magical, out from blown speakers

1. to the person who knocked the driver's side mirror off my car: RUDE. i've tried, but i can't imagine a scenario that would allow me to give you the benefit of the doubt: you were either drunk or reckless or attempting to reprimand bickering children in the backseat by not paying attention to where you were driving. and at very least, okay, accidents happen, but good people leave notes.

2. to new jersey: full-service gas stations still make me really nervous, i'd like to be able to turn left more freely, and i think it's weird and kinda fascist that it's so easy to get into the state but you have to pay to get out. still, congrats on being home to the best diner/restaurant in my (rather extensive) experience. that spana-quesadilla was tremendous. also, thanks for hosting my first encounter with hail in years (seriously... it was cool, and it wasn't the huge, damaging kind).

3. to the 40-some people i encountered at the temporary flight 93 memorial off route 30: is that an average day out there? it wasn't the anniversary of anything, and it was kind of a random time of day, so i wasn't anticipating so much company. it was a little surreal -- not bad, just surreal. on a completely separate note, the ginormous cross? out of place. (not as out of place as this gem we encountered in memphis, but it conjures up similar emotions and debates.) this is what separates people. this is what makes some people even more passionately emotional about 9/11 and what really turns some people off and makes them cynical about the entire thing. it's possible (a wild thought, i know) that not everyone on flight 93 being honored by the memorial would have considered that respectful tribute. even for me, it cheapened an otherwise powerful experience -- probably not the intended effect.

in a few hours (hopefully after a nap), mark and i are departing for a magical week at disney's hilton head island resort for his birthday. it may thunderstorm the entire time, but mark my words, we will be on the beach. period.

i've become lazy in my blogging. it'll pick up again when i get back to some semblance of normalcy in my schedule. until then, a gift:

sean fournier : oh my
a free album. (really, it's not viruses or anything.) fyi, when you do "click here for the free album," the page to which it takes you plays music, so... you know... don't open it at work. i recommend "put the world on stop" as your first listen. he can get a little smarmy, but i figure, somebody's gotta balance out the lyrical genius of flo rida. (in semi-related news, t-pain is a month older than me. who else feels just a tiny bit like their life potential might have already peaked? at least i've got my dignity. sort of.)

and another gift, because you are so very pretty: