42 and 43

I think I can safely say that this is the first birthday where I actually feel older than I did the day before.  Still, even though there's a hole in my heart that goes all the way to China, I've had a fun and relaxing week, eaten some great meals, seen some lovely sights, and caught up with a few old friends.

My vacation (which I began thinking of as my "honey-less-moon") started on Friday the 20th, and when I arrived at Budget to pick up my rental car, I discovered they didn't have any compact cars, despite the reservation I'd made (which brought to mind a scene from "Seinfeld," though I chose not to make my own scene).  I ended up with a shiny red Chevrolet Cruze instead, for an additional $5 a day, which was an acceptable resolution to me.

Some highlights from that long weekend: gazing out over New Jersey, New York, and Pennsylvania while enjoying the silence at High Point State Park; cruising eastbound along US Route 6, the Grand Army of the Republic Highway, toward the Palisades Interstate Parkway and the Tappan Zee Bridge; being told to leave Sleepy Hollow Cemetery because I was wandering the grounds after hours (though not before I got this picture):

The gravestone of "Legend of Sleepy Hollow" author Washington Irving

having a few drinks at O'Malley's Bar in Nyack (any fans of Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds' album Murder Ballads?); watching the Vixens En Garde and the Washing Well Women at the New York Renaissance Faire; taking in the view from Lovers Leap, CT; relaxing in the jacuzzi in my room at the Hotel Vienna in the Catskills Saturday night; doing 95 on 95; visiting New London, Groton, and Mystic in Connecticut; seeing the grave of another author, one Howard Phillips Lovecraft, in Providence, Rhode Island; consuming more beers at Trinity Brewhouse; devouring chocolate French toast at Zaftigs on Monday morning; and revisiting Walden Pond.

Some lowlights from the weekend: seeing the Kissing Bridge at the Renaissance Faire and ruminating over how Laura and I took pictures on it the past two years; seeing a sad look cross a little green faery's face at the Faire when she saw the BulletHole Heart T-shirt I was wearing (it only got sadder when I acknowledged that "there's a hole in my heart");

The shirt in question

discovering that I couldn't walk over the Lovers Leap Bridge because of a missing decking plate; and running into traffic in Brookline, MA (due to a gas main break) on my way to breakfast and Clifton, NJ (due to a car fire) on my way home.

Before hitting that last pocket of traffic, though, I stopped at Best Buy to get myself an early birthday present: the Google Nexus 7, which I have decided to call "Nixie" in honor of geek girl Nixie Pixel.  I've already added several apps and done some tweaking, and I'm liking the mini-tablet very much.  It was nice to see the birthday greetings from Google on it this morning:

And yes, I'm a fan of all things Apple, but I decided to go with the Nexus rather than the iPad Mini because a) it's cheaper, and b) I've wanted to play around with Android for a while now.  Jelly Bean 4.3 seems pretty cool so far.  While I've always been reluctant to read books in any format other than, well, books, I've started re-reading Thoreau's Walden (since I was just there) on the Nexus 7, and thus far I'm pretty comfortable with the format.

I headed back to Tarrytown on Tuesday in the company of one of my former Talented And Gifted Students classmates, Sue, to meet with another, Joycelynn, and the three of us had a wonderful dinner (and two pitchers of sangria) at Bistro 12, and did some thinking about the reunion we want to plan for the spring.  On Friday, another longtime friend, Dawn, and I walked over the Brooklyn Bridge, rollerbladed from one end of Central Park to the other, and downed some guacamole and margaritas at Rosa Mexicano.  If you want to see more pictures from all these travels, they're posted here, so enjoy!

I saw my parents yesterday, watched an amazing film last night, "The Legend of 1900," on the recommendation of a friend... and here we are.  It's my 43rd birthday.  I finished recording "So Much Further" this past week, too, and uploaded the song today; please give it a listen here, and I'd love to hear what you think, and if you wanted to share it with friends, so much the better.  C'mon, it's a free birthday gift to me.  ;-)  I've gone back to finishing the lyrics to "They Might Be Roses," and I plan to finish writing another song called "42" shortly, so there should be at least another recording or two before the end of this year, as long as I can stay focu-

Dates

Ten years ago today, Gina and I started our relationship together, though I don't think either of us realized right away that that was what was happening.  It didn't last forever, as I'd hoped, nor did it maintain the initial burning intensity for more than... I don't know, the first eight months or so, but it was a big part of my life.  Anyway, that's long past, and I'm not commemorating it or anything; I mention all this only because the date's still stuck in my head.  I've always been enchanted by numbers in general, and particularly by dates, and they tend to stubbornly implant themselves into my brain.  (Yes, ladies, I'm the exception to the rule, the guy who will remember anniversaries and birthdays!)

Speaking of birthdays, my nephew Shawn's is coming up, and I'll be going to his party on Sunday, September 8th.   There's a guitar/bass flea market in Rahway on Saturday, September 14th that I'm thinking about checking out.  I don't really need any new musical gear, I don't think, but... what the hell.  I'm starting to spend more time playing guitar again, and I want to get back to recording, too.  I'm also thinking about running in a 5K in Lyndhurst on Sunday, September 15th.  With any luck, I'll do a little better than Slime's Doug the Slug.  Feel free to come cheer me on, or assist the EMTs in identifying me.  Whatever.  If I do it, it will be my first 5K, and I'll have Laura to thank for getting me to even consider it.

Then there's Saturday, September 21st.  That was supposed to be Laura's and my wedding date, four days after what would've been our two-year anniversary together.  Clearly, we're not getting married now (though a few people seem to have missed the news, leading to painful awkwardness all around), but I think we're still getting together that day.  Circumstances have been difficult for both of us, but we still care for each other, and it'll be nice to spend the day with each other even if it's not the way we'd originally planned.  She's more a part of my life than Gina ever was.

Of course, I'm probably not going to see her for my birthday the following weekend (the 29th, in fact), and that is going to suck.  The week between our wedding day and my birthday was intended to be our honeymoon in Maine, and I haven't decided how I'm going to spend it now.  Regardless, I'm going to be well aware of the fact that I'll be alone when I wasn't supposed to be...

To try to keep it from being the worst birthday ever, I believe I'm going to buy myself a new toy, that Google Nexus 7 tablet I've wanted for a while.  Depending on when it becomes available, and how much petty cash I have left, I may snag the new iPhone, too.  (Note: this isn't a "hint" to throw me a big surprise party or buy me anything.  I've had my big parties, and I'm not especially materialistic.  It's just that I was expecting to be newly wed on my birthday, and instead I'll be... well, you know.)

Some days are better than others, although every day I come home from work, I still look for a car that I know isn't going to be there.  I'm not simply sitting around moping, however.  Sure, I'm doing a little moping, but I'm also coping, and I've been getting together with friends and family, playing some loud electric guitar (and jamming with my Not An Exit mate, Jon), making healthy fruit smoothies, enjoying "Under the Dome," walking, running on the treadmill, playing with the chinchilla and the cat (not at the same time!), working on Slime, and heading out to see live music (think I may go check out another band tonight, as a matter of fact).  I'm still doing things.  I'm just finding them a little less fun without someone with whom to share them.

Like Medjool dates.  They are really tasty.  Laura and I both like 'em very much, and she'd share them with me.  :-)