Well, all hell broke loose as my dad showed up at my apartment to bitch about the car that I mentioned was now not working. Unfortunately, the Pook had to deal with some of it while I was at work. I apologized to her. My dad can be a nice guy at times, but mostly,he is a Type A prick who yells, screams, and intimidates people with his physical size to get his way. He is the essence of the school yard bully grown up.

Example: Dad went to a store of a major home improvement company that I work for. He either got into in with another customer or an employee. Weeks later, when I spoke to Mom to get some details as to what happened, she said, “You know how your daddy is. The judge gave him probation.”


On the way in to the office, I saw a woman who looked like Clarissa. I know it isn't her, but I looked anyway. I know that she's been dead for two years. At the same time, the funeral service was closed casket. I guess that I never got the last little bit of closure on it. I never got to see her for myself. My mind sometimes wanders. Maybe she's not really dead. Maybe she faked her death and is working as a bartender in a bar on Virginia Street in downtown Reno. Or maybe she's gone off and decided to become a student at Wichita State. Yeah, I know that's not likely. Like I say, my mind sometimes wanders.


Often my mind does wander to Reno. I lived there for a while two years ago. At the time,things were tough all over. However, I consider Reno, like my place of birth of Atlanta and the University of Georgia’s home city of Athens, home. My heart is tied to these three cities. What is about Reno? Lots of things, especially the things that Georgia isn’t.You can drink beer 24/7. Lots to do. If you need to go to California, you’re only a 10 minute drive away. It take 2 hours to get to Sacramento, 4 hours to get to San Fran, and8 hours to get to Los Angeles. I enjoyed looking at thew Sierra Nevada mountain range. I dig Hot August Nights, where you can watch the parade of antique cars. I like the Reno balloon races. Yeah, I miss Reno. Got to get back there soon.

Some people at work were talking about the whole Kobe Bryant fiasco. The general consensus is that the woman was out to get paid. In spite of what others think, I do believe that the woman’s sexual activities days before and after the alleged rape is relevant. It helps to establish an alternate theory. That, and the fact that the victim had intercourse with Bryant and two other men within days of each other may explain any bruising. I ‘m no expert and I only have a BA in psychology, but I find it highly unlikely that a woman that was raped on Monday will have consensual sex with two different men on Wednesday. I don’t believe that you can sell that to a jury. The only two people who know what really happened in that room is Kobe and that woman. Guilty or not guilty of rape, Kobe brought this on himself. He did cheat on his wife. For that indiscretion alone, he is paying for it. Believe me.


Right now, I’m reading Elizabeth Wurtzel’s Prozac Nation. Very interesting so far. It's the tale of how she battles her clincal depression. She’s talking about the fact that her mom and dad were at each other’s throats. Her parents got divorced. Mom got custody and had to work these crappy part time jobs to make ends meet. She also talks about how she used to cut herself at school while listening to Patti Smythe or Foreigner. You have to read in with the mindset that clinical depression IS a disease. Yeah, we all get down from time to time because of the events in this crazy world. That’s the way the pickle squirts. However, when you are so down that you can’t even get out of bed or eat or work and it last for months, professional help is needed. Everyone needs a little help every now and then.

Hurricane Ivan is now a category 5 hurricane, the strongest level possible. At this point, I’m praying that it hits Tampa soon. My employer has a satellite office in Tampa. If they get hit, we get their work which means overtime! Sorry, but I need the money. I do hope that my friends in Florida are okay. Then again, they’re natives. I think they’ll be okay.