence. Scientific breakthrough? Remarkable...

Day 3: Frisco and Glenwood

2010-04-24T17:39:00.000-07:00

I awoke the next morning at 6 am, feeling groggy, because I feel asleep around 7 the previous evening. I watched Gladiator while I packed my bag. The house was slowly coming awake and we decided to go into town to get some food. Butterhorn Bakery was our choice in Frisco's little thoroughfare of log-built storefronts. If you ever go, make sure you get the "Eggy Bread".

After returning back to Ben's place in Frisco, we found two people snow biking down a small hill across from the house. We joined them, though weren't nearly as adventurous. Then, we headed out for Glenwood and Aspen.

We'd been told at REI that the drive through Glenwood Canyon is among the most beautiful in Colorado. We'd also heard there had been a rockslide through the canyon the previous week, cutting off traffic in both directions for a while, resulting in a 150 detour.

When we reached the Canyon, we found that the first statement was true, and the second was true, though already cleared, except for some extensive road damage. Realizing that Sara's proposed hike was in this canyon, we decided it was worth it. Hanging Lake is a natural formation of a lake on the side of a mountain due to some strange limestone formation. Half way up the mountain, the snow hadn't melted yet and a chute of ice had been created running halfway down the mountain. Which lead to fun results.

Afterwards, we joined Sara's friends, Chappy and Liz in Glenwood for brews before they put us up for the night.

Day 2: Onward to the Breck

2010-04-04T19:52:00.000-07:00

We woke up early, myself earlier than most, and prepared for our trip to Breckenridge aiming to be there as the slopes opened. Everyone but myself seemed to nursing hangovers largely blamed on absinthe the previous evening. Lethargy was definitely present as we began our trip west and Colyn proved his inability with directions, but as we approached the mountain range to our west, the excitement certainly increased. Well, except for Sara.

The mountain had gotten half a foot a few days earlier in the week, so the snow was good, but well run by the time we arrived. It was exciting to be on a mountain again, but overall found Breckenridge to be a fun, but not terribly challenging mountain.

Ed, Colyn and I really began getting into the mountain later in the day, running some fast runs. Until a ski instructor decided to pull us over, in order to tell us just how long he'd been skiing. He may have also mentioned how little we'd apparently skied, but that wasn't much more than a secondary concern, based on the time devoted in his speech. Ed has it on video somewhere.

We headed to Breckenridge Brewery for apres ski beer and nachos, before heading to Frisco to crash thanks once again to the generosity of Ben & Joel.

Day 1: Arrival in Denver

2010-04-03T18:10:00.000-07:00

Edward and I landed in Denver on a bright and sunny Saturday noon. Already, weather was looking more congenial than the 6 am sleet we left in Chicago. Sara and Colyn hadn't left from their current habitation in Denver proper and we had half an hour of trying to figure out the correct departure lane for traffic before they arrived. In consequence, the timing was perfect.

We headed back to our stop for the night, a renovated church courtesy of Sara's Fayetteville Ultimate friends, Ben and Joel. Their place featured three stories of stained glass windows, loft ceilings and a bedroom in the belfry.

We went out for drinks and hit up one of Ben's favorite watering holes, The Horseshoe Lounge, got some delicious truffle fries and shot some pool, played some darts. A live band was starting up, GT and the Sidewinders and we decided to stay for the show.

They describe themselves as rocka-honka-americana-roots heartbreakers, but whatever they were, it was a good time.

They were so entertaining, we took some video of their show.

Later we ran home, with Sara in a shopping cart, to catch a few Zzz's before heading to Breckenridge the next day.

Colorado Trip

2010-04-03T10:31:00.000-07:00

After a depressing long Chicago winter, I got out of the city last week and got to experience snow that you can actually do something with, like snow ball fights, skiing and general fun.

For those of you unfamiliar with Chicago snow, it only serves the purpose of making it harder to walk, trickling down your shirt, getting dirty and drab and come early spring, falling on you from very tall buildings.

My trip took me to Colorado, airfare courtesy of my old roommate and Buick compatriot, Edward, along with Colyn (another exroommate and fellow Buickteer) and his girl, Sarah (aka the girl who knows everybody everywhere through Arkansas Ultimate).

The following posts will detail some of our travels in roughly chronological order.

Falling

2010-04-01T05:21:00.000-07:00

A year ago today, a coworker and I were getting breakfast on the 30th floor of our building when a woman flew by the building next to ours, the Civic Opera House. It would seem she jumped from the 40th floor and landed on the canopy, two stories above the ground. The entire room rushed to the window and the first word out of anyone's mouth was "I hope that wasn't an April Fool's prank."

