Pain

I've been injured a lot in my life so I'm no stranger when it comes to pain. However, I came home last night being bothered by my left achilles' tendon. I tried to walk down the stairs to get my morning papers and I could barely put weight on it. I took a muscle relaxer to hopefully allow me to walk the 1 mile to class. Another sad part is...it's only Monday. I have 4 more nights of this crap until the weekend. I work with really heavy loads and I do remember lifting more heavy boxes yesterday than usual. I also moved more packages than I usually do. They tell me to get over 1,000 scanned packages a night and I got 1,300 last night. That should get me some recognition at work. However, I'm afraid to tell them that I hurt. Maybe they'll give me light duty for one day. I just don't want the red tape attached to all the legal paperwork and the bureaucracy crap. Hope I feel better by 4pm. I'll go into work, regardless, but we'll see how well I feel later today. Spiral out.

What I Love About Seattle

Here is a list of things I love about the city of Seattle:

1. The smell of bum's urine
2. Starbucks every block and on every other corner
3. The lack of parking
4. I-5 during rush hour
5. I-5 before and after a Seahawks and Husky game
6. Bums sleeping by and peeing on my recycling/garbage bin
7. The crazy lady next to me and her inability to park a car straight
8. The middle finger
9. No Burger Kings
10. Headshops
11. Perfectly healthy people begging for money

Open Letter to Red Sox Fans

Roger Dorn once said, "cut through the crap Vaughn. I've only got one thing to say to you...". I'll leave the rest out because it doesn't apply here. However, the tone in which that was said does apply here. After feeling sorry for Boston Red Sox fans for so many years, I can finally say, "Shut the hell up!" I've hated the NY Yankees my entire life for the simple fact that they were always good. I know that isn't a valid reason to hate someone or something, but it's true. I enjoy struggle and watching the team adjust through difficult times. The Yankees are now going through this and I'm enjoying every minute of it.

Now, I enjoyed watching the 2004 postseason and anyone who knows anything about baseball knows why I feel that way. It was great to watch. However, after that year I have started to hate Boston and their fans in the same manner that I hate Yankees and their fans. They are all pompous assholes that walk around all day with their noses in the air. Why? Have you guys forgotten the difficulties that you went through to get here? Enjoy the moment, don't rub it in our faces. I have no problem watching a team win a major event, but I do have a problem with their fans rubbing it in everyone's faces...especially mine. I have never had a team win it all. I've had the Mariners win 116 games in 2001 only to lose to the Yankees. I have been there when the Seattle Seahawks went to Super Bowl XL only to lose the game due to terrible calls and an East Coast atmosphere. I have never been able to run in the streets, partying with my fellow sports fans. This doesn't get to happen much around here in Seattle. To add to that misery, our beloved Seattle Supersonics appear to be heading out of town at the end of the season.

The point that I'm tying to make is this: if you win, win with class; if you lose, do so in a respectful manner. Sports is about change and struggle. That's why more men watch sports than soap operas. The drama is so thick that you could cut it with a knife. I enjoy watching those types of games. I remember being emotionally hurt after watching Chris Webber call a timeout against North Carolina in the NCAA final; Seattle come up short against Green Bay in the playoffs; the Mariners toss their MLB's best record down the drain by losing to the Yankees, etc.

To the fans in Boston and New England: shut the hell up! You have a team that has finally figured out how to win games (spending a lot of $$$). You also had the Boston Celtics that won more championships than I could count during their existence. The New England Patriots are off to the best start ever this year and have been the team to beat since Drew Bledsoe injured himself and Tom Brady came in. Now, you have the Red Sox...2-time World Series champs. Win and celebrate with dignity. Don't come out to Seattle next year to drink loads of beer and taunt our fans who come to merely enjoy the game. Seattle has some of the best fans in the country and I'll say that until the day that I die. When the Red Sox are playing the Mariners...don't shout unnecessary things, don't taunt our fans that have never experienced what you have experienced, and don't rub winning in the faces of the loser.

If you do you'll put the Red Sox in the same boat as the Yankees...and you don't want that...believe me. So enjoy this win Boston, but if you don't do it respectfully prepare to face an abundance of hatred whereever you may play.

Question...

What is it about this new boot fad with women today? They look like moon boots with slaughtered animal fur on them. Just wondering. Spiral out.

After Two Years

Daniela and I agreed to end our two year relationship yesterday. I want to say that she is an amazing person with an exceptionally large heart. I hope that she succeeds in all that she pursues because she deserves nothing less. I'm glad that we decided to remain a part of each other's lives because we owe that to ourselves. There will be many things about her that I'll miss, but it was something that had to be done. I'll always love you Daniela and I want to thank you for giving me some of the best years of my life. Spiral out.

University of Washington

Well, well, well. Here I am. I finally have both of my feet on the ground in my first semester at UofW. Thus far, I have been reading non-stop. It's not bad, but it does cut into my personal time. I started my new job at UPS last Monday. On the 15th I will be officially loading trucks, etc. It may not seem like much, but it's a physical workout. I have missed physical labor for so long. I didn't mind working in an office, being confined to a chair for 8 hours a day. However, it does take a toll on your ability to stay in shape and get paid for something that doesn't require much brain activity. This is the perfect college job. They pay $3000 for my tuition ($1500 for two semesters), they loan me $2000 a year for up to 4 years (after 4 years of employment I only have to pay back the interest), I will have full medical benefits, complete dental and eye care, and the hours are perfect (5pm-10pm Monday-Friday).

I have everything that I'm going to need for the next 4 years of my life. That's right, I plan on getting a master's degree out of this. I've waited too long for this and there is no way that I'll go back to the work-force without all of my schooling done. I feel as though I have a decent grasp on the material, but it's the reading that is killing me. I get, roughly, 5 hours of sleep a night. I walk to Tully's (Starbuck's major competitor and a fair trade shop) each morning for a cup of joe. Didn't like coffee a few years ago, but that has changed.

I feel extremely old here and I can tell by the way that these kids talk. The majority of them don't seem immature, but when they open their mouths the difference becomes apparent. I'm taking three 5 credit courses right now: International Conflict, International Human Rights, and Fantasy Literature (not something I planned on taking, but does help me graduate). The reading is intense and I find it hard at times to devote adequate time to this.

I love the fact that I don't drive 75 miles each day (when I was at my old job of 4 years) and I don't miss getting road rage. I admit it, I get road rage pretty bad sometimes. I never flip someone off or scream at them. I merely honk my horn and think to myself, "I wish they would get genital herpes." You see? This isn't 1984 and there are no Thought Police.

I will post on here as much as I can. Hope all of you are doing well and I'd love to hear from you all. Until then...spiral out.

The Seattle Seahawks

I feel that the Seattle Seahawks should trade Shaun Alexander for a cheaper, younger running back. The last two games he has amassed a total of 70 yards. The Seattle Seahawks will shoot themselves in the foot if they can't mix things up. A passing game is all they have right now and that won't be too efficient because the running game is too weak. Just a thought.