Here’s a glue guy, a performance god
A makeshift shrine, newly lain sod
Hardly even trying, gives the nod

I sure hope I’m not the type to dwell
Hope I’m a fast healer, fast as hell
Heaven is a better place today
Because of this, but the world is just not the same

If and when you get into the end zone
Act like you’ve been there a thousand times before
Don’t blame
Don’t say people lose people all the time anymore

A toonie to the busker, and a husky “Keep it comin’” under my breath
But then said, “Though if you wouldn’t mind,
Less crying and more trying and more trying and less crying”

I’m not the type to dwell
I’m a fast healer, fast as hell
Heaven is a better place today
Because of this, but the world is just not the same

Oh, if and, if and when you get into the end zone
Act like you’ve been there a thousand times before
Don’t blame
And don’t say people lose people all the time anymore
People lose people all the time anymore

If and when you get into that end zone
Act like you’ve been there a thousand times before
Don’t change
But don’t say people lose people all the time anymore

It’s just not the same
Because of this, it’s not the same

“AAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHH, SHADDUP!!!!!!!!”

That’s what I am so very sorely tempted to holler out my window at the
noisy bastards banging around below my window. Sadly, my fifth-floor
apartment does not provide 100% UV protection from the sound waves of
profane, yak-prone workers screwing around with something on the ground
floor. In fact, the acoustics of the building’s exterior only add to
the problem.

And now they’re listening to up-tempo rap music. God only
knows what they’re doing down there – I’m not even sure I want to know.

So here I am with a day off to relax before tomorrow’s rigourous
freight train, staring at my swollen powder-covered arms wishing all
this shit would just go away.
Last Wednesday, we were out working on freight equipment; and as I was
not expecting to have to cut up the underbrush, I went out there in a
short-sleeved shirt. I was promptly saddled with a chain saw and
instructed to remove encroaching vegetation from a sidetrack. Of course
the vegetation itself came up without a hitch, but I noticed some very
ugly brown spots on my right arm when I was done.

Oh, CRAP.

24 hours later, my forearms were bulging with poison sumac.

36 hours after that, I could barely move my right arm.

Please, God, don’t let this turn into a systemic reaction.

Miraculously (or maybe it was God answering that prayer ) I
was flexible enough to fire seven trips on Saturday; needless to say,
my sleeves were soaked at day’s end, although not from sweat.

So, off to the pharmacy with tired, grouchy old Chris. Thankfully, I
found an expensive but weightworthy concoction that penetrates the
skin, nice as you please, and neutralises the urushiol from poisonous
plants. Now all I have to contend with is the drainage – which is
driving me UP THE BLOODY WALL.

Good news is, the rash is going way back and scabbing over, and my arms
are starting to return to normal size. Additional good news is, the
engine steamed halfway decent on Saturday, in spite of dime-sized bits
of coal that typically produce more ash than heat. Best of all, Railfan
Weekend is nigh!! Two days of schmoozing with visitors (and actually
having time for it) and firing a nighttime train on Saturday…my first
Railfan Weekend and I can’t freaking wait.

Sooo….do yourselves a favour, friends, and don’t take to the bushes
without long sleeves and long pants. Even if you don’t think you’ll be
taking to the bushes, be prepared – else I shall tell you I TOLD YOU SO!!!!

Well, at least those noisy bastards down below are listening to Pearl
Jam now – I can actually open my bedroom window again. I wanna get back
to work.

