This week was a long week.  It’s always hard to come back after a vacation; especially when you’ve been off work for 2 solid weeks, taken a road trip to Plentywood Montana, and had an awesome holiday weekend.

It’s been some time since I’ve been on a road trip, so I had been looking forward to our trip to Montana for quite some time.  I couldn’t wait to leave my blackberry at home and get 1,200 miles away.

The drive out there was surprisingly fast.  Carpooling with the inlaws, we took shifts driving and plowed straight through, stopping only for gas and food.  The drive out took approximatly 27 hours and was 1,280 miles.  I passed my free time by reading Angels and demons, watching a few different movies on my laptop (no country for old men is very deserving of the Oscar for Best Picture.), chewing sunflower seeds, and aweing at the open vastness of the North Dakota and Montana countrysides.

I had an initial picture of our trip being very ‘frontier-like’.  I envisioned sitting around campfires, having some beer, and roughing it a bit.  But it was actually the opposite.  Plentywood has about 1800 residents, several restaurants, an ACE hardware, and a fully loaded sporting goods store.  There isn’t any fast food or Walmarts within a 2 hours drive – but Plentywood holds its own in Northeast Montana.

Most of the time was spent with family that we haven’t seen in a long time.  But I did get a chance to learn alot more about my wife’s side of the family, and gain an appreciation for the western atmosphere.  I felt refreshed and really enjoyed our time.

All in all – I took alot of pictures, bought a genuine cowboy hat, shot at gophers, loved Moose Drool, gazed at the clearest night sky I’ve ever seen, visited the Mall of America, gained 11 pounds, and had an amazing time.

Vanbergs and flo, thank you again for watching our home and pets.

I have said and written before that I believe music to be the most powerful, influential, and all affecting human art.  For me, looking at pictures or reading printed words pales in comparison to the effect that music can have on my entire soul.

Any feeling or emotion that I can or will experience has been emphasized, amplified, and fully experienced with the assistance of music.  Likewise – great music is capable of actually producing these feelings and emotions.  It’s really almost impossible for me to accurately articulate into words.

With that said, there are few and rare cases where a ‘song’ transcends the bounds of my mortality.  It becomes more than a catchy rhythm, more than a consistent beat, more than meaningful harmony, more than lyrics, more than vocals, and more than words can describe.  The only way i can find to describe this situation is that the artists do not simply play their instruments, write their lyrics, or sing their songs.  Rather, they wield pure and unbridled emotion via their instrument of choice; harnessing and culminating the entire universe’s energy into one cataclysmic event. (or, ‘song’).

One such artist is “Drist”.  One such song is “Dissolve”.

I am fairly convinced that this song my most favorite song that I have ever heard.  The combination of music, vocals, and lyrics pull my emotions from sorrow and empathy, through hope and inspiration, and finish at absolute contentment.   I find this nearly impossible because the lyrics are almost completely objective – but nevertheless, it is an amazing experience.

Different forms of music have different effects on different people.  This particular music has a profound effect on me.  And I thank the band Drist for the experience.

Listen to the song
Drist on MySpace

The lyrics:
Oceans arrived, let go
So sure, how could my confidence be wrong
I sacrifice, and hold the pain
Of each and everyday alone

All I know, is all I loved
All long forgiven
All I knew, are all my wrongs
I’ve long forgotten

Watch as the tide dissolves
So sure, that the lines I drew
Were all gone
I sacrifice and hold onto
The chance that I will soon dissolve

Break all your ties
Face the one
Held inside.
Take your breath
Keep your head
Held back while
I show you. See them
Watch it go

For the last two to three weeks, I have been stuck on the notion that I MUST own a bicycle.  I haven’t had a bike since I was probably 13 or 14, and I figure riding a bike is about 500 times more enjoyable than running.  I’ve been shopping around with the thought that I wanted a “roadish” bike that I could ride back and forth to work (4.1 miles) comfortably, but that could also hit a light path without dumping me.  I definitely didn’t want a full on road bike with the underhook type handle bars.  Doing a fair amount of research put me onto a class of bike called a “commuter” or “urban” depending on which brand you’re looking at.

I started looking at Trek, really because that’s the only bicycle brand that I’ve ever known to be top notch.  So, I spent alot of time shopping Trek bikes online and reading reviews about their different models.  In the end, I was certain that I would be purchasing a Trek SU 2.0 just from reading online about it.

Then i started to call around bike shops and ask some preliminary questions – what size frame do I need?  Is a Trek SU 2.0 going to do what I want it to?  What accessories are must haves?  etc.  From there, the next step was going into a bike shop and checking out the goods first hand.  And I was completely amazed that after one trip to a bike shop, some discussion with the biker guru employees, and a couple test rides – I had put a bike on layaway.  Not a SU 2.0.  Not even a Trek.  Rather, a brand and model I hadn’t even previously heard of: The Gary Fisher Wingra.

I picked up the bike last friday, and in the first 4 days of ownership I rode it 20 miles.  I rode it 8 miles home from the bike shop right after picking it up.  I road it to work a couple days this week (thank god our office has a shower.) and I rode around our neighborhood a few times just getting a feel for it.

The bike wasn’t too bad really pricewise – but I bought a speedo/odometer, a helmet, a lock, some bar end grips, a water bottle holder, a rack/pack carrier, and a little carry bag that attaches under the seat.  After all was said and done, we had to spend a little more than I liked – but I figured out that each day I ride my bike to work will save me about 2 bucks in gas – and I only live 4.1 miles from home.  Not to mention, riding my bike to work is a pretty good way for me to get some much needed exercise.

All in all – W00t Gary Fisher’s wingra.  Check out some pics.

To recap the last month, there have been several ups and downs.

Down – Comcast raised their cable prices.  I am convinced that this company is simply the worst company in the entire charted universe.  No company on any world terrestrial or extra, are more of a disgrace of business operations.  They are absolutely the most abysmal service providing body that I can ever imagine dealing with.  Ef comcast in the a.

Up – I cancelled my cable service and upped my netflix subscription.  Monthly bill instantly drops nearly 50 dollars.

Down – Wife’s car wont start, goes in for work, starts but then runs poorly, goes back in for more work, has check engine light come on, back in for MORE work (nearly 3 weeks now).

Up – I screamed at the dealer after becoming more enraged than i have ever been, and the last repair was free.

Down – I have been sick most of this week.

Up – I didn’t go to work most of this week.

Down – “Bad boys” with Sean Penn.

Up – Monty Python and the Holy Grail.

Down – Tax season

Up – Tax returns

Down – Spending tax returns on car repairs and doggie debt.

Up –  17 inch HP pavillion, dual core 64 bit processor, 256 meg video card, 160 gb hd, 2 gigs ram, webcam, fingerprint scanner, dvd writer, hdmi output, vista ultimate 64.

Now, level off a bit… life