People spent the rest of the day watching the crews clean up after her and bemoaning the briefness of life. Life is especially short when one decides to jump out of a window, a decision that is rarely reversible.

I try not to be one to claim to know what is best for other people individually, though I spend plenty of time declaring what may or may not be best for me. A year ago, a woman jumped out of a window and I watched her fall. Perhaps she was sad, or cornered, or frightened. But she identified relief in a way few of us would. And if it was relief from pain she found, I will not fault her that.

I would have kept a parachute on standby.

Tearing up the Winter Wonderland

2009-02-21T17:59:00.000-08:00

Last weekend, my better half and I ventured to California for a little time away from Chicago and a little skiing/snowboarding in Lake Tahoe. California is a welcome reprieve from Chicago in the middle of February and ranks among the best trip ideas Sonia has ever had. Which is to say, it was awesome.

Driving into Lake Tahoe, the snow was falling thick and fast, dropping a few feet in just a few hours, forcing us along backroads as cars spun out and semis jack knifed along the only highway into Lake Tahoe.

The first day, we both learned to snowboard, an embarrassing process involving torqued knees and faces covered in snow, but at the end of the that day, we emerged victorious, able to conquer a green without fail.

At night, we ventured out into another storm to see all hype of the casinos on the Nevada side of Lake Tahoe. Walking the casino, we quickly became aware we were too well dressed, too capable of completing full sentences and too inept at even knowing which table was playing what game to hang around.

The next day was Valentine's Day, and another few feet of fresh powder covered the ground. My pride broken, I switched to skis, hoping to take on some hard parts of the mountain without injuries, physical or emotional. Sonia, in her usual persistent way, took to the snowboard again, and through many trials and tribulations proved that persistence is the only way to become better at something.

I enjoyed tearing up the mountain, over rocks, through trees, over ridges, keeping an eye of my wonderous girlfriend, who became rather adept with the snowboard, no speed demon, but capable of carving and moving down complicated hills without embarrassingly disappearing into a pile of snow. By the end, Sonia was snowboarding all over the mountain, doing blues, while I watched and skied between the trees. The vistas were incredible. We returned to the lodge to find other skiers, their dogs and hot mulled cider waiting.

That night we celebrated Valentine's Day in the usual fashion, with a dinner by the lake, though we found several other cozy spots in Lake Tahoe, including hot tubs open to the sky, where your drinks are brought to you by servers. We found, once again, we were tragically overdressed, reminding us just how "city" we really are.

The next day we headed home through yet another snow storm, traveling less than 20 miles in the first two hours. We were fortunate enough to still make the flight home, and watched as our path took over over the South Shore of Lake Tahoe and Heavenly, seeing the runs we did that day from the air.

When that ski bug gets under your skin, its hard to let it go, so tomorrow, we are off again to Devils Head to tear up some more mountain.

In conclusion, California rocks and so does my girlfriend. QED

DM

Return of the Morley

2009-01-27T21:19:00.000-08:00

So I've been accused of not writing enough in this blog. This is a fallacy. A better argument is that I haven't been posting enough in this blog.

I write quite a bit actually, not nearly as often as I like, as the purpose of this blog is to track to most minute thoughts and interactions that amuse me. I do find myself often beginning a post and bailing half way through and have half a dozen unfinished posts hidden just behind this page, perhaps never to see the light of day.

Abandoning my own criticisms would probably be wise at this point, because as a result, I've failed to memorialize a dozen wonderful moments.

So what have you missed from my life since Fall. Sonia and I went to several shows, Jersey Boys, Wicked. And found ourselves going out and having a wonderful time in Chicago shortly before Christmas. Sonia left for Romania a few weeks before Christmas. Two weeks later I flew into London, just before New Year's and we met up. Along with my brother flying in from Colombia and his girlfriend flying in from Madrid, we were an international crowd.

We saw London, spent some time down in Brighton with my wonderful grandmother, and then spent a little more time in London, seeing the sights, driving on the wrong side of the road and just generally having a grand time. We finished the trip with wonderful seats at Les Miserables, which had us both in tears by the end. For a more visual perspective, my Flickr account has many pictures from our trip.

Since returning Stateside, I've gotten into building an pre-club ultimate frisbee team, which has taken up most of my time. It fills a void I haven't had in a while, not since leaving college, and being able to build something like that gets me up every morning.