Meanwhile, a bit of surveying fun yoinked from Jenny’s LJ……

BASICS…
(1) Your gender: Of the male persuasion.
(2) Straight/gay/bi?: Of the straight persuasion.
(3) Single?: Oh-ho yes.
(4) Want to be?: You better believe it.
(5) Your birthday: June 22.
(6) Age you act: Usually the age that I am (26). Under the influence of co-workers, though, probably more like 18.
(7) Age you wish you were: Right where I am, thank you kindly.
(8) Your height: 6’2″.
(9) The color of your eyes: Brown rimmed with greyish blue.
(10) Happy with it?: It has its kicks…
(11) The color of your hair: Brrrrown.
(12) Happy with it?: It’s the hair colour God gave me…why not??
(13) Left/right/ambidextrous?: Rightie.
(14) Your living arrangement?: All by me lonesome.
(27) Your family: Two parents, one sister, buttload of relatives on my mom’s side…all in New England and sorely missed.
(29) What’s your job: Train conductor/fireman.
(30) Piercings?: Fawk no.
(31) Tattoos?: Ditto.
(32) Obsessions?: Hmmm…trains, sci-fi, reading and writing…that about covers it.
(35) Do you speak another language?: A little bit of German and Greek.
(36) Have a favorite quote?: John Adams – “Let us dare to read, think, speak, and write.”
(37) Do you have a webpage?: Can’t say as I do.

DEEP THOUGHTS about life and you in it
(38) Do you live in the moment?: Most of the time, though I think a lot about the past and the future.
(39) Do you consider yourself tolerant of others?: A bit too much at times.
(40) Do you have any secrets?: Don’t we all?
(41) Do you hate yourself?: Oh yes, often.
(42) Do you like your handwriting?: All caps – that’s as neat as it’s gonna get.
(43) Do you have any bad habits?: Procrastinating and cracking my joints.
(44) What is the compliment you get most from people?: Me? Get compliments? Heh, not likely…though one guy told me recently that I work my #*$@!@&$^ off.
(45) If a movie was made about your life, what would it be called?: “Uphill Battle,” most like.
(46) What’s your biggest fear?: Failure.
(47) Can you sing: Love to. Can I? That’s another matter.
(48) Do you ever pretend to be someone else just to look cool?: Occasionally, when I’m not particularly self-satisfied.
(49) Are you a loner?: In the extreme.
(51) If you were another person, would you be friends with you?: Doubtful.
(52) Are you a daredevil?: Ho-ho, yeah.
(53) Is there anything you fear or hate about yourself?: The frequency with which I screw things up after doing them right the first time. Especially at work.
(54) Are you passive or aggressive?: Mmm…half-and-half.
(57) If you could change one thing about yourself?: Lengthen my attention span so I wouldn’t forget so many important things.
(58) There are three wells, love, beauty and creativity, which one do you choose?: Creativity – the other two are bone dry for me.
(59) How do you vent?: I don’t – I bottle, until something helps me forget.
(60) Do you think you are emotionally strong?: Tremendously. If I wasn’t, I would have crawled into a hole and died years ago.
(61) Is there anything you regret doing/not doing in life?: Man, I could write an epic novel about that…
(62) Do you think life has been good so far?: Not particularly.
(63)
What is the most important lesson you’ve learned from life?: That if I weaken, and let anyone or anything drag me down, I won’t be long for this world at all.
(64) What do you like the most about your body?: It can put up with several hours of hard physical labour without withering.
(67) Are you confident?: Sometimes.
(68) What is the fictional character you’re most like?: Don’t know. I’m me.
(69) Do people know how you feel?: Very, very rarely. If they do, they don’t give half a shit.
(70) Are you perceived wrongly?: Only all the time.


DO YOU…
(71) Smoke?: Hell, no.
(72) Do drugs?: Fuck, no.
(73) Read the newspaper?: On occasion.
(75) Go to church?: You bet.
(76) Talk to strangers who IM you?: Just enough to determine if I can have a two-sided conversation with them.
(77) Sleep with stuffed animals?: Nope.
(78) Take walks in the rain?: If it’s not too cold…
(79) Talk to people even though you hate them?: Only in the line of work.
(80) Drive?: Heh heh – almost everything from a Ford Escort to a C30-7 diesel locomotive.
(81) Like to drive fast?: Not unless the speed limit is high.

