Hockey Game . . .

Lightning!

Got off work early!

Today I woke up kinda late, which felt really nice since I worked until 12 the night before.

Ethan and Caleb came over, we went for a walk and enjoyed the weather and the company. I love the kind of friendships where you can be together and not have to exchange words. It is that kind of comfortabl silence that lets you know that you are in good company.

I had to work from 5:30 to 10:30, but I got let off early.

After work I jetted over to Angela's for a big bonfire. Once again I was surrounded by good company, including: Angela, Tim, April, Liz, Lauren, Elise, Ethan, James, Caleb, Chris, JK, Matty, and Zack.

Campfire conversations always seem to regress to childhood nastalgia, which always brings me comfort.

::EDIT::

Oh yeah, I almost forgot. I went to Guitar Center today and got a nmew pick guard for my Strat, Got a harmonica holder, and picked out the acoustic I want for Graduation!

Speaking of Graduation . . . there is nothing that I am looking forward to more (Besides post-prom)!

Worked really late tonight . . .

Finished Catcher in the Rye . . .

Flowers for Anna . . .

Sorry it's late . . .

Corrupted Files . . .

I saw some really beautiful spring flowers that reminded me of Anna, so I took a few shots.

I was really excited to post them, but when I got home I found out that my files were corrupted.

I had to snap this one really quick.

Sorry Anna! I'll find some more flowers later

Woodfield...

Worked most of the day.

Met my mom for coffee.

Went to woodfield with Caleb and Ethan.

Had some good laughs.

Saw Michael Keaton!

Today I went down to the city with Ethan.

My cousin's grandpa lives right next to this house that they are filming a new Michael Keaton movie at. The movie is called "The Merry Gentleman". Supposedly it is a Christmas themed hitman movie (hahaha). Anyway, we headed over to Don and Marlene's to check out the set. The neighbor who owns the house (Julius), is a frumpy old nintey year-old man who does not believe in the holocaust. Quite an interesting fellow. Outside of the holocaust denial, he was a pretty nice guy. He let us walk through his house and see the sets, cameras, lighting, etc. It is crazy being on a Hollywood set, there are so many miniscule little things that you never see. They have his house covered in black plastic sheets because they like to create their own day-time light, They raised every piece of furniture in the kitchen up by about an inch, and they have beams running across the ceiling to hang equipment from. After we toured the house we just hung around with Don, Marlene, and Bob. They are extremely interesting people. Ethan and I were planning on staying there for an hour, but spent almost three hours there (then went back later).

After experiencing Hollywood, Ethan and I drove down to Wrigley field since there was a Cubs game going on. Wrigley field always has the best atmosphere in baseball season. The morale and sense of community really draws you in. We stopped at Reckless Records, and met a really friendly lady at Walgreens. As we were leaving we drove through DePaul so I could show Ethan where I am dorming at.

From there we went to My Uncle Jim's house that he is building. I had mentioned the house in a previous post. My sister, Gabby, and Jenn were there helping my uncle with some finishing touches before the big opening this Wednesday. We helped them out then went back to Don and Marlene's.

Back at Don and Marlene's we were invited to go to the elementary school where they were feeding the cast and crew of the movie. As we were walking up, Michael Keaton was walking out. We didn't meet him, but it's cool (There are only a few Michael Keaton movies that I really enjoy.) We hung out for a little while longer then went back home.

At home I stopped by Martyna's for a while, but ended up at Angela's for the rest of the night with her and April.

Oh, Friday . . .

Nothing special happened today.

Hungout with Frank and Max, then went to work.

It's nice to know that I have some money heading my way!

Bowling Birthday Party!

Today I worked right after school, which was actually quite enjoyable. I had some friends come and visit (although they did not stay long, haha).

I jetted out the door right when I got off of work because it was April's suprise birthday party at Metro Bowl. I picked up Max and Frank and we got there just in time to miss singing Happy Birthday. It was alright though, because the party was amazing. We had cake, and pizza, we bowled, danced, and had the entire alley to ourselves.