Sadly, my hamstring is not yet better and coaching is still about all I can do, causing me to miss Trouble in Vegas with Haymaker this past weekend. All unfortunate events have a silver lining though, and tomorrow, I will be getting LASIK (which took two weeks of no contacts to get ready for). So next time I post, it will be with perfect vision.

Hopefully my next post will involve more insight and less overview.

Until next time.

DM

Cross Eyed Cats

2008-10-04T22:20:00.000-07:00

I live in a 3 rise condominum in Chicago's West Loop. The area is changing dramatically day to day, with the status quo previously of Ada Homes Projects and Italian communities side by side, being turned upside down with the influx of middle class suburbia looking for a second home.

For myself and my roommates, it afforded a better habitat than most while going to school, with an excellent view of the city and plenty of space. Located right near a field, it benefits our desire to be outdoors often.

In fact, there are only a few things I could honestly gripe about regarding my present living situation and the one that stands out in my mind right now, which I cannot shake, is that damn cat downstairs.

Now, don't get me wrong, I like cats. I might even love cats. When they aren't shedding on everything, they are amazing animals. Intelligent and intuitive, they can be your best friend or worst enemy. That individual potential makes them far superior to their canine partners in domestication.

Dogs are seen as smart, much like dolphins, because when you tell them to do something, you can actually get them to do it. I consider cats intelligent, simply because they don't. They tell you to fuck off. That is an intelligent animal.

Unfortunately, this downstairs cat is ruining all the regal charm a cat should possess. Day after day, I come home to find him on the sill of the double back window staring out, through the screen, taking note of my arrival.

This cat takes note through a strange lopsided look, as it tries to make me out, failing recognition between its severely cross eyed vision. And this is why I can't stand to come home to see this cat day after day. He is ruining my perception of cats all together. He stupidly turns his head to the side, this way and that, attempting to take me in. He has yet to show the fabled perception I believe all cats to have. He is ruining my schema.

I have since run experiments on this cat, while it sat on its perch and have come to only one endearing conclusion. (No, I have not since found the cat adorable). After running similar tests to what the optometrist would run on me, I found that it is very aware that it is cross eyed, which is more than I could say for a dog of a similar disposition.

The fact that it knows it is not seeing as it desires to, is its only saving grace.

Damn that cat.

Her

2008-09-13T22:48:00.000-07:00

It was two years ago, this past summer, when I first met her.

A girl of unsurpassed beauty.

A girl of never-ending energy.

A girl willing to tell me how it is.

A girl unwilling to compromise.

A girl willing to try anything.

A girl unwilling to accept anything, but what she believes to be the best.

My girl.

It was two years ago, this month, we became more than just friends.

It's been two years. Seems like yesterday. Time flies. When I am with her.

She is my rock, my confidante, my love.

We Are The Champions!

2008-09-02T21:55:00.000-07:00

Summer League was an entirely new experience for Ed, Colyn and myself. Captaining a team that consisted almost entirely of high schoolers and first year college students, we found that a lot of fundamental work was necessary and the youngins up to the task. It was inspiring to watch these kids grow as players and go back to their schools with new information and ideas.

We were the favor
ites going into the Summer League Tournament, but on the day we lost many of our best youngins and found ourselves near savage.

We found ourselves working as well together won the tournament, winning a magnum of cheap champagne. As
only a handful of us were over 21, we certainly felt the effects of our celebration quickly.

Of course, no tournament is complete without a Jagg-Off.

Votes are now up!

Summer Recap

2008-08-30T17:56:00.000-07:00

As per usual, my posting is inconsistent at best. This is larger because I've noticed a year and a half out of college and my grammar and flow in creative writing has gone to hell. All the more reason I should continue posting. This, however, is a Summer Recap in pictures.

June 8th:
BB King at Perillo Music Shell

BB King closed out Blues Fest in his usual glory, his first appearance at the Chicago Blues Fest in 20 years. My second time seeing BB King live, I was not disappointed. Few musicians really seem to appreciate their art to be point it becomes them. BB King is one of the few.

June 28th:
Stevie Wonder at Perillo Music Shell

Another musical genius, Stevie Wonder, performs at the Taste of Chicago.

July 11th:
Feist at Ravinia

A beautiful show by an artist who does beautiful things on stage. Pictures to follow.

July 15th:
All About Eve

Brilliant movie amazingly written. Again, something I would have liked to talk more about at the time.

July 22nd:
The Odd Couple

As much as I love both of these actors, I had difficulty watching this movie as pathetic people are difficult to watch for hours at a time.