HAVE YOU EVER…
(82) Liked your voice?: Eh, I kind of like it now.
(83) Hurt yourself?: Many times, albeit not deliberately.
(84)
Been out of the country?: Yep.
(85) Eaten something that made other people sick?: Not that I can recall.
(86) Burped?: Heh heh…
(87) Been unfaithful?: Nope.
(88) Been in love?: Yes, and I don’t intend ever to do so again.
(89) Done drugs?: Fuck no.
(90) Gone skinny dipping?: Nevah.
(92) Had a surgery?: Couple of times.
(93) Ran away from home?: Nnnnno.
(94) Played strip poker: NNNNNO.
(95) Gotten beaten up?: Child of the 80′s…above-average I.Q….public school in greater Boston…you do the math.
(97) Been picked on?: Relentlessly.
(98) Been on stage?: Hoooo, yeah.
(99)
Been so drunk that you know you’re supposed to go out on a date with
someone, but you can’t remember with who or when and that you faint
when you look at yourself in the mirror in the morning, not to mention
your breath?: Even under those circumstances, I’ve never been that drunk, period.
(100) Slept outdoors?: Hmm-hmmmmm, yeah.
(102) Pulled an all-nighter?: Yessirree.
(103) If yes, what is your record?: ‘Bout 25 hours, give or take…man, I loved ROTC stay-awake-a-thons.
(105) Talked on the phone all night?: Nope.
(106) Slept together with the opposite sex without actually having sex?: Yup.
(107) Slept all day?: Once or twice, usually if I couldn’t sleep a wink all night.
(108) Killed someone?: Nooooooooooooooo.
(109) Made out with a stranger?: Not on your life.
(110) Had sex with a stranger?: Nothing doing.
(111) Thought you’re going crazy?: Once I really did, when it felt like everyone and everything in the immediate world wanted to crush me into the concrete.
(112) Kissed the same sex?: Uh-unh.
(113) Done anything sexual with the same sex?: Fuhgeddaboudit.
(114) Been betrayed?: Sure feels like it at times.
(115) Had a dream that came true?: Never.
(116) Broken the law?: No, although there was a time when the UNH PD tried to convince me I had. HA!
(117) Met a famous person?: Walter Koenig, Billy Dee Williams, John Kerry…but oh, I would hitchhike clear across north Jersey to meet Anne Hathaway.
(118) Have you ever killed an animal by accident?: Not that I remember.
(146) Stolen anything?: Nope.
(147) Been on radio/TV?: A few times – I’m hoping to appear on a railroad video later this year.
(148) Been in a mosh-pit?: Nevah.
(149) Had a nervous breakdown?: Close, but no cigar.
(150) Considered religious vacation?: Took a couple, if Christian camp counts.
(151) Been criticized about your sexual performance?: WHAT sexual performance?
(152) Bungee jumped?: Nope.
(153) Had a dream that kept coming back?: Never.

CLOTHES and other fashion
(154) Shoe brand?: Army-issue boots, preferably steel-toed.
(155) Brand of clothing?: Carhartt.
(156) Cologne/perfume?: English Leather, though I think it’s still at my parents’ place…
(157) What are you normally wearing to school/work?: Jeans and a fluorescent green T-shirt, or denim shirt and overalls, depending on where I’m assigned.
(159) Wear hats?: Engineer hat, me friends – it’s uniform.
(161) Wear make-up?: Not unless you count coal dust and soot.
(162) Favorite place to shop?: Get outta here.
(163) Favorite article of clothing?: My “Still Not King” T-shirt.
(164) Are you trendy?: Fuhgeddaboudit.
(165)
Would you rather wear a uniform to school?: Not on your life.