I really do love Metro Bowl, it's beginning to feel like home.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY APRIL!!!!

P.S. Sorry the quality of the pictures is so bad. The lighting was far less than adequate so I was forced to set my ISO to 1600.

Tuxedo Shopping . . .

Prom is almost here!

Today Max, Jake, and I went Tuxedo shopping. Unfortunately I forgot my camera! It was fun though, we had a lot of good laughs. Jake is going to look just like James Bond.

After we finished up at the Tux shop, we met up with Jeff back at my house for a little jam session. We rocked out country style with Jake's guitarjo. We finally settled down and Julia and Ethan came over. We spent the rest of the night watching the Wilco DVD for the billionth time.

The Perfect Day!

Today was amazing! Every aspect of it, honestly. The Weather, the company, the atmoshpere.

After school I went to Veteran's Acres with James, Ethan, Frank, Max, Nick, Nathan, Chris, Korea, and Dan. We hiked around, talked, had some great laughs, and enjoyed the weather and company. We played a sweet game of frisbee in the field, got some great pictures in the woods, and had an amazing conversation on the pier.

After VA, we went to our second home, Metro Bowl. We could only bowl one game because the leagues were having their championship, but that was fine.

Ethan and James headed back to me with my house for Pizza and a movie. James had this game that we was intent on playing called The 555 Challenge. Dominos pizza has the deal where you can buy three pizzas for 5 dollars each, and the rules of the game are simple: Three people, three pizzas, three stomaches. Each of us ate a whole pizza while watching Stand By Me.

Stand By Me is, hands down, in my all time top 5 favorite movies (That was a High Fidelity reference). If you haven't seen it, you should. It is a story about friendships and who will really be there for you in the end. I have some really close friends who would do anything for me (and Visa Verca), and this movie is one that I can relate to completely. Another aspect of the movie I can relate to are the people who claim to be friends, but you know they would never stand up for you or go out of their way for you. I'm not saying that that is a bad thing, but I am dedicated to my friends.

Today was perfect, and I am so thankful for the people who I got to spend the day with.

Worked Today . . .

Today was my first day at work. It was a good experience, and I think I am really going to like it here. I know the manager really well and I know a few of the employees, so it was really easy to acclimate. I work a few stores down from Lauren Freeburg, and that's a plus since she is awesome!

After work I went to Around the Clock to Celebrate Elise's 18th Birthday.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY ELISE!

Not your typical Sunday . . .

Today I went up to Genoa with my mom to take some pictures of a house she is selling. It's kind of funny because my dad's cousin built the house and now my mom is is selling it. Anyway, I had a good car ride with my mom, talking and laughing. It always makes me laugh that Crystal Lake seems like it leans towards an urban/ urban suburb feel than a country feel, yet you drive 20-25 minutes in any direction and it's farms.

After we went to the house we went to my cousins. I got to see my cousins, which was great because I haven't seen them in a while. I took some pictures of Ben and Matthew (Ben is the younger, Matthew is the older). Those guys wear me out. They were excited since they found a deer skull in the woods. I took them out so they could look for more "artifacts" since they were now going to be archaeologists.

Later on I hungout with Frank and got a job.

P.S. HAPPY BIRTHDAY DAD!!!

Triple Birthday Party . . .

Today Jake woke me up and asked me to go to Woodfield with him, so of course I accepted. On the way, Jake picked up a Banjitar (or guitarjo). It is really sweet, and it kept us entertained for the whole car ride. I'm excited to see what we can do with it.

We took some pictures at this barn that I have been dying to get photos of, and it resulted with a run-in with the law. The cop was nice, and he was just concerned because we had our hazard lights on.

Later on I went to Liz, April, and Elise's joint birthday party. I have never been to a better birthday party! They rented a moon bounce and had a huge bonfire. The make-up of the party was so diverse, which I think added to the fun!

Today was a good day!

P.S. HAPPY BIRTHDAY MOM!!