July 29th:
Blues Brothers

Nothing is as awesome as seeing your city in a movie, this is the case with Wanted, Ferris Bueller's Day Off, and All Batman movies. But Blues Brothers is an iconic staple of Chicago. Unfortunately, near the end of the movie a storm came through and Sonia and I decided to enjoy the summer storm and stroll through Millennium Park and played in the rain.

Movies of the Summer:
Iron Man: One of the best comic book movies I have ever seen. Robert Downey Jr. gains respect from me as an actor.
Wanted: One of the worst action movies I've ever seen, but Angelina has never looked more attractive, and the city looks as wonderful as ever.
Dark Knight: The best comic book movie I have ever seen. Heath Ledger was amazing as the Joker.
Tropic Thunder: Robert Downey Jr. gets even better, in a movie which certainly has some slow points, but some uproarious ones as well.
At Home:
The Orphange: I am honestly afraid of scary movies. I do not like them. So Sonia had to pull my teeth for weeks before I sat down and watched this with her. And it was truly beautiful. The story is great, the cinematography is gorgeous and everyone should see it.
Pan's Labyrinth: This received a lot more acclaim, and like the one above it, had the hand of Guillermo del Toro to direct it artistically.

That's a brief summer recap. More to come.

English Theory

2008-07-01T14:20:00.001-07:00

"Remarkably" is, in its very existence, a redundant word.

It only exists to proclaim something presently being remarked about.

Wisconsin, Ho!

2008-06-10T20:18:00.000-07:00

The newest developement in my career has me traveling to multiple destinations a week to inspect construction sites throughout the country. I've been given all of Wisconsin and Minnesota as markets over which I have purview. I have taken these moments to conduct an empirical study on the persons from these pleasant states. Wisconsin, our neighbor to the north, was particularly entertaining.

1. To begin with, the rumors about cows and cheese and beer are true, and both are those Wisconsinites proud of it. It is everywhere, particularly as you move northward, and many "chessy" monuments proclaim their pride in fields full of bovines, beer and cheese.

2. Wisconsites drive slowly. This is an understatement. I believe they may even never break the literal translation as speed LIMIT. Where this mindset was cultivated, I do not know, but it wasn't in Chicago and means it takes me forever to get anywhere.

3. Going along with the slow easy drive, may be the Wisconsin attitude of general friendliness. These people are really good damn easy to please, and boy, do they like to smile. Especially about cows, cheese and beer. Only three things can stir outward forms of aggression from them: A. Make fun of their football team
2. Make fun of their baseball team
D. Mention you are from Chicago
Though the kicker is to mock any and all monuments you come across with Favre as its centerpiece.

The funniest thing about Wisconsities and their friendliness, is they remind Chicagoans of Canadians. Funnily enough, Wisconsities see their neighbors to the north, Minnesota and the UP of Michigan, as the detestable pseudo-Canadians with the funny accents and friendly demeanors, just as we view them. It makes one wonder how Kentucky views us...

4. Perhaps one good reason for all the friend atmosphere, is the ridiculous quanitity of Christian music. Radio in Wisconsin is pretty damn awful. The most frustrating part of it, is that no two radio stations sound the same, but they all revolve around Wisconsin's Lord and Savior, Jesus (unless you are listening to an AM station, in which case the Lord and Savior is Brett). As you switch channels, you think, thank god, no more Christian Country, until you listen to the lyrics, and realize you are listening to Christian Rock, followed by Christian Gospel, Jazz, Easy Listening, Hard Rock, Blues. I went through 5 stations at one time, and got the word "Jesus" within the first 10 seconds of each, and then switched again.

In conclusion, if you like cows, beer, cheese, Christianity, pseudo-Canadians and safe drivers, Wisconsin is the place for you. If you like football, well, Favre is gone, Wisconsin (and his replacements don't look so hot).

That's the intrepid explorer, signing off.

Addendum: These natural laws are entirely void in Madison, a truly amazing city.

Overture

2008-05-22T18:00:00.000-07:00

I have had this blog since last September. Since last September, many wonderful, sad, joyous and wholly remarkable things have happened. Yet I have forgone remarking upon them.

This is largely due to the fact I always believed blogs like books need beginnings, something to define the character of the author or to set the mood of the narration being told. This theory has left me with 6 months of uncaptured memories.

Ergo, my name is David and this is my blog. It is about nothing in particular. It captures moments I hope not to forget, the smiles of friends, and the loss of loved ones. It will do its best to record life through my eyes and avoid the sappy swamps blogs often pull from their author's desperately introspective innards.

David's Blog Commences.