BELIEFS
(166) Believe in life on other planets?: In fact, I do. As big as the universe is, it seems like an awful waste of space if we’re the only ones here.
(167) Miracles?: Indeed – especially if this sumac rash clears up by the end of the week…
(168) Astrology?: No freaking way.
(169) Magic?: Nah.
(170) God?: You better believe it.
(171) Satan?: Well, why else would bad things happen to good people?
(172) Santa?: Eh heh, no…and I was harassed mercilessly about it in sixth grade.
(173) Ghosts?: Used to, but no, not really.
(174) Luck?: I should say so.
(175) Love at first sight?: It’s happened to me once or twice, but now I know better.
(176) Yin and Yang?: Hah???
(177) Witches?: Mmmmmmmm, no.
(178) Easter bunny?: Just the guy in the bunny suit who rides our Easter trains with the kids.
(179) Believe it’s possible to remain faithful forever?: Yes indeed, if you set your mind at it.
(180) Believe there’s a pot of gold at the end of the rainbow?: I dug for one once. Never found anything.
(181) Do you wish on stars?: Might have a couple of times, but by and large, no.

IT’S BAAAAAAAAAACK!!!

ARDA ONLINE: The Fellowchat of the Ring, Part 3



CaptainTook: so tell us, fireboy, how do you do that so well??

DurinsBane2187: easy…I’ve had to share the mines with those airheads ever since you lot smashed the bridge and trapped them in there

BlizzardWizard1138: and how, pray tell, did you get out…?

DurinsBane2187: later

D O O M 47: Each race is bound to this fate, this one…

D O O M 47: …DOOM.

PrttyInBlu: I’m not…I’ll be way up on cloud nine with my harem

YoungBluEyez: speak for yourself

RingKing2000: this is but a taste of the terror that the fangirls will unleash…

PrttyInBlu: terror??? dude, I love this

NOTTHEBEARD: pfft, you would…nobody appreciates a good stock of facial hair these days

PrttyInBlu: buzz off, Shorty, I’m basking happily in all this attention

PrttyInBlu: be nice if they could spell my name right once in a blue moon, tho…

DurinsBane2187:
uh, unless you guys want to look like me in short order, I suggest you
knock it off…the rest of us have more important things on our minds

PrttyInBlu: but what could possibly be more important than me???

D O O M 47: People!! We’re trying to hold a council here, if you don’t mind!!

PrttyInBlu: you know, I think our next council should be devoted to hair and skin care

NOTTHEBEARD: well good luck with that, you might as well start your own then

BuckleburyMerry: erm, don’t give him any ideas

PrttyInBlu: hmmm…The Council of Legolas…I like it

WhiteWizzywig: yeah we figured

YoungBluEyez: bah, he likes *anything* that has his name on it

DurinsBane2187: including but not limited to that horde of phony wedding invitations I incinerated the other day…

PrttyInBlu: ooh? do tell!

StillNotKing: guys, let’s change the subject, he’s enjoying the attention a little too much

PrttyInBlu: what, you jealous?

D O O M 47: Right, fandom menace. Let’s get back to it.

DaughterofKings has entered the room.

StillNotKing: *hides*

DaughterofKings: hey guys

PrttyInBlu:

WhiteWizzywig: great, the other one

DurinsBane2187: heh…let no man say that *I’m* smoking

PrttyInBlu: GET HER OUT OF HERE!

NOTTHEBEARD: ahh, NOW who’s jealous?

DaughterofKings: hey Gimli, thanks for the heads up

NOTTHEBEARD: no prob

DaughterofKings: so you guys need me?

RingKing2000: umm no, that’s ok, we’re fine…you can go

DurinsBane2187: can it, Ron

DurinsBane2187: ok, Eowyn, here’s the deal…

RingKing2000: eowyn, nm, that was just the witch king talking, he’s still typing for me

DaughterofKings: rrrright

DurinsBane2187:
speaking of whom, I just need you to do your “I am no man” number on
the next legion of airheads who come after Gilderoy over here

PrttyInBlu: harrumph

DaughterofKings: what’s in it for me?

DurinsBane2187: ummm…special date perhaps? *wink wink nudge nudge*

StillNotKing: DON’T YOU DARE

GreenthumbGamgee: hehe, this looks like fun

DaughterofKings: ooh, special date??? I’m in!

DurinsBane2187: sweet!

StillNotKing: dammit, where’s Eomer when I need him?

NOTTHEBEARD: hmm, hang on a sec…

Riddermeat59 has entered the room.

Riddermeat59: somebody call??

PrttyInBlu: AACCCKKKK!!!

DurinsBane2187: good good good, many have come!!!

RingKing2000: ehh, don’t make too many friends there buddy, we’ve still got a war to wage

PrttyInBlu: TOO MANY PRETTY PEOPLE!!! I CAN’T STAND IT ANYMORE!!!!!!

PrttyInBlu has left the room.

D O O M 47: Ahh, peace and quiet at last.

Riddermeat59: geez, all I did was put my helmet back on

DaughterofKings: yeah well, you ought to take some brasso to it, bro

D O O M 47: All right, now can we PLEASE get down to business??

Riddermeat59: well when do we get started?

DurinsBane2187: soon as the entmoot’s over

BuckleburyMerry: oh…great…let’s get comfortable

CaptainTook: anybody want some entwash??

StillNotKing: yeah, I could do with a buzz

DaughterofKings: *bats eyelashes*

StillNotKing: scratch that – I NEED a buzz

TO BE CONTINUED…

Edited to add: I am at last giving in to temptation and making “DurinsBane2187″ my own IM name. You can probably still catch me on Sebulba2179 occasionally, but I feel like LOTRing for a while.

Bourbon blues on the street, loose and complete
Under skies all smokey blue-green
I can’t forsake a Dixie-dead shake
So we danced the sidewalk clean

My memory is muddy, what’s this river that I’m in?
New Orleans is sinking, man, and I don’t wanna swim

Colonel Tom, what’s wrong? What’s goin’ on?
Can’t tie yourself up for a deal?
He said, “Hey, North, you’re south, shut your big mouth
You gotta do what you feel is real”

Ain’t got no picture postcards, ain’t got no souvenirs
My baby, she don’t know me when I’m thinkin’ ’bout those years

Pale as a light bulb, hangin’ on a wire
Suckin’ up to someone just to stoke the fire
Checkin’ out the highlights of the scenery
Saw a little cloud that looked a little like me

I had my hands in the river, my feet back up on the banks
I looked up to the Lord Above and said, “Hey, man, thanks”
Sometimes I feel so good I gotta scream
She said, “Gordie baby, I know exactly what you mean”
She said, she said
I swear to God, she said

Ohhhhhhhhhhh, no
Ohhhhhhhhhhh, yeah
My memory is muddy, what’s this river that I’m in?
New Orleans is sinking, man, and I don’t wanna swim
Swim!

God, what a mess.

Every time I’ve gone to check my E-mail this past week, I’ve been
greeted with pictures and horror stories of Katrina’s wrath. I don’t
know what hurt worse – thinking of the people who have been hit the
hardest by this catastrophe, or being under pain of awareness that
there was little else I could do besides pray. Thankfully there are
plenty of stores in my area that are engaged in relief efforts, as well
as my church; I planted the last of my pocket cash in the International
Orthodox Christian Charity collection as it was the best I could do at
the time.

Boy, am I glad payday is this week…my greatest regret right now is
that I have but one drop to toss in the bucket for those poor folk down
south. God, grant them a night’s rest and some peace of mind in the
days to come.

Weather is nice and cool and
breezy, although it looks a tad humid out there. And now, off I go to
cram accumulated tons of coal into the firebox for three days in a row
- again. Luckily our coal this week looks halfway decent.

*looks at calendar* Cheesh…it’s September already. Not that it wasn’t
expected – I mean, time does march on – but it’s hard to believe I’ve
been on the railroad for a year now. I’m aiming for many more to come.

God be with everyone who lies in the wake of Katrina’s ruin.